Mary Ward Hall’s front doors have been kept closed since November 9th.

"An analysis that evening determined that it was a mechanical problem and not a technology issue regarding card access," said Jim Bolinger, associate director of University Housing and Residential Services.

"Since we were unable to fix the problem, residents were given access to the end stairwell doors on both sides of the building. The front automatic doors remained locked and secured, yet could be opened with panic hardware during an actual emergency," said Bolinger.

A reason why the door malfunction could have been caused by residents said an Housing and Residential employee. “Residents kick the door open and sometimes actually use their hands to open the door,” said the employee.

This is not the first time the door has malfunctioned said resident Arturo Blazquez, a freshmen at SF State.

“This does happen constantly” said Blazquez, 18, an English major.

The part needed to fix the door did come in today. At around 4 p.m. mechanics were at Mary Ward Hall fixing the door. "The door is being installed at this time, after which we hope to have the system up and operating," said Bolinger.