Tomorrow’s Student Activities office will be even more dependent on technology than today’s office. However, it will likely have even fewer machines. Within a couple of years, most “office equipment” will consist of two advanced machines: a computer (with broadband Internet and printer/scanner), and a cell phone. And-- imagine that-- it’s the very same equipment that every college student will have.
Technological Compatibility
While there is some resistance to embracing the new advances, most programmers are at least trying to keep up with the curve. It’s refreshing to see the sea change in attitude. The “Luddites” who previously refused to even learn to email are mostly gone, replaced by those who either grew up with technology or learned to embrace it.
If college students and programmers have access to the same technologies, then there is an extraordinary opportunity. One beautiful thing about this common technology is the way it can help create better campus programs. Let’s consider some of the most popular new opportunities that are useful in the world of student activities.
Facebook/MySpace
Facebook and MySpace are known as social networking sites. Basically, a student signs up, gets a free web page, and can begin to start communicating with “friends” (other members). The attractive thing about these sites has to do with their interactive nature. “Friends” can link to each other. They can link to other sites (YouTube, etc.) to share information. Music, photo, and video files can be linked and shared. Friends can essentially design their “space” to match their personalities and interests. This is how a lot of young people make friends and communicate with their peers.
We’re all familiar with the potential (and real) problems with these social networking sites. They have gotten a lot of bad press, and some of it may be deserved. But they are not going away. Students log on and stay on for hours each and every day. Each person can set their own profile to private if they want, and keep any strangers from exploring their personal site without prior approval.
What can this mean to programming? First of all, if you’re not a “friend,” then log on and join. It’s the only way to become familiar with the sites and their potential. You can’t truly appreciate all they can do until you’re involved. Don’t worry, these are legitimate consumer websites. You won’t be automatically branded as a predator just because you have a Facebook or MySpace page. I do-- and so does Willie Nelson, Stephen Colbert, Barack Obama, and most of the students on your campus.
You can set up a page for your activities office, or your program board. Go to www.facebook.com or www.MySpace.com. Then, invite the students on your campus to become a friend and link to your site. Investigate all the different options for these social networking sites. Once students are linked as friends, you can send out “Invitations” to your events. You can link to the pages of artists and attractions you have scheduled, so that your network of friends can learn about the coming shows.
While membership in both of these webpages is free, there is a relatively new service being offered by Facebook. For a small fee, you can send an electronic flyer to every member of a specific group. For example, you could send an electronic flyer announcing an upcoming event to every member who attends your college or university. That is some amazing target marketing!
Listserv and Electronic Mailing Lists
Before the advent of the world wide web, those with email capabilities often subscribed to electronic mailing lists. These mailing lists generally used the most popular software called “Listserv” first developed in 1984. Most electronic mailing lists now utilize far more advanced software, and are often served by the best-known companies in the Internet field-- Yahoo and Google.
The original use of listserv was as a mail reflector. Any member could sent an email to a listserv address, and it would be resent (“reflected”) to every other member. This enabled online discussion, with everyone having access to all information. Because members have to subscribe (“opt-in”), it’s not SPAM.
More recent use of listserv has been along the lines of a traditional mailing list. The list owner-- and just the owner-- has access to send messages to the members. You should have a electronic mailing list for your office or program board. As students subscribe to your listserv, then you will build a great list for informing your students of upcoming events and attractions. You can embed links, photos, even MP3 files, so that students can learn about and even sample the events you’re presenting. And, it’s free. You can set up your own mailing list at Yahoo (www.Yahoo.com) and Google (www.Google.com).
Text messaging and MOZES
Whether you personally “text” (that is, send text messages) or not, you know that your students do. You can see them thumb typing on their cell phones in class, in the student center, even while driving! If they are using text messaging so heavily in their personal communication, then you should be using it to communicate with them.
Perhaps the simplest method is a free service called “Mozes” (www.MOZES.com). You can set up an account, and Mozes will send your text message to every one who has subscribed to your list.
It’s remarkably simple. You open your free account, and get your “keyword” (like “CAB” or “SAB”) which identifies your account. You can post your initial text message, perhaps a welcome for new subscribers. At that point you’re ready to text. Ask your students to text message your keyword to this number: 66937 (that’s dialing MOZES on your phone). They will receive your welcome text message and will be subscribed to your list.
When you want to send a text message to your “mob” (that’s the term for your MOZES group), you log on to your account at the Mozes website and send it. Everyone who has subscribed will get your text message on their cell phone. It doesn’t get any easier than that.
Program Board Collaboration
The last new innovation I’ll cover is online project management. That may sound confusing, but it’s remarkably simple. And remember-- your students revolve around the Internet. They will grasp this quickly, and be utilizing it to the fullest extent while you’re still trying to understand what it does and how it works.
Check out BaseCamp (www.BaseCampHQ.com), the most popular project management site. You can sign up for the most basic service for free, and if it proves useful you might want to expand into bigger account with a small monthly fee. And, it’s a private site, so your pages are only accessible by you and the students and staff with whom you share the log-in and password.
It’s very straightforward to work with BaseCamp. You set up your project (a concert, festival, homecoming, etc.) online. You can even upload your organization’s logo, and it will personalize every page you use! In the online project you’ll have a to-do list, assignments, latest activity on the site, even a message board. Your program board members can log on, get their assignments, then check them off on the list. They can communicate with you and each other on the message board, posting comments and concerns. It has a time tracker, so you can set and meet your deadlines.
Your program board members-- who even now are online most of each day-- can stay as connected with each other as if they were sharing an office. It’s a great use of technology, and an excellent way to keep everyone involved in a project totally informed. BaseCamp may be the best way to deal with those communication problems that nearly always occur in group projects.
Getting In-- And Staying In-- The Loop
So, if any of this is new to you, here is your assignment: log on and explore. Sign up for a Facebook and MySpace page, and see how useful you find it for working and communicating with your students. See if you can’t find ways to use it to inform them about your programming and events, and invite them to participate. Set up your free MOZES account, get some students to sign up, and create your first “Flash Mob” (look it up!). Take your next big collaborative event (maybe “Spring Fling” or “Welcome Week”) and put it online at BaseCamp. See how productive your student leaders can be when they are able to work whenever and wherever they choose-- in their dorm room, the library, or Starbucks.
You better learn this technology, because it will be with us for a while. You don’t want to be one of those people whose VCR is always flashing “12:00” because they can’t set the clock. If you embrace technology, then the VCR won’t be a problem. You’ll have TIVO.
If you have any questions or comments, I’d love to hear from you. Just drop me an email, and I’ll get back to you.