UK finally has its heart in the right place with an effort in the direction of improving campus safety. But the administration might be a step ahead of itself in safety priorities.

A campus-wide card swiping system is being discussed by UK, but at this time it would be a misguided use of university funds. As of now, there are many other areas that UK could invest funding into safety that would have a greater direct impact on campus.

One of the most effective plans being discussed is installing screens in every room that would inform students, faculty and staff in the event of an emergency. This would have a direct influence on the safety of everyone on campus.

UK should keep emphasizing what will have the greatest impact on students, especially before considering something like swipe cards on all buildings, which would have a greater expense than positive change. At a time when 90 percent of the buildings on campus do not have an emergency plan, there certainly are bigger problems than the accessibility of a public building.

The swipe card system does offer one immediate benefit: the ability to lockdown an entire building at the push of a button. A security center would be able to lock or unlock any or all campus doors from a remote location. If a shooter were on campus, this feature would allow security guards to isolate the intruder and protect students in a timely manner. This ability is far more significant than the ability to swipe into a classroom building.

Having a card swiping system for all of the dorms is necessary, because no one should be given unlimited access to buildings where students live (and particularly where they sleep and shower). Dorms act as private residences where strangers are considered intruders and nobody would give their house keys to a stranger.

The reality is that, though it is incredibly important to protect the university community, there is no way to safeguard ourselves from every possible threat. It certainly is true that there is no quick fix to the lack of safety at UK. It would be a futile waste of resources to implement an expensive safety plan that makes very few safety guarantees.

The most effective manner should be chosen as the first plan of action, and that doesn’t include swipe cards for doors. As UK checks off a prioritized list for safety and approaches a time of better funding and a more established emergency plan, the time may come where the only move left to make is swipe cards. At that time, if the budget is right, UK should make that move.