Aleasha Hintz—Staff Writer

As classes picked up for the spring semester, many students at Dordt University found themselves locked out of their dorms. 

Almost immediately, students complained about the procedural change. Most of the grievances centered around the seemingly frivolous nature of the new rule. I was a little frustrated in the beginning too. 

It’s Sioux Center, after all. In this town, people leave their cars running in the Walmart parking lot, for Pete’s sake. 

And, of all the times to start locking the dorms, did it have to be in the middle of January? It’s cold outside, and students are now forced to pause so they can access their dorm building.

Despite this slight annoyance, I’m here to tell you you’re not going to get hypothermia from the extra half second of exposure to the elements. The newly locked doors are not as inconvenient as they’ve been made out to be.

Dordt is not out to get you. They are not “locking you out of your building.” Every one of you has a key. Besides, locking the doors to the dorms is commonplace. Most other colleges and universities, especially state ones, already do so. 

The simple explanation here is that Dordt needed to start locking their doors to keep their insurance. It’s really not that deep.

Extra security on campus is hardly a bad thing, especially after last semester’s safety concerns, though these procedural changes are unrelated to those incidents. At the end of the day, increased security is a valid bonus of the locked doors.

Personally, my frustration waned after the first two times I swiped my keycard.

Also, open hours are still the same, and if you are an on-campus student, you still have access to all the dorms. Now, you just have to use your ID card (sorry Eatable users, but you’ll have to start putting your ID in your wallet now).

And if you’re really worried about fumbling for your ID outside the doors of East, or Covey, or wherever, there are plenty of ways around that struggle:

Order a clear phone case and stick your card in the back. You’re lying if you say you don’t carry your phone everywhere with you anyway. 

Put your card on your lanyard. If you lost the free one you got WOW week of freshman year, go to the campus store, and buy a new one. Tie a shoelace around the card or even a piece of twine.

Put the card in your wallet. Your back pocket. A pouch. Your backpack. Order a fanny pack for all I care.

I know for a fact that the door can sense the card through various fabrics. You don’t even have to take it out of your pocket if you’re tall enough.

If none of these solutions appeal to you, and you’re not convinced of the ease and convenience of sticking your ID in your pocket, you still have one more option. Call a friend or roommate and ask them to let you in the building.

I empathize with the fact that change is frustrating, but it is not always bad either. Besides, when Dordt shuts a door, God opens a window.