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The legality will depend to a great extent on the "contract" the student has with the school. I put the word in quotes, because it is a broad concept. It could be specifically a lease for the living quarters or, more broadly, school regulations governing on-campus living. I suspect you will find something in there authorizing the school and its agents (the campus police) to enter into the rooms and conduct this sort of search any time they please.

There can always be issues as to whether a party to a contract freely and knowingly agreed to its terms. These are very fact-specific, and frankly these theories will not often overcome clear contract language, even if that language is tucked away in a sea of verbiage.

Bottom line. It stinks, but there is probably not a whole lot the students can do about it.

Bottom line. It stinks, but there is probably not a whole lot the students can do about it.

Possibly not in the legal venue (depending on contractual terms) but everything can be negotiated -- if you make a big enough stink.

Constituional rights supercede any signed agreement. The requirement of someone to sign away their Constitutional rights to live somewhere represents duress to my way of thinking. The agreement isn't worth the paper it's written on.

Imagine a landlord demanding that a black renter agree not to use the white laundry room before being allowed to rent. Think that paper would stand up in court?