Commuters find the key to campus involvement
by Tricia Wood

Okay, picture this. A commuter student decides to come visit a resident friend one night to hang out on campus and maybe get a little studying done as well. After driving all the way up to school, many problems can, and probably will, arise.

Take, for example, after trying to call a resident friend and finding their phone line busy, a commuter student may find themselves sitting in their car until they can get up with their friend to let them in. Or then there is always the option of camping out right outside the door hoping that someone might come along and kindly let you in.

All of this nonsense could easily be avoided if commuters got the same treatment as the resident students do and were given the option to get a key card.

It is really annoying that commuters are not trusted enough to be able to get a key card just as residents are. True, these students may not live on campus and do not have the right of access to any of the dorm rooms or suites. But what is the harm in allowing these students the privilege of possessing a key card solely for the purpose of accessing the residence halls?

It is truly a pain to have to bother a friend each time you want to visit them. There are even some circumstances in which a key card is essential, such as late night meetings and mandatory events that many commuters have to take part in. It is very frustrating for commuters because they have no control over whether or not they are going to be able to participate in these activities because they may not be able to get where they have to go.

It has been found that the majority of commuters would not mind paying the standard fee to have this luxury that so many resident students take for granted: ACCESS.

This issue has been tried before and failed, but if you stand in the shoes of a commuter for a day and see how it feels to be the outsider trying to look in, maybe many of you will change your opinion on this issue.