Keep Informed with the New BC App
Getting information about events on campus just got a lot easier, thanks to a new mobile app developed by the Bluefield College Student Development team.
The new app, available for download from the Apple App Store or Google Play, has many features designed to keep students informed and engaged, including an events calendar, club information, and tools for easy communication.
Josh Arnold, associate vice president of Student Development, came up with the idea of developing a mobile app for the college when he noticed that students needed a place to go to easily connect and get information they needed. Before the app, he said, the only way to find out what was happening on campus was to walk around looking at flyers or to check email. He wanted the app to provide students an easier way to keep informed.
“If we could get that information here (on cell phones) in a way that is easy to access, intuitive and familiar in a way that we already use our phones, that would make students’ lives easier,” Arnold said, “and that is how we kind of decided to do it.”
The main features of the app are the master calendar and the social media tab. These two places are where students can get all the information they need about events, news, speakers, deals, or athletic events on campus.
“The app pulls from several different calendars from across campus,” Arnold said. “The social media tile filters out all non-Bluefield College content and kind of aggregates all of the different Bluefield College sites into one stream and just makes it easy for you to just know what is going on.”
Students are able to subscribe to clubs and other organizations on campus within the clubs tab. Then, anytime these clubs post about an event, the information appears in the user’s calendar or sends them a notification. Students may also subscribe to notifications regarding Vocatio/chapel and from BC Central and residence hall groups.
“What I found was beneficial about it (the app) was the social tab,” said Randy Rombow, a student at Bluefield College. “That tells you what events are going on and lets you post inquiries. The app also helps me remember the hours the dining hall and kiosk are open.”
In addition, the app includes access to MyBC, Campus Safety, the Campus Store, maps, food services, emergency contact information, and resources related to community service, residence life, student engagement, global education, and the Academic Center for Excellence. The app is also gamified giving users the opportunity to earn points and be placed on a leaderboard for completing certain activities.
Arnold added that there is a lot more work being put into the app to create other components in the future, including additional activities and features for the gaming portion of the app. The biggest addition, he said, will be geofencing, a virtual geographic fence around campus that will trigger a response when app users enter or leave a particular area on campus. This feature will help students check into chapel or Vocatio or be alerted when an event is nearby.
For now, Arnold said they are focusing on adoption and getting students to download the app and start using it. Those who do are encouraged to turn on location services on their phone to allow the app to send alerts, especially when the geofencing portion is fully developed.