Room keys or key cards are issued to assist in resident safety and the security of a resident's possessions. Residents are urged to keep their room keys or key cards in their possession at all times. Keys should never be loaned to another individual.

If a key is lost, the resident should report the loss to the front office staff or residential life staff immediately. The student will be issued a temporary key while a lock change is completed. A new key will be issued to the resident when the lock to the unit has been changed, and the resident's account will be assessed a $76 flat fee.

Residents residing in "1300" and "Morgan Hall" are issued a key card for access to their suites or apartments. If the key card is lost, the student's University account will be assessed a $20 fee for a new key card. If a resident is locked out of their room, they should wait for their roommate to return to gain admittance. If a resident needs more immediate access to their living area for emergency reasons, they may contact the front office or the resident assistant on on-call. There is a $10 lockout fee. Individuals will not be let into another person's room by University Housing & Residential Life staff under any circumstance.

Authorized Temple personnel may, with probable cause and without notice enter a student's room to determine whether the student is complying with the terms of the license. The University may require a resident to vacate a room immediately if deemed necessary. Authorized Temple personnel may also enter a student's room to perform cleanliness checks or safety inspections in order to deal with potential health, sanitation, or safety concerns. Such personnel may enter a student's room when they believe that emergency conditions may exist or when it is believed that a threat to the health and safety of individuals exists (e.g., fire, student needing medical assistance, etc.). Authorized personnel will confiscate any item that may reasonably present a safety concern.

University Housing's maintenance staff has the right to enter all student rooms without advance notice to make repairs or to perform preventive maintenance. The staff will leave a copy of the maintenance request, which will indicate the repairs made or parts needed. All personnel are instructed not to unnecessarily disturb personal property. Outside contractors will be escorted by a University representative.

With the exception of emergency conditions, potential policy violations, safety inspections, cleanliness checks, maintenance repairs, or when it is believed that there is probable cause or a threat to the health and safety of individuals, Housing staff have been instructed not to enter student rooms unless one of the following conditions exists:

• Room resident is present, or
• Written permission has been secured in advance from all individuals residing in the room, or
• When a resident has created an unreasonable noise disturbance (i.e., alarm clock, stereo, TV, etc.) and fails or is not present to respond to staff's request to discontinue the noise. Under these circumstances, the staff may enter a student room for the purpose of stopping the noise and will document the incident.

All work requests are prioritized, with safety and health issues receiving the highest priority. Depending on workload, lower priority requests may take longer to be addressed. Some requests also reveal facility issues which are beyond the scope of Housing Maintenance Operations. In these situations, we must then submit a work request to Temple University's Office of Facility Management (OFM) or an independent contractor. The delays in completion are directly associated with the scope of work and their ability to secure the needed materials in a timely manner.

Maintenance Direct will track all work requests. This provides us the ability to respond to and address ongoing problems, evaluate trends, maintain a history of activity, and assess each building's needs and demands. Verbal requests aren't entered into the system, which renders them nonexistent in terms of record keeping and accountability. We believe the documented request system improves our effectiveness and efficiency.

Lost keys present a safety and security risk, forcing us to replace the lock core and cut new keys to match. If the key is to a suite, there are two cores to be replaced, one for the suite entry, and one for the resident's room.

Visit the Maintenance Direct Web Site

Send an email to hsgmaint@temple.edu or contact the central maintenance office at 215-204-2284.

Maintenance Direct, our online work request system. There is a pest control technician daily, Monday - Friday to respond to requests, and provide preventative measures.

Listed below are some rodent facts, followed by suggestions on how to minimize the likelihood of rodent intrusion:

• Common field mice only weigh about an ounce and are able to get into any opening that is a quarter-inch wide. They're also excellent climbers and can easily get around a building by moving through pipes or holes in the structure
• A combination of several factors, including construction, colder weather, unnecessary clutter, can encourage mice to overstay their welcome, especially in residence halls. Propped doors, piles of junk or food containers and old furniture are all appealing invitations for mice
• Store food in secure plastic containers
• Wash dishes and cooking utensils immediately after use
• Eliminate clutter and laundry on floors

While we understand the time constraints full time students are under, cleaning up after ones self makes everyone's environment more pleasant. Don't hesitate to pick up litter in the hallways, lobbies and lounges, and please don't leave your trash for someone else to pick up.

If you see something that needs repair, submit a maintenance request. Even if it's not in your room, suite or apartment, it's in the building where you live. Community quality of life is determined by the community.