It’s going to be tough for students to loiter late at night in residence hall lobbies and hallways this year unless they can prove they have a right to do so.

“We’re taking additional security measures a lot of other schools have already taken,” said John Felver, associate director of housing services.

Both Felver and Jim Rooney, Stevenson Towers area coordinator, denied that beefed-up security was the result of any one specific incident such as the March stabbing of a student in Grant Towers South.

Patty Hall, director of Stevenson Towers South, admitted that the stabbing was a very minor consideration but certainly not the main reason.

“If it didn’t happen in the lobby, it would have happened on the front porch,” Hall said.

The major changes are 24-hour key-operated elevators and student ID and key checks after 11 p.m. for dorm residents.

Rooney said Stevenson and Grant residence halls switched from 11 p.m. key-operated elevators to 24-hour operation as “just an extra security precaution.”

The measure ensures that the elevator will only open when students have turned their key on a floor lock.

Precautions similar to the elevator key operation have already been taken in low-rise residence halls, which have locks on their “crash doors,” Rooney said.

Another policy change is regarding guest registration, which will be strictly enforced, Hall said.

Not only will guests be required to register, they will also must carry a registration card at all times, Hall said. As usual, guests must also be escorted by a resident, she added.

Hall also said that must have both a key and ID card to get past security after 11 p.m.

“We thought about changing the elevators for quite some time,” Felver said. “It was also requested by some students.”

ID and keys will be checked by door guards, who mainly will be roaming the lobbies after hours, Rooney said.

The two major security policies will be enacted in all university residence halls where they apply, he said.

In the past, non-residents were allowed in the lobbies but not in the towers. But, Rooney said, these extra precautions were “not really in response to any situation.”

Felver said the students haven’t really had any trouble adjusting to the policies.

“They just need to carry their keys and IDs with them,” he said.