Mobile Computing

Xavier Project To Help Students and Staff Make Healthier Choices

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 10/20/15

Xavier University is adding the option for its campus community to gain an education in a healthy lifestyle. Starting shortly, the Ohio institution will be launching Project X Health, an initiative to allow 7,500 students, staff and faculty to monitor their physical activity, sleep and food data. It will be working with Strap, a company that works with organizations in applying "human data" to marketing and engagement programs.

In this case, the university will attempt to help its community to make healthier life choices. In return, they'll be eligible to earn rewards.

Strap's software can collect data from devices users already have, including smartphones, health tracking mobile apps and wearables. The program will be optional for all participants.

"Project X Health will help the Xavier community collectively understand our behavior and make decisions that can drive positive change," said Xavier's Chief Innovation Officer, Shawn Nason in a press release. "Xavier University is driven by the education of the whole person for each member of the university, and we see a healthy lifestyle as an integral part of what we can offer a student in four years."

Project X Health comes out of Xavier's Center for Innovation, an educational venture launched almost a year ago to work with entrepreneurs and start-ups — especially those with ties to Xavier — on issues related to healthcare, education and innovation. In June 2015 Strap was part of the center's "Healthovate Cincinnati" summit, where people from the healthcare industry came together to share and develop innovations in that segment.