The Junior class joined the technologically advanced ranks of the freshmen by receiving the iPhone 4 or a new iPod Touch on Saturday.

Students were able to pick up their devices from 12 p.m. all the way until 8 p.m.

Lines were long at the start of the day, but cleared up due to the efficiency of Team 55 and AT&T.

“We were expecting a large group of students,” Sales Executive David Hardaway said, “so we had a lot of people here to help and have things run smoothly.”

Students waited in line to turn in their old devices and pick up new iPhones or iPod Touches.  AT&T representatives helped activate  phones and teach students how to transfer information from old devices.

Juniors were anxious to get new phones after two years of wear and tear on their original iPhones.

“My 3G is ancient now,” Mandi Crowder, junior physics major from Cedar Park, said. “I’m excited for a phone that actually works now.”

While some students weren’t too happy with the ordeal of ordering their devices individually off Team 55’s website, Terri Wolter, AT&T University Account Manager, said it was much easier from a shipping standpoint.

Originally, ACU planned to distribute the iPhone 3GS to Juniors as a replacement, but with Apple planning a release of the iPhone 4, they waited.

“Apple annually launches a new device; ACU wants the latest and greatest,” Wolter said. “So we anticipated this years release and planned to get ACU students the best.”

Kay Reeves, executive director of Information Technologies, said close to 25 percent of students chose to get the iPod Touch instead of the iPhone.

“I don’t use a phone a whole lot, so why pay for an expensive phone plan?” Benjamin Miller,  sophomore physics major from The Woodlands, said. “I’m happy with my track phone.”

One of the missions of the ACU Connected initiative is to change the way students prepare to enter the world and work force.

According to the ACU Connected website, www.acu.edu/technology/mobilelearning, “At ACU, we are training students to not merely consume these vast amounts of information, but to assess information, to synthesize thoughts, to generate new ideas and to contribute meaningfully to conversations of global importance.”

In keeping with their mission, ACU will continually get the newest products of Apple and AT&T.

“Each year, the freshmen and juniors will get the best Apple offers,” Wolter said. “The iPhone is a great learning tool for a student to be successful, and these are the same tools employees use today in corporate America.”

ACU Connected has issued a 2009-10 Mobile-Learning Report filled with testimonies of students and professors who have changed their learning, teaching and social activities after receiving a mobile-learning device.

More information on the iPhone and ACU’s efforts to prepare students for a technological world can be found at www.acu.edu.