Evanston, Ill. — Northwestern University’s mobile application is expanding its reach once again. Now Android users can access all the great content that iPhone and Blackberry users already have been enjoying.The mobile app for the Android operating system is making its debut at Northwestern and features a campus directory, maps, news, athletics information and a library catalog search.

Northwestern University Information Technology (NUIT) and the Department of University Relations collaborated with Blackboard Inc. to launch the new mobile app for Android.

The newest version of the Northwestern mobile suite enables users to create shortcuts to any of the apps on their phone’s home screen. It also provides widgets for Northwestern news and maps search tools.

“Most of our incoming students arrive with smart phones, and a growing number of these phones are Android devices,” said Harlan Wallach, media architect in NUIT’s academic and research technology group.

“Android is a vibrant, fast-growing platform, and the ability for us to reach students through smart phones is key to the overall experience and efficiency of our University. Working with Blackboard we’ve been able to do that quickly and with very high quality native applications that support the wide range of mobile devices our students are using,” Wallach said. “We’re looking forward to exploring the ability to customize the app to meet the needs of individual schools or departments.”

Future versions of Northwestern mobile will include live GPS updates of campus shuttle locations, an expanded suite of library services and course communication services from Blackboard.