Classroom Documentation Project

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville has more than 300 campus-hosted classrooms. These rooms are on a 6-year refresh cycle for technology. Because of the length of time between renovations and the difference in room layouts, many of the rooms had technology that was confusing for instructors to use. I volunteered to manage a project which would create individualized instructions for every campus-hosted classroom on campus. Originally, we had a proof of concept plan in place to have only two major classroom buildings completed by fall 2020. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic, we realized that we needed to have instructions for every classroom on campus. The project finish date was moved from July 2021 up to August 2020. We were able to create materials for the classrooms.utk.edu website in time for instructors to teach in fall 2020. We continue to update and improve the website.

My role: Project Manager; creating instructions, videos, and training; supervising Graduate Students in instruction and video creation; connecting technology with pedagogy; working with web designers and graphic designers.

Control Panel Project

After the classrooms.utk.edu website was completed, the resulting instructions brought home to leadership’s attention the variations on control panel designs. We had more than 80 major versions of control panels on campus. I pushed for a control panel re-design project which would change our control panel design to be a single style that was capable of being updated for rooms with one or more projectors/monitors. This project is currently on-going. The initial design of the new control panel styles has been completed and new panel styles are being introduced as older equipment is replaced over the next year. Anticipated completion: Summer 2022.

My role: initiated project request. Worked with graphic designers and engineers to create a new panel based on my experience with what instructors need.

Example of old Control Panel Styles:

Example of new Control Panel Style:

Student Space

We needed more office space for our undergraduate and graduate students to share. We took a former training space and I was given a $5,000 budget to transform it into an office space. I purchased new furniture: desks, chairs, lockers, and created a modern hotel landing space for students to share.

My role: Project Manager, planner, purchasing, working with vendors and other departments.

Classroom Renovation

OIT needed a space to have a training lab for faculty, staff, and students. We wanted a welcoming space that would be central to campus. I was given a budget of $170,000 to renovate a space which had 1970s carpeting glued to the walls because it had been used as a recording studio years before. I worked with Facilities Services to renovate the space, removing carpet, repairing walls, installing extra electrical outlets, and replacing an old wooden door with a door with glass windows. I chose modular furniture which allows us to move the classroom around into any configuration we need. I included the latest technology available that was also found in classrooms so that instructors would see how OIT trainers used the space and be able to get ideas for using that technology in their classroom. The space opened in 2018.

My role: Project Manager, designer, purchasing, working with vendors and other departments.

Training Lab

With a budget of $55,000, I took an old training space that had been described as looking like a war zone and transformed it into a modern training space. This required working with Facilities Services to repair holes and paint cinderblock walls. I purchased new furniture and replaced aging technology with touchscreens and new laptops.

My role: Project Manager, designer, purchasing, choosing technology, working with vendors and other departments.

Training Lab Technology

Given a budget of $30,000, I was tasked with updating all of the technology in a training lab with iMacs and touchscreen monitors. The most difficult part of this project was getting 13 iMacs that were large enough and powerful enough to be useful for 5 years, while also purchasing new touchscreen monitors for the wall and staying under the $30,000 budget. I was able to research what we needed and stayed under budget. The iMacs purchased were later repurposed for student use and have been in use for 6 years and are still going strong.

My role: Project Manager, choosing technology, purchasing, working with vendors and other departments for installation.