Residents have been voicing their opinions about University Housing residence hall visitation policies concerning the surrender of IDs during check in, the visitation limitations and the process as a whole.
The current guest policy at Georgia State says residents can have overnight guests three nights in a row but no more than six nights in a calendar month.
Once checked in, the guest must leave a government-issued photo ID and wear a wristband at all times while in the building. The guest must also be with the resident that checked them in at all times.
Randy Brown, assistant director for residence life for Edgewood and Ellis Communities, said University Housing has received feedback from students about the visitation policies via the comment boxes on the front desk of every residence hall.
“The Residence Hall Association (RHA) has been responsible for checking the boxes and providing recommendations,” Brown said.
He said University Housing has addressed student concerns about the visitation policies through facilitating town hall meetings, doing an interview with GSUTV, writing responses to RHA representatives and adding signage to the back of apartment/room dorms.
Students express the inconvenience of surrendering their ID during visitor check in
Tavia Harris, a Commons resident, said she wants to see a change in the amount of consecutive overnights allowed and the types of IDs accepted for check in.
“I would like the overnights to be longer than three days,” Harris said. “The ID is a bit much. They should be able to take college IDs. A college is not going to lie about their students.”
She also said the Commons is stricter than the other residence halls because of the “prison” turntables.
Susanna Sin, a Greek housing resident, said she doesn’t like it when both person’s IDs have to be taken during check in.
“My friend actually got in trouble because the person she checked in got her ID without her, and now they have to go the Dean’s office. And I think that is ridiculous because sometimes you can’t be together to get your ID, but now she is in trouble,” Sin said.
Madlina Jonassaint, nursing major Patton Hall resident, said she sees the visitation policy as a good idea because Patton Hall is a big building and experiences a heavy traffic of people.
Residents said the visitation policy affects family visits
Brianna Adams, sophomore Lofts resident, said the process is annoying for when her family comes to visit.
“I guess I get part of it is for safety, but I couldn’t even have my brothers come in with me without this huge hassle because he wasn’t 16,” Adams said. “I want to be able to have my family come up sometimes without having to check them in; without a 5 minute process.”
Candace Lane, journalism major and Lofts resident, said she has experienced issues with the underage visitation policy.
“There was an incident where I almost couldn’t bring my nieces in because I didn’t give them notification 24 hours prior,” Lane said.
Nikki Wilbanks, junior Greek housing resident, said she thinks parents should be treated differently in terms of the visitation policy.
“I think for parents it should be a little different, because I don’t think parents are going to like come in and mess stuff up. But I understand if you are checking in other students or a boyfriend or something,” Wilbanks said.
How residents feel about the policy’s safety procedures
Madlina Jonassaint, nursing major and Patton Hall resident, said she sees the visitation policy as a good idea because Patton Hall is a big building and experiences a heavy traffic of people.
Tierra Slaughter, exercise science major Piedmont resident, said the visitation policy makes her feel safe.
“Just in case there is an emergency in the building we would know exactly how many people are in the building because of the checkout policy,” Slaughter said.
Maggie Basso, art education major Patton Hall resident, also said she understands why there is a visitation policy. But she said it goes overboard at times.
“I think the housing system we have in place right now is uncomfortable, and I’ve chosen to live off campus because of that,” Basso said. “I feel like there needs to be a way for us to have visitors without feeling uncomfortable and without there being so many limitations to the amount of days they can visit and what times they are allowed to visit.”
Residents react to the visitation policy’s process
Psychology major and Commons resident India Kelly said the processes can be redundant and chaotic.
“I understand why it’s there, but at the same time it can be a little annoying,” Kelly said.
Lake Dowling, English major and Piedmont resident, said she feels like the check in and out process is unnecessary and evil.
“I feel like it’s a long process. I would like to have more overnights and extends more time,” Dowling said.
Alexis Inman, another Piedmont resident, said the front desks need faster computer systems.
“I do not mind the checkout system. I just wish that it didn’t take so long,” Inman said.
University Housing’s response to residents’ distresses
Randy Brown said University Housing is hoping to make the residence halls safe and secure. He added that residence hall visitation polices are determined through a collaborative effort.
“The Director of University Housing and her senior leadership team discuss and develop policies and procedures related to safety and security in the residence halls, which includes the guest visitation,” Brown said.
“University Housing also works closely with University partners, such as GSUPD, the Residence Hall Association, and the Office of Emergency Management to determine safety and security policies and procedures for the residence halls,” he continued.
