The freezing rain pelted the windshields of the cars parked in the crowded lot of the Schenley Quadrangle on a cold evening last semester. A handful of female students waited in line outside of Holland Hall to sign their parents into the building so they could unload their groceries and the luggage they brought back from Thanksgiving break.
One student sighed with impatience, and her breath created a fog as it passed through the chilly air.
“I hate how I have to sign you guys in every time,” she said to her parents as she maneuvered her cart full of luggage and plastic bags around the corner and into the lobby.
Pitt’s residence hall security policy is one of the most stringent in the state.
Other schools, like Slippery Rock and Penn State universities, only require students to swipe their card to open the door to the building. Thus, they can give access to whomever they wish by simply opening the door for guests.
A few blocks away from Holland Hall, Kaitlin Farrell and Jamie Powers leaned against the wall in the lobby of Ruskin Hall, waiting for other students to sign in parents and friends so they could gain access to their apartment on the sixth floor.
“It’s annoying, but I think it’s necessary,” said Farrell of the security policies. “Especially in the city.”
But it’s not only the policy that’s more stringent, said Pitt police community relations officer Ron Bennett. The University also hires security guards with more training.
“Many schools use student aids for the residence halls,” said Bennett. “But we use a full-time security agency, and we meet with U.S. Security on a monthly basis to discuss any issues.”
The guest sign-in policy’s benefits are two-fold, said Bennett. Not only does it help officials identify who was in the building and when, but it also makes students more responsible for their guests.
“If someone violates the Student Code of Conduct, they might face sanctions that include being persona non grata, or not permitted on University property or a particular residence,” he said.
Bennett said the most commonly reported crime in residence halls is theft — usually of electronic items, such as mp3 players or laptops.
“It’s the crime of opportunity,” he said.
According to the Pitt police’s campus crime report, people reported 15 burglaries in campus residence halls last year. They reported 23 in 2006.
If a student’s guest commits a crime or breaks any other part of the code of conduct, not only will the guest be placed on the persona non grata list, but the student who signed the guest in might face disciplinary actions as well.
Student Government Board President-elect Kevin Morrison said that while this year’s SGB session hasn’t officially started — inauguration is this Thursday — the new SGB is committed to improving student safety.
“We are open to dialogue with Residence Life to see if there is a way in which we can formulate a new policy that enables the administration to maintain a safe living environment for on-campus students while expediting the process as it stands,” he said.
Security guard Gail McWhorter said, as she swiped several students into Ruskin Hall, that she likes the school’s current policy, “but at certain times, it’s a little extreme.”
She has been a Pitt security guard for two years. She worked both the Saturday and the Sunday of Thanksgiving break as parents were bringing students back.
“[The sign-in policy] is time-consuming after the holidays when you have your parents and grandparents helping you move in with groceries and everything,” said McWhorter. “It would be great if they could wear the wristbands like they do during move-in. We need to have something here where we can identify family members.”
She calls Sundays “food days.” Signing in parents on those days, when students take multiple trips to the car to haul groceries, can become very time-consuming — especially for an apartment-style dorm like Ruskin Hall where students commonly cook for themselves.
Powers is among the students who like to see the process speed up.
“I don’t think you should have to sign in other Pitt students,” she said. Her friend has a small single dorm in Tower C, so she spends a lot of time with her friends in the more spacious Ruskin apartments.
“I don’t see why they can’t just check to make sure that Pitt students aren’t on the [persona non grata] list without making us sign them in,” said Powers.
McWhorter agreed.
“Maybe another ID-card reader that checks to see if they’re not on the list,” she said. She jokingly called it her “Christmas list.”
Another issue is weekend guests. McWhorter said it becomes too tedious when a student has a friend who visits for the weekend and the guest needs to be signed in every time he leaves the building.
“There needs to be weekend guest passes — something that they could wear,” she said. “That way, they don’t have to do it every time they come in and out, in and out.”
“Other than that, I like the procedures,” said McWhorter. “In case there is something damaged within the building … they can find that person.”
In addition to the guest sign-in guidelines, Pitt has also recently installed computerized locking devices on most of the residence hall doors. A student needs to swipe his ID card and enter a four-digit PIN number to gain access to the room.
“The system is designed mainly to prevent others from entering the room,” said Bennett.
The locks are connected to a main database, and every time a student opens or deadbolts his door, it is recorded into the system.
“We do not monitor the doors,” said Bennett. “But it does allow us to retrieve information in case of an emergency.”
Another benefit to the computerized locks is that lockouts are much easier to deal with. If a student loses his ID or leaves it in the room, all it takes is a quick call to Panther Central to retrieve a lockout code from the computers. The student will need to verify his identity with Panther Central and use the lockout code within the allotted time frame.
Still, officials don’t want students to become irresponsible because lockouts are easy to solve, so a student is only allowed three lockout codes per semester. Any additional code costs $20.
McWhorter said she handles a few lockouts a week at Ruskin Hall, which houses 416 students.
Back in the building’s lobby, Powers’ friend had finally arrived, but she still had to wait for other students to sign guests in before it was her turn. When she got to the front of the line, she picked up the guest book that she had used countless times before.
“They changed it again,” she said as she scribbled out her name because she placed it in the wrong field.
“I swear it’s different every time I come down here,” she said. “My name used to go before her address.”
“I think my card should swipe into Ruskin by now so I can let myself in,” her friend said, laughing. “I’m here enough.”
Pitt sign-in system among strictest in state
Published: Monday, January 5, 2009
Updated: Monday, January 5, 2009
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