East Texan Res Hall Project

Like most universities, A&M-Commerce attempts to keep its on-campus students as safe as possible with security measures in the residence halls. While these do maintain a sense of security, they are not impossible to get past thanks to the very people that are meant to be protected: the students.

In an East Texan project, with the approval of the University Police Department, editors attempted to get inside the various residence halls they did not have immediate access to.

Berry

A wait outside the right entrance of Berry Hall and an innocent look is all an individual needs to sneak inside the Berry courtyard behind a resident. If that is too much effort, one can simply walk straight through the broken door of the left entrance. To be extra sneaky, a walk around back and a sly move under the gate can provide a third easy access.

Despite the simplicity of accessing the courtyard of Berry Hall, residents Brennan Jones and Evadney Duncan feel fairly safe inside their dorm.

"Ultimately you can get into the [courtyard]," Duncan admitted, "but when it comes to getting into the individual parts, you need a key because [the doors] literally lock shut behind you."

Having a small sum of 65 residents living in Berry Hall, Duncan feels even more secure. She only has one other girl living in the same hallway so she feels she could spot a stranger trying to intrude.

"If you don't have your key (to get into the hallway), we're either going to assume you lost your key or you don't live here and are just trying to get into the section," Duncan said. She firmly believes that most residents there will be cautious and ask neighbors if they know the person.

Jones agreed, saying, "you're pretty much at the discretion of the people who live here."

That was affirmed when one East Texan editor gained access to one of the Berry Hall buildings, one door away from a student's room. Resident Antony Artega said even if he had not let the editor inside of the building, he could have gone in anyway by simply pulling hard enough on the door.

"You could still open [the door], because that's what [residents] do when they forget their card," Artega said. "You were going to be in anyway."

Whitley

Freshman Rachel MacInnis resides in Whitley Hall and said that she does not feel a safe community there. She also does not think she could recognize any strangers unless they are obviously older.

In Whitley Hall, MacInnis feels like one of the biggest issues for welcoming in intruders is that students prop the doors open. The doors have floor mats right inside which make for an easy doorstop.

MacInnis admits that she has seen people residing in Whitley who do not actually pay to live there. She recalled some female residents who have their boyfriends living with them.

Having visited Pride Rock on occasion, MacInnis has seen the difference in the safety precautions taken. She would not mind Whitley having the multiple card entries that Pride Rock has to get into the building, to the correct hallway, and to the elevator.  While some students see it as a hassle, MacInnis said "it would definitely improve safety" if Whitley Hall had the same mechanisms.

Director of Residential Living and Learning Dennis Koch believes that safety is not found in the amount of people that reside somewhere.

"We try to provide communities of students who can live together in harmony and have a sense of community in their halls," Koch said.

For more on this story, pick up the March 1 edition of The East Texan. It will include more on Berry Hall, additional comments from Koch, and a look at the safety of Smith Hall.