A cell phone is all Kent State students need to stay connected.

Students won’t need a computer anymore to find out if a class or meeting is canceled, or if an event location has changed.

Mobile Campus, a text messaging service, launches at Kent State tomorrow. The service 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.

“It’s going to make communication much more efficient,” said Jared Kurilchick, marketing manager for Mobile Campus at Kent State.

The service is sponsored by Undergraduate Student Senate, which signed a contract with Mobile Campus last month.

Mobile Campus is free to students. The only fees are for students who may already pay for text messaging from their carrier. Students can sign up on the Web site, flash.mobilecampus.com.

“There are endless possibilities,” said Benjamin Feld, USS senator for student advancement.

Feld has been working as a liaison between Mobile Campus and Kent State since June.

“I was excited right away,” he said. “I think it’s a great opportunity.”

Feld said he plans to meet with student leaders of various organizations to try and gain support of Mobile Campus.

Kurilchick said he thinks the service will benefit student organizations, not only by improving communication, but also by promoting attendance at meetings and events.

“It’s a great way of communication,” Feld said.

The service also features retailer promotions, such as coupons and discounts from local businesses. Feld said no local merchants have signed a contract yet, but Kurilchick said several merchants are interested.

“There’s a good amount of interest in hearing more about it,” he said. “A lot of the (merchants) we’ve talked to have been really excited about it.”

To get promotions, students can select what the types of businesses they would like to receive. For example, a student could sign up to receive promotions from food retailers. Feld said students can choose how many text messages they would like to receive as well.

Throughout the next week, Feld will be working with Mobile Campus employees, who are all Kent State students, to promote the service. Mobile Campus will be hosting a booth at Tailgate Alley at tomorrow’s Kent State football game as well as a table at the Student Center next week.

“The main push is just to get the name out there,” Kurilchick said.

Mobile Campus will also be holding monthly giveaways for users to promote the service. Users can win prizes such as iPods, T-shirts and tickets to concerts, sporting events or movies.

Kent State is the first university in Ohio and the Midwest to launch Mobile Campus. Feld and Kurilchick both said they think the service’s success at Kent State can impact other universities.

“I envision it as just another perk of being enrolled at Kent State,” Kurilchick said. “This can and will be the next big thing.”

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