Almost 1,000 freshman students enrolled at Abilene Christian University on Aug. 16, and they got something more than a parking permit and a t-shirt. They got a choice of a new Apple iPhone 3G or iPod touch, plus a package of ACU Web applications to use on them in this fascinating program.

The hardware is part of the university’s just launched mobile learning project, which has been gestating for over a year, and was announced in February. ACU pays for the hardware, student (or their parents) select and pay for their monthly AT&T service plan themselves. It’s a brave and interesting program, and hopefully more colleges will follow suit with programs like this one as the iPhone grows into a vital educational tool.

This should help to dispel the sometimes-myth of the iPhone just being a “toy” for kids.