Blackboard has announced the release of a native app for Android phones that brings the company’s popular campus life and services application to one of the fastest growing mobile platforms. Blackboard Mobile Central is already available for iOS and BlackBerry, and also comes in a mobile web version.

Custom-built and branded for each institution, Blackboard Mobile Central brings university life and campus services to users through smartphones and mobile devices. After it is enabled, the app is free to students, faculty, prospective students, parents, alumni and anyone else interested in staying connected to an institution, and can be downloaded from smartphone app stores.

With the app, users can navigate campus maps and course catalogs, event calendars, campus news, sports schedules, and even a campus directory that allows users to call or email professors and classmates directly from the app.

“Supporting Android is part of our overall commitment to bring the best of campus life to users in a way that is convenient and engaging,” says Blackboard Mobile vice president, Kayvon Beykpour. “We’ve made a significant investment in delivering a unique experience to users of all platforms, and we’re excited to bring our mobile apps to the quickly expanding segment of mobile consumers using Android devices.”

The new Android app includes Athletics, Courses, Directory, Library, Maps, News, Get Help and Links sections with other features to be added soon. It incorporates Widgets, which enable users to access important information from Blackboard Mobile Central at a glance from their homescreen; and Shortcuts, which let users create a direct shortcut to any one of the Blackboard Mobile Central modules directly on their phone’s home screen so that it can be accessed immediately, without opening the app.

There’s more information about Blackboard Mobile Central here.