Missing doorstops returned safely

A doorstop is a little-noticed detail of everyday existence, but on the morning of Tuesday, Sept. 29, the innocuous pieces of rubber leaped to the forefront of the debate about the quality of campus life.

On Monday night, every doorstop in the faculty offices on the fifth floor of Mendocino Hall was removed by maintenance workers.

"We received no warning," said Virginia Kidd, professor of Communication Studies. "They took all the doorstops, even the one I had bought myself."

Barbara O'Connor, also a Communication Studies professor, was appalled and called Facilities Management immediately.

"They had no idea who had ordered the removal of the doorstops," said O'Connor.

Kidd was told that the doorstops had been removed for fire safety but she worried that the ban would affect professors' ability to reach out to students.

"We strive for an open-door policy and closed office doors run counter to that value," she said.

She cited the CSUS Strategic Plan, which states that the campus community should strive for a "welcoming, vibrant, and inclusive campus."

The doorstop removal also raised issues of professionalism, including the common practice by professors of leaving office doors open when meeting with students of the opposite sex to prevent possible sexual harassment claims.

Howard Harris, the associate vice president of Facilities Management, said, "I regret that the incident happened and steps have been taken to remedy the situation."

When the faculty arrived Wednesday morning, they found that every doorstop had been returned, although not all were returned to their rightful owners.

O'Connor, sitting happily in her office with a doorstop, said that Facilities Management "couldn't have been nicer about the whole thing."

She added that everyone involved was pleased with the outcome:

"This is an example of how we should work together on campus."