Nearly a year after the campus debate over locking residence hall doors first erupted, no decision on the controversial action has been made -- and a recent announcement has made it clear that none will be made anytime soon.
Acting Dean of the College Dan Nelson told The Dartmouth on Friday he has "decided not to decide" whether to lock exterior dormitory doorways. Nelson previously had said he would decide last term, but delayed the decision saying he did not have time to fully consider the issue due to his busy schedule working on the social and residential life initiative.
Instead, Nelson said he now believes the locking decision "should be made in the larger context about residential life in general" after discussions have occurred on the residential life portions of the Board of Trustees' five principles. Significant changes in the residential life system at the College are expected as a result of the initiative.
"I think it would be useful to have this broader discussion we're beginning and then once we've had a chance to think about that to think about our security needs," Nelson said. "Right now this is not the appropriate time to be making the decision about this relatively expensive residence hall security decision."
This means a decision on door locks may not be made until next Fall or Winter term -- the Trustees' target for when a restructured social and residential plan should be in place.
It also means Nelson is not likely to be the one making the decision at all, as Dean of the College-designate James Larimore is taking over for Nelson in the summer.
Larimore told The Dartmouth in the fall he would reserve judgement on the locking debate until he had seen the College committee's report on the subject.
The issue of door locking emerged last Spring when the Student Assembly voted to endorse locking dorm doors. Following that heavily criticized vote and vocal student opposition, the College decided to delay implementation of the plan.
Acting Dean of Residential Life Mary Liscinsky led the committee that investigated the locking issue. Among other things, the committee's final report, which was released last term, placed student opposition to any form of locks at 73 percent.
Larimore has not issued any new public statements on locked doors since the report was released.
In an interview with The Dartmouth last term, Nelson said he favors a card-swiping access system to a more conventional key access system. However, the card system would cost an estimated $425,000 -- far more than key locks.
That price factor was one of the reasons Nelson gave last week for not making a decision before there is more initiative discussion. The Trustees have pledged millions of dollars to see their principles for a new Dartmouth come to fruition.
Nelson was clear to point out he does not feel the locking decision is part of the debate and decision-making process on the principles themselves, simply that it should be made in the context of those decisions.
Because of that distinction, however fine, he said he was not concerned about making the already unpopular initiative even more of a lightening rod for criticism.
Nelson refused to say if he consulted College President James Wright on his decision, saying only that he consulted with "senior staff in the dean of the College area and elsewhere."
Many campus leaders have speculated it would have been difficult or ill-advised for the College to decide in favor of the door locks at this time, following the protests and anger over the decision to drastically alter the Greek system and disappointment over the Trustees' recent decision to deny for a second time in as many years a student vote in Trustee elections.
