Boulder – Dormitories at the University of Colorado’s Boulder campus could be without land-line phone service by 2008 because so many students use only their cellphones, school officials said.
Many dorm residents disconnect the old phones and stash them away, said Deborah Coffin, CU’s housing director.
“It’s looking like the land line is toward the end of its life,” she said.
CU housing officials are considering alternatives, including installing Internet phone service or providing cellphones to incoming freshmen.
By fall 2007, officials expect to ask students to bring their own land-line handsets, although the lines will continue to operate for at least that school year, officials said.
Task forces are reviewing options that would guarantee students can call police or housing officials in an emergency.
Removal of the old phones and their long, coiled cords could be as soon as this fall, Coffin said.
CU spends about $800,000 a year on land-line phone service in dormitories and $300,000 in family housing units, said Robert Dixon, information-technology director for housing and dining services.
Universities in other states are also considering the change.
The University of Cincinnati plans to offer free cellphones to about 4,000 freshmen at its summer orientation. At the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, phone service is being scaled back to dial on-campus extensions only.
