With Samsung in the midst of an official Galaxy Note 7 recall due to its faulty battery, New Jersey’s Stockton University would rather be safe than sorry by opting to ban the phone altogether, SNJToday reports.
Beginning on September 12, students who either commute to school or live on campus must turn off their Galaxy Note 7 before setting foot on campus. The ban seems more like a precautionary measure, since no reported incidents related to the handset have surfaced from Stockton University.
“We have about 3,000 students that live on campus and anywhere from 10,000 individuals that come on our campus each day,” said Pedro Santana, Stockton University’s dean of students. “So we wanted to take a proactive measure and assure that the environment is safe, and free from a potential fire. The bottom line is, we don’t want it on our campus.”
According to Santana, students have been receptive to the ban, which the school said will not be lifted until Samsung’s official Galaxy Note 7 recall is over and done with. However, the measure is something that senior Elizabeth Hartman took issue with.
“I feel like, for everyone’s safety, it’s a good idea, but at the same time, the safety of the people who aren’t here that need to be in contact with someone who is here that has the phone, it’s not really good for them,” said Hartman.
Stockton’s decision to forbid the use of the Galaxy Note 7 while on campus is not an unprecedented move, seeing how everyone from the Federal Aviation Administration to multiple airlines around the world are either dissuading or preventing folks from using their Galaxy Note 7 in the plane. According to Samsung, the recall could cost the company as much as $1 billion.