Evergreening Your Classroom Technology

The Digital Classroom Lectern in Hickman Hall 114 includes a new Mac keyboard.

This past summer, DCS continued working to ensure our classroom technology is up-to-date and reflective of the evolving needs of Rutgers-New Brunswick faculty. The annual "evergreening" undertaken by our Technical Services & Operations team helps keep rooms state-of-the-art, cycle out old equipment before it reaches end-of-life, and introduce new features to facilitate new teaching approaches.

Since launching the Digital Classroom Podium Project in 2012, we have designed six version of the original podium that reflect the learning and space requirements of different classrooms. This summer, we focused on right-sizing the equipment in small classrooms. Digital Classroom Podiums in twenty-six rooms were replaced with new Digital Classroom Lecterns (DCLs), which have a smaller footprint, allowing the instructor more space in which to teach while using technology. The DCLs also include a built-in presenter camera and microphone. As a result,  Rutgers-NB know has eighty general-purpose Videoconference & Lecture Capture Spaces.

rab-dcpIn larger rooms that warrant Digital Classroom Podiums, we "refreshed" these systems by replacing the physical podium as well as aging components. As we introduced new technologies like conference cameras and microphones, we also removed older technology which have declined in usage. This summer, we removed blu-ray players and VGA connections. By removing old technology that has increasingly been abandoned for newer, better solutions - we can reduce points of failure in our systems and focus on new features that will get more use.

Finally, we updated nearly all of our classrooms with new Mac keyboards. As a result, users who are familiar with Macs can now use keyboard shortcuts with which they are familiar.

For a full of new installs and refreshes, view the list below.

New Digital Classroom Lecterns

Allison Road Classroom: 108, 110, 328
Beck Hall: 221
School of Communication & Information: 101, 103, 201, 203
Frelinghuysen: A1, A2, A3, A4, B6
Hickman Hall: 114, 129, 202, 207, 213
Science & Engineering Resource Center: 204, 206 211, 212, 216, 217, 218, 220

Refreshed Digital Classroom Podiums

Beck Hall: 219, 250, 251, 252, 253
Hill Center: 114, 116
Loree Hall: 020, 022, 115
Lucy Stone Hall: B105, B115, B117, B123, B205
Murray Hall: 210, 211, 212, 213
Ruth Adams Building: 104
Science & Engineering Research Center: 111, 117, 118, 202, 203, 205, 207, 208, 209, 210
Tillett Hall: 105

Refreshed Digital Classroom Flip-Tops

Lucy Stone Hall: B121