Editorial

College Reinstates Restricted Access

The College’s planned 14-day period of limited dorm access for this Winter Term is based on poor logic, as it is ignorant of actual student behavior. The College believes that limited access inherently equals safer resident halls, and that normal dorm access does not look at “security clearly” [see article, page 3]. They offer no substantiation for this claim. Many students think that limited access is an inconvenience that encourages the propping of doors. The College also has no real rebuttal to this. Instead of addressing this serious concern, the College shifts the blame to the students.
Director of Residential Life and Services Kim Lafond says that students who see doors being propped should speak up and take control over their community. Lafond is right that students should be personally responsible for their communities, but this responsibility cannot rest solely on student’s shoulders. This is why we have a security policies and procedures. These policies, however, should not be circular, and call for the student to be the main person responsible for security. Lafond’s statement implies that it is the student’s fault if something goes wrong.
Limited access is inconvenient. It is cold in January in Oberlin. Students will not want to wait outside talking on a blue phone. Students without access to a dorm will stand outside of a door and wait for someone to exit. They will be let in, because most students will not say no. That would be very awkward to do. This list of inconveniences is nothing new; most have been locked out of a dorm at some point. These methods of alleviating inconvenience are perhaps irresponsible, but they are the norm. A policy that ignores that reality is irresponsible and will not increase safety on campus.

Parking Lacking For Students

Oberlin lacks ample and evenly distributed student parking. Though this year there are 71 out of 391 spots still available, 198 of those are in the athletics lot in north campus. This is not reasonable for south campus students. The Office of Safety and Security sees no problem with the current structure of student parking though. They base this on the idea that Oberlin is a walking campus and that car usage is only for lazy students. Again, like College policies for Winter Term dorm access, the Administration is passing the buck to the students. Students, however, are not necessarily to blame. Rather than viewing parking tickets as a symptom of student delinquency, the Administration should also view it as the system’s delinquency.
The system is based on a false premise. Oberlin is not a walking campus. It is not a walking campus at 2 a.m. when a student leaves the library, having been there all day. It is not a walking campus when a student moves around music, art, or any other necessary academic equipment. It is not a walking campus when it is 10 degrees below zero. These are not reasons of laziness, but actually ones of safety and security. Though, in the same respect, students should obey the current parking regulations. It is not appropriate to park in a fire lane or in a handicap spot.
Rather than blaming students for policy problems, Safety and Security should push other College bodies to make more parking spaces available to students, particularly on south campus. They should also seek student support in this, for they will likely get it.