Walker Fieldhouse is now restricted to ID card access only, as of the beginning of the 2023-24 academic year. This decision began developing during COVID-19 and was officially decided leading up to this school year.
Beth Rittler, Hamline’s Senior Associate Director of Athletics, expressed her concerns about building access.
“There are lots of ways to get in the facilities here and we have a lot of people who come in who should not be in the buildings,” Rittler said.
In the past, Walker’s doors were open to the Hamline community for a small fee. The regulation of who entered the building became difficult to manage without the ability to keep the front desk staffed, as a result of work-study students’ hours being cut. Safety in these facilities is also a pressing issue and is ultimately the biggest reason security measures have been increased. Hamline’s Athletic Departments and Public Safety worked together to find the best solution to increasing safety on our campus.
“This was a collaborative effort … to figure out the best way that we can provide a safe environment for our students to be in these buildings. This has been a really positive, great change for us,” Assistant Vice President and Activities Director Alex Focke said.
Also prioritizing security on campus is Hamline’s Director of Public Safety, Iliana Cantu Delgado.
“Ultimately, we want to make sure that we’re providing a safe and secure environment for people who are working early in the morning and late at night. And we want to make sure that everyone’s feeling safe while they’re here on campus,” Cantu Delgado said.
While this space is now heavily restricted to Hamline students and staff members, it is still available to be rented by some third-party organizations, such as a local gymnastics club.
Students at Hamline expect to feel comfortable and safe while in campus facilities, and the ID card requirement to get into Walker Fieldhouse adds an extra layer of security to ensure everyone’s safety.
“At the end of the day, we made a really good decision on how to keep this building open to as many of our students as possible for as long as we can,” Focke said.