Recently, the Elizabethtown College Jays App has transformed into a social media platform, deviating from its original purpose.
The service is provided through a company called Campus Ready Education, and colleges across the country utilize its platforms similarly to Etown. It allows students and faculty alike to have a voice across campus–though in a portable manner.
Associate Dean of Students Jenn Crowder oversees the Jays App.
“You can link your Canvas to the app, create private channels for study groups, floor communities, clubs and organizations, etc. When departments and offices, like NSO [New Student Orientation] and OSA [Office of Student Activities], use the app we can also get your feedback on the event, which helps us make your Etown experience that much better over time,” Crowder said, highlighting the benefits of the app.
The instant access to many Etown resources is one way in which the Jays App serves as a convenience to students. In addition, it permits all users to reap the full benefits of the College community, as the survey feature on the app can foster improvements across campus.
However, Crowder recognizes that the app is not perfect.
“There are still bells and whistles that I’d like to get up and running across campus to help make it even more robust for folks—like updating club and organization information, providing some insights on how to connect to Canvas and build out your weekly schedule on the app so you have everything right in the palm of your hand. We also want to make sure that students who do not have smartphones know that you can login to the app from your desktop,” Crowder said.
She encouraged users to log out and log in to ensure that they are getting the most up to date information, as well as provide her with feedback.
Crowder has seen the gradual changes in content on the app and agrees that students have reshaped its purpose, creating a unique social media platform.
“I personally love the student feed,” she said. “It’s such a great feature for a community to have its own feed and channels to be in touch with each other. Folks are clearly creative and clever, which provides me with some good chuckles from time to time.”
In addition, she reflected on the entirety of the Etown family, as the Jays App emphasizes the College’s tight-knit, friendly community.
“I appreciate the lost and found feed, because it shows the integrity our community has with regard to looking out for folks. It’s also a great way to get information out to students and something more offices and departments around campus are working to utilize,” Crowder said.
Many not only use the app to help others but also to highlight campus events, express concerns and most notably, share their sense of humor.
Rising Jays App user and first-year student Brock Malone frequently posts on the app. However, he did not start utilizing it until recently.
“One night, I was sitting with a bunch of friends and one of them brought up the Jays App and how it isn’t really used,” Malone said. “We all thought it would be funny if we started using it almost like Twitter and so I posted something about a petting zoo…and then it kind of took off.”
Through this, Malone has inspired others to regularly engage with the platform, bringing smiles and laughs to the community daily.
One of his favorite aspects of the Jays App is “…[the] posts that get a lot of interactions…because it makes me feel like a part of the community more.”
However, Malone has one wish for the App, requesting, “All I want is to be verified. Please Elizabethtown. Verify me.”
In response to this, Crowder said, “The app is an internal Etown product, you don’t need a blue check to be verified; having access means you’re verified. And in my book, Brock and Emily [Ward], whenever I read your posts, I know you’re the real deal. The check is implied and I’m not alone in that belief.”
Both Crowder and Malone’s accounts reflect a single idea that encompasses the platform: the Jays App brings the community together.
