Spelman Students Create HBCU Mobile App

DALLAS -- AT&T announced that Jonecia Keels and Jazmine Miller of Spelman College, a historically black liberal arts college for women, have won the 2010 AT&T Big Mobile on Campus Challenge(SM) with their next generation e-learning mobile application, HBCU Buddy.

HBCU Buddy is a mobile application created to educate and inform users, including both prospective and current college students, about Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) across the United States. It is a fully-fledged mobile service application that provides detailed information about each and every HBCU in the nation and integrates all facets of college life.

The application opens with a directory profiling each HBCU with information on academics, admissions, research, student life, alumni, among other details. After selecting a school, students can navigate through the school – literally – by accessing virtual tours of buildings, on-campus videos, and local GPS and directions.

HBCU Buddy can also provide students with customizable social networking features to connect with each other, their school and community. The application connects to social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, and integrates tools such as chat and calendar to help students stay informed. Students can use the application to follow the latest on school club and campus happenings, local events, hot spots around the community, and more.

Jonecia Keels and Jazmine Miller were recognized and awarded a $10,000 scholarship (divided between them) and a mobile device of their choice each at a Higher Ed Board of Advisors Meeting. The pair will be demonstrating their HBCU Buddy application in the AT&T booth at the EduCause National Convention in Anaheim, California, through October 14th. Additionally, they will be invited to participate on the judging committee for the 2011 AT&T Big Mobile on Campus Challenge.

"HBCU Buddy is an outstanding mobile application, embodying everything this contest is about: providing a platform for higher education students to develop their innovative ideas into practical and useful e-learning mobile applications," said Chris Hill, Vice President, Advanced Enterprise Mobility Solutions, AT&T Business Solutions (ABS).

"No one can indentify higher education opportunities and needs better than the students themselves. Jonecia Keels andJazmine Miller of Spelman College saw a need and created an application that truly enhances the college experience for HBCU students. The application provides students with access to the most relevant information in real-time."

AT&T Big Mobile on Campus Challenge for full-time college students was established in 2008 to recognize innovative and creative mobile applications that enhance the educational process for higher education students.