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Education
Bryant University:
“Student-Centered” Communications Savvy
Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island, has prided itself on
being a “student-centered” university since its founding in 1863. With
400 graduate and 3200 undergraduate students from 31 states and 32
countries on a 420-acre campus, communications are critical to
preserving that focus.
 The
Princeton Review recently included Bryant in
their "Top 25 Most Connected Campuses" list in January 2006. The entire
university campus is Wi-Fi enabled and students are issued laptops for
the duration of their studies. Even the student lounges have large video
wall displays to engage and communicate with the student body.
"Technology is an important tool in this highly interconnected global
economy,” stated Ronald K. Machtley, president of Bryant.
Bryant has not always been the “wired” leader it is today. A particular
challenge in the past was communications, as most announcements were
delivered in print via overcrowded bulletin boards. Three years ago, a
bulletin board was set on fire and caused significant damage. Bryant
knew that the current system wasn’t working – the school administration
banned paper notices and turned to Visix and AxisTV.
Visix and Bryant worked to implement a paperless solution that would meet
communication needs for the administration, while reinforcing their
“student-centered” philosophy by providing a straightforward channel for
delivering student notices. The challenge was met with the AxisTV
Professional Edition software application, paired with a comprehensive
hardware package including channel players, a content management and
Web-hosting server, a supporting network infrastructure and audiovisual
signal distribution to peripheral displays.
The school installed digital display stations around campus in popular
high-traffic areas such as lobbies, corridors and lounges. Each digital
display station includes two plasma screens – one for administrative use
and one for student notices. The administration uses AxisTV to deliver
class schedule information, school bulletins, and public service
announcements.
Students have actively embraced the technology, and most new content
comes from their side of the equation. Student messages include
information about university-sanctioned organizations and clubs, sports
teams, theatrical productions, student union notices, guest speakers,
fraternity and sorority events, and more.
“The system is so flexible,” commented Roger A. Acosta, Internal Media
Coordinator at Bryant University. “There’s constantly something new
going up, circulating around the system, being commented on, inspiring
others to make their own contributions.”
Bryant further strengthened student-administration cooperation by
developing and publishing standardized policies on how to access, create
and schedule messages within AxisTV.
Any student can submit a bulletin for display using a lab workstation
paired with an authorized password provided by the appropriate Bryant
advisor. A library of backgrounds and text editing tools allow students
to express their creativity when designing communications. The AxisTV
system holds the bulletin for approval by the department head, who then
approves it or suggests changes. “Even though the technology is
virtually instantaneous, with approval policies it can take a couple of
days to get messages up on the system, so we ask people to plan ahead,”
said Acosta.
Acosta and other Bryant administrators have been extremely pleased with
the results – both expected and unexpected – from integrating AxisTV
into campus life. An obvious advantage is the near real-time delivery
ability of the system, accessed via the Web, for speedy communications.
“If there’s an emergency, everyone can be notified immediately,” stated
Acosta.
A favorite Bryant feature of AxisTV is its capacity to
interface with CollegeNet’s R25 – a
campus-wide class and event scheduling software used by
Bryant. The two systems work together
seamlessly to coordinate and communicate room scheduling and event
schedule displays.
Also popular is AxisTV’s capacity for video and audio input
communications. Streaming video is pumped directly into the corridor
displays and through the university’s cable TV system in classrooms and
dorm rooms. AxisTV also allows for short audio clips attached to
bulletins.
There have been some significant unexpected benefits of the digital
signage integration at Bryant. Unauthorized advertisements from credit
card companies and solicitors’ that used to clutter bulletin boards have
been eliminated. Also, paper banners and their remnants often used to
litter common areas. “It looked like a flea market,” said Acosta. “This
new system is clean – it’s all digital so there’s no mess at all.”
Other universities have visited Bryant as a showcase for communication
technology in this interconnected age. After seeing results of the
progressive attitude of this prestigious institution, they find that
“student-centered” equals communications savvy on this connected campus.
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