To everyone who took their ID picture rain-soaked, sweaty or just downright messy, time has come for a redo.
Starting in April, IU will introduce a new ID card for students, staff and faculty. The CrimsonCard will replace current ID cards at all IU campuses.
“If you’re in Cancun and you lost your wallet and you have to come in and get a replacement, you would get a CrimsonCard,” said
Rob Lowden, associate vice president for Enterprise Systems.
Lowden, who oversees systems at IU like Canvas, said IU made the change for three major reasons: safety, branding and efficiency.
All new students will receive a CrimsonCard ID at orientation.
Current students and faculty are required to trade in their current IDs for a CrimsonCard by the end of June 2018.
The new IDs also allow students to submit their photo on the ID ahead of time instead of taking a picture when they go get their IDs, as long as they follow normal guidelines for federal IDs like a driver’s license or passport.
“You can’t give a picture of Bart Simpson, but you can provide a photo within those parameters,” Lowden said.
CrimsonCards have chips similar to those on newer credit cards inside them. These chips prevent people from copying the data from the cards.
IDs on the Bloomington campus have access to more than 6,000 rooms in residence halls, so Lowden said the chip is added security for dorm residents.
“That will radically improve safety,” Lowden said.
The move from separate systems at each campus to a single system will also save the University $500,000 by purchasing the cards in bulk and maintaining one software for the system, rather than separate ones for each respective IU school.
The new University-wide ID system will also benefit students who take classes at other IU campuses or visit them.
Students can use all the functions they would normally use on their primary campus at all IU campuses, including meal points.
“If you go to school in Bloomington and live in Fort Wayne, you will still be able to use your card just like you did on the Bloomington campus,” Lowden said.
Senior Morgan Nightingale thinks the new cards are a good idea for students who study at more than one campus.
“That would make sense, especially for students taking classes over the summer,” Nightingale said.
Students will also be able to use CrimsonCards as a form of ID when they vote.
The CrimsonCards’ designs are based on national standards for federal identification, Lowden said.
“It makes it easier to vote and gives you more of an incentive if you already have an ID,” Nightingale said.
However, the University allows students to put their preferred name on their ID cards, so if a student’s name on their ID differs from their legal name they will not be able to use it for voting purposes.
