Newly-elected student body vice president and current SGA senator Michael Page is working to bring a cell phone application to students that can potentially keep their walk at night safe.

“My hope is to see the app implemented next spring before I leave,” Page said. “This is how I want to leave my legacy.”

The app is called LifeLine Response, also known as the Blue Light Safety app.

It is composed of two parts, a preset timer mode that will trigger the alarm and a monitoring mode that initiates a countdown the moment a person’s finger leaves the screen, according to the application’s website.

When crossing campus late at night, a student can turn on the application and put it on monitoring mode by holding their finger on the screen for the duration of their walk.

Once released, the countdown begins and at eight seconds, the distress alert is set off in order to scare away a potential attacker.

When the timer reaches 20 seconds, LifeLine’s 24/7 Response verification team will call the phone and, if necessary, contact the nearest 911 center with the person’s information and GPS coordinates.

If Appalachian were to incorporate this application into the school’s systems, university police would also receive the phone’s GPS coordinates.

Detoria Rolle, the director of student affairs, said that Chancellor Kenneth Peacock wants to make this application happen on campus.

Jake Cox, the current study body president, assigned Page with the job of demoing the application and working with the sales representative of LifeLine.

“The app demo has been working phenomenally,” Page said. “The sales rep has been extremely helpful. Our next step is to have him explain to me the process that other universities and student governments are doing to bring the app to their school.”

The LifeLine application is already in use at Angelo State University in Texas and receiving positive responses, according to the university’s police website.

Page plans to get Appalachian to implement the application in their systems.

Story: MICHELLE PIERCE, Intern News Reporter

Photo: JUSTIN PERRY, Staff Photogrpaher