Security is a collective responsibility. The University and the residential community are both concerned about and responsible for the safety and security of housing. There are some things which each resident can do to help:
- Do not prop open section or building doors for any reason.
- Always lock your apartment door and carry your keys.
- Do not admit unknown or unidentified people to locked sections or buildings. Residents who have a legitimate reason to seek admission to a building should be willing to show their ID.
- If there are people found in the buildings that are unknown or unidentified, report the situation to a staff member or to the Lehigh University Police. It is mandatory that any resident present a Lehigh ID card upon the request of any University community official. Refusal to do so can result in disciplinary action.
- Try not to lose your ID card or room key; and never loan them to others. If keys or ID card are lost or stolen, contact the IDEAL Office and Lehigh University Police immediately.
- Report all incidents of theft or damage to the Office of Housing Services.
House Access
Who will be given access to the house?
- All in-house members will automatically receive access to the chapter house.
- Out-of-house members will be granted access with chapter leadership permission.
- House Cooks will be given access upon request of chapter leadership and a successful background check.. One door per house will be enabled with a 15 minute prop capability for food delivery.
- New members will be granted access with house leadership permission after the recruitment process is completed.
- Alumni will be granted limited access upon request through the office of Housing Services. Upon request, a swipe card will be generated that can be picked up and returned after the visit at University Police.
Key Policies
Residents are provided one key to their room.
Each room key is individually coded. Key(s) issued to an individual may not be given to anyone who is not a resident of the particular room/building. All persons involved in such a transaction will be subject to disciplinary action.
It is against regulations to duplicate keys. All keys must be issued through the Offices of Housing Services or the IDEAL Office. The unauthorized possession, alteration, or defacement of any key and the illegal entry of any room by any means are strictly forbidden under penalty of disciplinary action up to and including expulsion from the university.
All keys issued must be returned to the Office of Housing Services or the IDEAL Office within 2 business days after termination of lease or permanent withdrawal from the room during the academic year, and upon final residence hall closing at the end of the academic year. The service charge for not returning a room key is $65 to change the lock on the room.
Lockouts
A resident locked out of his/her room, Monday through Friday between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., can borrow a key from the IDEAL Office. The resident will be issued a temporary key. The resident has 1 business day to return the temporary key to the IDEAL Office. If the temporary key is not returned, Housing Services will be notified. Card access will be turned off until the temporary key is returned. If after 2 additional business days, the temporary key is still not returned, the lock will be changed and new keys issued.
After business hours, residents can call the house leadership for lockout assistance. All House Managers and one additional leader (typically the President) have a master key.
Lost keys
Lost keys must be reported to the IDEAL Office within 24 hours.
Stolen keys
Stolen keys must be reported immediately to the IDEAL Office and to Lehigh University Police immediately.
Lock changes
Lost or stolen keys as well as temporary keys which are not returned within 24 hours will result in a lock change. Once the lock is changed, a $75 service charge per lock will be charged to the Bursar account of the student who lost the room key to cover the costs involved in the lock change. It is the student’s responsibility to pick up his/her own key, and also inform roommate(s) to go to the IDEAL Office to obtain a new key (in traditional buildings). The IDEAL Office will hang a door hanger notifying the residents of the room that a lock change has taken place.
ID Card Policies
ID cards will only operate the card reader doors in the area(s) to which the student has been authorized to access. Attempts to use a card in area(s) other than those authorized will be monitored and may subject the student to disciplinary action.
If an ID card becomes de-magnetized, worn or broken and stops working due to normal wear and tear, the card should be taken to the IDEAL Office for exchange. ID cards that have been cut, burned, hole-punched, chewed, etc. will be considered to be the result of deliberate damage. A fee of $30 will be charged for a card that appears to be the result of deliberate damage.
Lost or Stolen ID Card Policy
If your LU ID card is lost or stolen, immediately deactivate your card (Building Access, GoldPLUS, Meal Plan/Dining Dollars) by logging into Connect Lehigh; Banner, Personal Information, Report ID card Missing-Deactivate GoldPLUS, Submit.
A replacement LU ID card may be obtained at the IDEAL Office (see Replacement ID Cards), located at 42 University Drive, during regular office hours (see ID Card Office Home). A $30.00 replacement fee will be charged to your Bursar account or GoldPLUS account. In the case of stolen ID cards, the replacement fee will be waived with the confirmation of, or a copy of, a police report.
If your LU ID card is found after being deactivated, but before receiving a replacement, you must personally present the ID card to the IDEAL Office in order to reactivate it. Once a replacement card has been issued, all prior cards are no longer valid and cannot be reactivated.
If you live on campus, and your LU ID card is lost or stolen after regular office hours or on the weekend, immediately deactivate your card (Building Access, GoldPLUS, Meal Plan/Dining Dollars) by logging into Connect Lehigh; Banner, Personal Information, Report ID card Missing-Deactivate GoldPLUS, Submit. Then, contact a Gryphon via the building cell phone if you live in a residence hall, or contact your House Manager if you live in a fraternity or sorority. They will be able to issue you a Temporary Access Card, which will give you building access until the next business day. The Temporary Access Card must be returned to the IDEAL Office and a replacement LU ID card must be obtained (see Replacement ID Cards) the next business day. Failure to return the Temporary Access Card to the IDEAL Office the next business day will result in an additional $30.00 replacement fee charged to your Bursar account."
For the complete information on Keys and IDs, please reference the Buildings Access Policy and Procedures on the IDEAL Office website.
