Being lost on campus, lugging textbooks from one building to another, missing the bus countless of times and spending lavishly on Meal Plan weren’t my ideal plans as a first-year student. My greatest achievement back then was ‘Freshman 15’. Flash forward to senior year now as I participate in the Welcome Crew, a team of volunteers who warmly greet and guide first-years, to create an impression that I have a better grip on college life. I can’t pretend that I’m not envious of the number of resources that first-years have now - packaged in the form of an app.
A year ago, Systems Development and Innovation teamed up with Student Success Programs to create a multifunctional tool designated for incoming freshman to use during kick-off, which is the first three days of events prior to the start of fall semester: the KSU Kickoff App. Since its launch, the app has been optimized for performance, upgraded with the additional ability for push notifications and improved in terms of accessibility in accordance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. This year, the events page of the Kickoff App had a stunning total of 146,804 views, with 70,194 of them earned on August 19th.
KSU Kickoff App Features:
- Events (include Blastoff, convocation, and other programs)
- A customizable planner (includes reminder notifications)
- Map (includes building and parking space information)
- A Live Bus Tracker
- A list of buildings and landmarks
- KSU ID information
- One-Stop (includes financial resources)
- Dining information (includes dining hall locations and hours)
- First Year Experience room location information
- Important numbers to university departments (including Campus Safety)
- Real-time assistance 24/7 (Help tab that allows students to call or text questions)
As I view the familiar nervous looks on the faces of first-years, some more prepared than others, it’s safe to say that at least they have a warm, welcoming community at Kent State and a solid assurance that handy resources will always be available for them to use.
