Kent State catches on to Mobile messaging

In the two months since it was launched at Kent State, Mobile Campus has reached nearly 900 students and counting.

“I’m honestly really excited at the enrollment average,” USS Executive Director Ross Miltner said.

Mobile Campus is a text messaging service that connects students to their classes and student organizations by mass messaging. Students can also choose to receive messages from local retailers and get coupons and promotions.

Alec Caruso, Mobile Campus advertising and sales representative, said four merchants are currently signed up, and the company is hoping to have 10 to 15 on board in the next few months.

“We are very pleased with how things have been going,” said Benjamin Feld, Undergraduate Student Senate senator for student advancement.

Caruso said the merchants who are signed up so far are Guy’s Pizza, Fat Billy’s, King Subs and Mugzee’s.

Students can also sign up to be connected to student organizations and courses they are in.

Jared Kurilchick, marketing manager for Mobile Campus at Kent State, said a few courses for next semester have signed up to use the service. He added that groups have been created for intramural and club sports teams, fraternities and sororities and the Kent State Phone Center.

But Mobile Campus also faced problems in its first two months.

“Now that the Web site’s up, they (students) can now control what kind of messages they receive,” Kurilchick said.

The Web site wasn’t fully functioning until two weeks ago because it is set up through Kent State for added security. Students use their FlashLine ID and password to access the site.

Kurilchick said students must go to the site and update their profiles to choose where they receive messages from.

“This is their service,” he said.

Contact student politics reporter Kali Price at [email protected].