Manhattan College is enacting more stringent access control policies around residence hall entry. Beginning this semester, the college will enforce mandatory 24-hour sign-in for anyone wanting to enter a residence hall that is not their own.

According to a report from Manhattan College's student publication, The Quadrangle, enrolled students visiting any hall that they do not reside in must sign in as a visitor accompanied by a host student that lives in the building. Additionally, any non-member of the Manhattan College community that wishes to visit resident students at a campus dorm must sign in as a guest.

The policy change at Manhattan was coordinated between the college's Public Safety and Res Life departments. “The policy will not prevent guests from entering the residence halls but will control building access more effectively,” said Charles Clency, Director of Residence Life at Manhattan College, in a statement to The Quadrangle.

“The objective of the direction is, to a certain degree, to enhance the level of security in the residence halls for the residents, and also the quality of life in the residence halls," said Peter DeCaro, director of Public Safety, in a statement to The Quadrangle. “We want to try to structure it in the real world and in line with what most colleges do as far as access control in terms of dorms.”

Guests at most of the college's residence halls will need to present a valid ID or student ID card and sign in with a resident host in the lobby of the building. Two of Manhattan's dorms also feature host sign in that leverages a QR code process or an online MyHousing portal application for a day guest pass.

Manhattan College's overnight guest policy will remain unchanged, and will continue to require any guest or visitor staying in a residence hall that -- between the hours of midnight and 8:00 a.m. -- to be signed in by a resident host of the same sex.

Day guests that leave a dorm after midnight will incur a fine for their resident host's university account: $20 for the first violation, with cumulative $10 increases for the next two violations. Any further violation will result in that host student's guest privileges being revoked.

The new policy does not affect student Resident Assistants, who will continue to have open access to any residence hall at any time of day.