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Mersive Technologies: Empowering Educators To Optimize Classrooms
Today’s classrooms nurture the minds of tomorrow. Within those hallowed walls, educators strive to transcend the conventional boundaries to craft the best learning experience for everyone. Given that modern schools find themselves at the crossroads of necessity and innovation, this task is often easier said than done. They do not require only a collaboration solution that enables effortless connections and ‘just works’ for more meaningful and dynamic learning experiences but one that also addresses concerns regarding budget, scale, and security. Mersive Technologies, a leading wireless media streaming and collaboration software provider for corporate, education, and government markets, can be the perfect partner for schools that want to ride the latest wave of tech evolution.
“Mersive continues to redefine collaborative learning and interaction in educational settings through our platform,” says Damian Blazy, CEO.
Mersive’s collaboration platform elevates student engagement and makes academic institutions more attractive to prospective students through vibrant, immersive learning experiences. Educators are also empowered to craft interactive, impactful lessons that resonate with today's digital-native learners. It simplifies AV/IT technology management for educational institutions, allowing media teams to shift their focus from maintenance to innovation. Further, Solstice provides practical insights that fine-tune educational content and optimize the layout of learning spaces, enhancing the overall teaching and learning experience.
Offering Massive Scalability and Ease of Deployment
Solstice is an innovative, software-driven, education-focused solution that allows users to connect with other students, faculty, and staff from any computer or tablet, regardless of the space. They can connect a Solstice Pod to a display to enable wireless screen sharing, video conferencing integration, and video routing capabilities without the need for expensive IT investments or additional hardware like HDMI cables, dongles, or switchers.
The collaboration technology also has built-in dynamic digital signage capabilities and interactive screen support. When a display is not being used for a meeting or class, it can be used to deliver cloud-deployed messaging and information to students and employees.
In one instance, George Mason University (GMU), Virginia’s largest public research university, opened its newest building—Horizon Hall—in January 2021. GMU’s goal was to be innovative in all aspects of Horizon Hall, from the building and room design to the technology.
During the Horizon Hall project, GMU had the initiative to support active learning pedagogy in at least 30 percent of all classrooms. Another significant requirement to fully utilize a wireless content-sharing platform was BYOD. Faculty and students needed the ability to bring any wireless device to the space, and no matter the type of device—laptop, tablet, or smartphone—it would need to work well and integrate with the wireless collaboration platform in the room.
The design and technology considerations and implementation for Horizon Hall fell to the expertise of Convergent Technology Design Group, Inc. (CTDG), with Corbett Technology Solutions (CTSI) as the systems integrator for the project. Working in liaison with the project architect, Perkins & Will, and GMU’s AV and IT leads, including Clemons and Pittman, CTDG designed flexible learning spaces and deployed Mersive Solstice as a complementary technology solution that would fit the goals and requirements of GMU and the Horizon Hall building.
Here’s what Crystal Clemons, M.Ed., director of classroom and lab technologies at GMU, has to say about the collaboration, “Each display is powered by a Solstice Pod, serving as the technological backbone that supports a wide array of activities. From classrooms where teaching and learning thrive to the professional ambiance of meeting and conference rooms, and extending into the informal gathering spaces where students and faculty engage in extended discussions beyond the classroom, the Solstice Pod plays a pivotal role.”
The Powerful Trifecta
In addition to the core Solstice technology, Mersive’s easy-to-use Active Learning software-based video routing for multiscreen educational environments allows instructors to drag-and-drop video feeds among multiple displays. This empowers everyone in the classroom or lecture hall to share their best ideas and content.
While Solstice Pods and Active Learning are student- and faculty-facing, Solstice Cloud has been designed for the AV/IT teams that are in charge of an institution’s media systems design and management. It allows users to easily deploy hardware, software updates, and more—either on-demand or according to a schedule to minimize network disruption. This is crucial to avoid downtime when school is in session.
Mersive’s Solstice Cloud enables AV/IT managers to deploy Solstice Pods remotely using a templated approach that ensures consistency and requires fewer resources, saving valuable time, manpower, and money. For example, one international client deployed 15,000 Mersive Solstice Pods all over the globe using Solstice Cloud. Updates to Solstice Pods are also easy and executable en masse from anywhere.
The powerful combination of Solstice Pods, Active Learning, and Solstice Cloud creates future-proof environments and highly engaging curricula, making the company’s technology the cornerstone of many top academic institutions across the globe.
Adapting to School’s Changing Needs
Because Mersive’s offerings are software-based and cloud managed, they are easily deployed and maintained across one or multiple campuses, with minimal physical time required onsite. This software-based approach easily adapts to a school’s changing needs while accommodating a growing number of devices and users.
The design and technology considerations and implementation for Horizon Hall fell to the expertise of Convergent Technology Design Group, Inc. (CTDG), with Corbett Technology Solutions (CTSI) as the systems integrator for the project. Working in liaison with the project architect, Perkins & Will, and GMU’s AV and IT leads, including Clemons and Pittman, CTDG designed flexible learning spaces and deployed Mersive Solstice as a complementary technology solution that would fit the goals and requirements of GMU and the Horizon Hall building.
Here’s what Crystal Clemons, M.Ed., director of classroom and lab technologies at GMU, has to say about the collaboration, “Each display is powered by a Solstice Pod, serving as the technological backbone that supports a wide array of activities. From classrooms where teaching and learning thrive to the professional ambiance of meeting and conference rooms, and extending into the informal gathering spaces where students and faculty engage in extended discussions beyond the classroom, the Solstice Pod plays a pivotal role.”
The Powerful Trifecta
In addition to the core Solstice technology, Mersive’s easy-to-use Active Learning software-based video routing for multiscreen educational environments allows instructors to drag-and-drop video feeds among multiple displays. This empowers everyone in the classroom or lecture hall to share their best ideas and content.
While Solstice Pods and Active Learning are student- and faculty-facing, Solstice Cloud has been designed for the AV/IT teams that are in charge of an institution’s media systems design and management. It allows users to easily deploy hardware, software updates, and more—either on-demand or according to a schedule to minimize network disruption. This is crucial to avoid downtime when school is in session.
Mersive’s Solstice Cloud enables AV/IT managers to deploy Solstice Pods remotely using a templated approach that ensures consistency and requires fewer resources, saving valuable time, manpower, and money. For example, one international client deployed 15,000 Mersive Solstice Pods all over the globe using Solstice Cloud. Updates to Solstice Pods are also easy and executable en masse from anywhere.
The powerful combination of Solstice Pods, Active Learning, and Solstice Cloud creates future-proof environments and highly engaging curricula, making the company’s technology the cornerstone of many top academic institutions across the globe.
Adapting to School’s Changing Needs
Because Mersive’s offerings are software-based and cloud managed, they are easily deployed and maintained across one or multiple campuses, with minimal physical time required onsite. This software-based approach easily adapts to a school’s changing needs while accommodating a growing number of devices and users.
The software-forward approach to collaboration effectuates what universities and educational facilities across the world are trying to accomplish: to provide meaningful educational experiences with the right combination of hardware and software resources.
For example, while their main use is collaboration, Mersive Solstice Pods double as digital signage players, facilitating communication of important messages on video displays when they aren’t being used in a collaboration capacity. Additionally, Solstice Pods inherently have AV-over-IP capabilities, enhancing multi-display environments campus-wide from a simple software enablement. This innovative technology further reduces the need for additional hardware that is otherwise required in order to add new system capabilities.
Aiming for Market-Leading Innovation in Security and Advanced Technologies
Understanding that information security is one of the major concerns in an educational collaboration environment, Mersive has recently received SOC 2 attestation and HIPAA compliance and will receive ISO 27001 certification in the first half of 2024.
“Through our Solstice Collaboration Platform, we continue to redefine collaborative learning and interaction in educational settings”
“We are proud of the work we are doing here to keep our customers safe. We want all our clients to have the peace of mind that their networks, data, and devices are secure when they use our products,” says Young.
One of the first collaboration platform providers that was built from the ground up for collaboration, Mersive has the ‘first-mover advantage’ in creating a brand recognition which-pushes the proverbial envelope of collaborative learning and interactions. With multiple competitors striding to emulate its offerings, the company is way ahead of the curve due to its relentless pursuit to-ward innovation. To this end, Young states that Mersive is poised to shake up the collaboration space once again in the near future.
Throughout 2024 and beyond, Mersive will once again raise the bar and introduce market-leading technology making it possible to leverage the intrinsic information and knowledge embedded in every collaborative event regardless of its nature. The innovation and value-creation opportunities Mersive will bring are vast and will demonstrate Mersive’s commitment to maximizing the use of market-changing technologies for the benefit and security of its customers.
“With the right combination of resources adequate to their needs, our clients take one more step toward the future,” says Alan Young, the CPO and CISO for Mersive.
We are proud of the work we are doing here to keep our customers safe. We want all our clients to have the peace of mind that their networks, data, and devices are secure when they use our products
For example, while their main use is collaboration, Mersive Solstice Pods double as digital signage players, facilitating communication of important messages on video displays when they aren’t being used in a collaboration capacity. Additionally, Solstice Pods inherently have AV-over-IP capabilities, enhancing multi-display environments campus-wide from a simple software enablement. This innovative technology further reduces the need for additional hardware that is otherwise required in order to add new system capabilities.
Aiming for Market-Leading Innovation in Security and Advanced Technologies
Understanding that information security is one of the major concerns in an educational collaboration environment, Mersive has recently received SOC 2 attestation and HIPAA compliance and will receive ISO 27001 certification in the first half of 2024.
“Through our Solstice Collaboration Platform, we continue to redefine collaborative learning and interaction in educational settings”
“We are proud of the work we are doing here to keep our customers safe. We want all our clients to have the peace of mind that their networks, data, and devices are secure when they use our products,” says Young.
One of the first collaboration platform providers that was built from the ground up for collaboration, Mersive has the ‘first-mover advantage’ in creating a brand recognition which-pushes the proverbial envelope of collaborative learning and interactions. With multiple competitors striding to emulate its offerings, the company is way ahead of the curve due to its relentless pursuit to-ward innovation. To this end, Young states that Mersive is poised to shake up the collaboration space once again in the near future.
Throughout 2024 and beyond, Mersive will once again raise the bar and introduce market-leading technology making it possible to leverage the intrinsic information and knowledge embedded in every collaborative event regardless of its nature. The innovation and value-creation opportunities Mersive will bring are vast and will demonstrate Mersive’s commitment to maximizing the use of market-changing technologies for the benefit and security of its customers.
