Penn State to Upgrade, Add Features to Student ID Cards

posted April 20, 2022 in CommRadio, News by Jon Mead

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State announced it will be launching IDs in an effort to move forward with “One Penn State 2025,” an initiative taken by the school to unite all PSU campuses digitally. 

The One Penn State 2025 website mentions that one of the steps to achieving all its goals will be to “achieve the highest level of efficient use of university resources” and to “leverage digital solutions.”

With these new campus cards, there will be several new features, such as contactless tap payments, similar to that of a credit or debit card.

Alex Royston is eager to give this technology a try, hoping to utilize its features for his own personal needs. 

“I’d definitely use it for the gym a lot more,” Royston (sophomore-kinesiology) said. “Especially if it’s a ‘tap and go’ kind of thing.” 

Another feature that will accompany these new cards is the ability to open locks digitally, possibly changing door access to buildings. 

Camille Corbani loved this feature the most. 

“Coming back from the market with so much stuff in my hands, it’ll be easier to open doors contactless, not having to swipe [the ID card],” said Corbani (freshman-nutritional sciences)

Since not every feature of the new cards has been identified, some students can only guess as to what other features they will have.

“Maybe getting rid of our keys for our rooms, maybe using the ID’s instead,” Corbani said. “I've lost that key so many times.”

Although there is no specific date for re-carding campus, incoming students and new employees will be the first ones to receive them.

“It probably would have been better if they had it earlier, because I feel like it would have been smarter with COVID,” Royston said. “But, even if they did [implement IDs], that would be really cool.”

Jon Mead is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jkm6040@psu.edu.

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