The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Nursing is ranked eighth among top nursing schools in the nation. They are committed to delivering innovative programs with degree offerings at both graduate and undergraduate levels. With over 2,500 students and 30,000 square feet of simulation space, students receive an intuitive and hands-on learning experience. To adapt to the growing and changing needs of the university, the UAB School of Nursing added a brand-new tower onto their existing building. The new tower includes four classrooms and an Innovation Collaboratory, a space specifically designed for students to congregate, work, and learn.

THE CHALLENGE:

As it constructed new classrooms aimed at collaboration, the UAB School of Nursing wanted to ensure its students could engage with material in a dynamic, inclusive, and participatory learning environment to prepare students to be lifelong learners, while giving them a say in their education. The UAB School of Nursing’s Innovation Collaboratory and other technologically advanced classrooms create spaces that provide the university with a competitive advantage that secures their spot as one of the highest ranked nursing schools in the country.

THE SOLUTION: While this room was designed with students in mind, it has the flexibility to be used for other purposes. Medical professionals can use the room to continue to innovate, learn, and collaborate even after achieving their degrees. “This room is not limited to teaching students,” says Moss. “The room’s interactive technology enables nurses to collaborate with each other, or health care colleagues in the room or anywhere there is the ability to connect.”

THE TECHNOLOGY:

Inside the new 72,000 square-foot, two-story tower each active learning and collaboration classroom features Crestron DM NVX™ technology and Crestron TSW touch screens to easily manage the space. These interactive classrooms allow instructors to walk into the room and begin their lessons effortlessly. From the instructor’s lectern, a Crestron TSW touch screen is used to control the presentation content displayed throughout the room. The instructor has the ability to project content to any screen in the room and share everything from classroom workshops to X-Rays to research.

The Innovation Collaboratory on the second floor is the heart of the school’s new commitment to collaboration. Inside the space, five annotation boards also act as dry erase boards with projection. There are seven, big oval desks that are split into two sections to create 14 pods around the room. Each pod has a 55” monitor and six seats designed to encourage students to work together.

DM NVX drives the collaboration in this space as well, providing pristine 4K image quality and no latency, while enabling content sharing across all the screens. The instructor’s lectern also includes a TSW touch screen that provides management and control of all the sources throughout the room.

RESULTS: The new immersive environment, designed to foster creativity and revolutionize learning, provides students and staff a unique place in which to collaborate. “With this setup, faculty members are able to create a jointly constructed learning model that allows students to innovate in the classroom and beyond,” says Moss. “It provides our instructors with the tools we need to create a collaborative space.”