John T. Oxtoby ’07, who is also a rising sophomore in Mather, expressed similar dissatisfaction with the handling of the situation.

“I think they should have been more candid with us. I think that just being open and honest is the best way to treat us,” Oxtoby said.

Oxtoby likened Wheeler’s accidental release of the mailbox combinations to the leaking of private information in a well-publicized ongoing rape trial.

“I think it is pretty absurd that something like that could happen,” Oxtoby said. “It seems kind of embarrassing for Mather House and it kind of makes me think of the way the whole Kobe Bryant case is being handled because that Colorado court has messed up so many things.”

Oxtoby did say, though, that he is confident that the combinations will all be changed.

“I have talked to the housing people, and I think that they are competent people and they will make the proper adjustments,” Oxtoby said.

While anyone can currently open the mailboxes with the combinations in the spreadsheet, all of the house mailboxes remain empty over the summer as mail is forwarded to an alternative address provided by each student.

Irvine said she will not consider the situation to be seriously problematic as long as Mather administrators actually change the combinations.

“I don’t think it is a big deal as long as it gets corrected and doesn’t happen again,” Irvine said.

—Staff Writer Evan M. Vittor can be reached at evittor@fas.harvard.edu.