Michael Fleming

mfleming@mtsu.edu

John Merchant

Recording Industry

Smart Classroom

Bragg 180

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Bragg 180: Master Classroom (“Smart Classroom") Transformation with Upgrades to Existing Smart Systems The Recording Industry Department’s Bragg 180 classroom typically hosts around 25 sections per week. Annually, a large fraction of the department’s 1,000-plus undergraduates and all of the MRAT Master of Fine Arts candidates attend classes in this heavily used teaching lab. The room is well-suited for multimedia presentations and audio playback because it has a large interior volume, a symmetrical floor-plan and excellent acoustical isolation. Therefore, it’s the preferred facility for courses like Critical Listening (RIM 4440), Mixing Techniques (RIM 4600, MRAT 6145), M.F.A. Production Seminar (MRAT 6110), graduate Sound for Picture (MRAT 6120) and Audio Production electives like Broadcast Audio (RIM 4490). In addition, nearly 120 hours of reserved lab access is provided weekly to individual students, and the room has become a nexus for collaborations between the Recording Industry and Media Arts programs. However, Bragg 180’s physical condition has deteriorated badly. Its history of wear and neglect is evident in the stained and threadbare carpet, imposing and outdated furniture, damaged and dingy 31-year-old fabric wall coverings and the dimly lit assemblage of rudimentary instructional technology consisting of a teacher workstation, basic signal distribution and a noisy video projector. This Smart Classroom proposal will upgrade the instructional technology system with improved display technology (e.g., a higher resolution, low-noise projector), enhanced video and audio routing, and essential infrastructure, including media/data conduits, power distribution and task lighting, to support additional displays, loudspeakers and further planned improvements that will be funded by Student Course Fees and future Discipline-Specific proposals. The high construction investment in this proposal reflects the urgent needs of this unique classroom. Upgraded AV infrastructure along with new ergonomic furnishings will refresh Bragg 180 for its hundreds of current users and provide the core technical functionality required for the next generation of multimedia instruction.