Despite the thousands of dollars that students at Colorado Mesa University (CMU) have to pay in tuition, we are still required to pay for MAVcards: a flimsy plastic card that is constantly malfunctioning, breaking or otherwise not performing to the level that the price suggests.
In my four years at CMU, I have had to pay to replace my MAVcard at least five times, due to wear-and-tear and other associated problems. The $5 replacement fee, while small, is annoying for something that is out of my control.
After only my first semester, I had to get a new card because the part of the encryption that let me into my dorm room had faded.
The next year, I had to get it replaced again, because it would no longer let me into the laundry rooms. Other replacements have included not being able to get into my own office, which turned out to not even be a problem with my card, and other parts of the card fading, which stopped me from accessing different areas of campus that I need.
The workers in the MAVcard office also frequently seem unequipped for many of the problems that arise with MAVcards, with many simply suggesting buying another card in the hopes that the problems will be solved.
Maybe these fees are part of what keeps the MAVcard office funded, which would make the price make a little more sense, but in that case, why don’t we allocate enough money to the different areas on campus already?
Few people work in the MAVcard office, and I’m sure that even just an initial purchase of your first MAVcard would cover all of your associated expenses.
If you lose your card, I understand why there is a fee. The $15 fee, which encourages students to keep track of their cards, seems reasonable, but it’s just silly that I have to pay to replace a card because of normal wear and tear. Why doesn’t the school invest in higher-quality cards? There’s no way that a card truly costs CMU $5. The school could save themselves the headache of dealing with students constantly needing to replace cards, update the design of the card, which seems mildly outdated, and save so much unnecessary plastic waste. This just seems like another money-grab from the school.
I think that it would be great if there was a stipulation when getting a replacement card, where if the card isn’t working due to normal wear and tear, the office gives you a new card for free. I also think that CMU would do well to replace more in-building swipers with tap access points. It makes the card have to go through less physical use and typically is a quicker way to access buildings and rooms anyway.
