Madison McCray
palmettoreport@gmail.com

(Rock Hill, S.C.) — Officials with Winthrop University’s Facilities Management team are working to revamp classrooms on the school’s campus with new technology and furniture.

The project, which began over the summer, is intended to put new technology in over 33 rooms on campus at an estimated cost of $3 million dollars.

It’s one of many projects that Facilities Management are working on to improve the quality of campus classrooms and resident halls.

James Grigg, Winthrop associate vice president of facilities management, said the upgrades of the rooms is a little behind schedule.

“We were aiming to do about 33 rooms this summer, (but) we are only able to accomplish 13. A little bit of supply chain, contractor, work schedules, etc., kind of got a little behind schedule so we were unable to complete the 33 rooms like we envisioned,” said Grigg.

The rooms that have been completed are in many different buildings around campus, including Kinard Hall, Johnson Hall, the West Center, the Digiorgio Campus Center and Rutledge Hall

The upgrades include audio and visual technology and some rooms have been outfitted with new 86-inch touchscreen monitors, cameras and microphones.

The other rooms have similar technology, Grigg said, but are based on how much new technology each room needs.

The rooms also have the ability to support hybrid teaching styles, which was an important aspect of updating these rooms.

“The overall goal was to take some of our older looking classrooms and bring it up to what they see in their high schools,” said Grigg.

The process of locating the right type of technology to be put in these rooms, began with the formation of a committee the was comprised of different faculty from campus.

Andrew Besmer, an associate professor of computer science at Winthrop, was a committee member, who said the process involved a lot of research.

“Our main goal was to look at what it would take to be modern today,” said Bessemer. “Then it was a lot of going out to, I mean dozens of schools and literally talking to dozens of schools about what they were putting in their classrooms and the kinds of technology you would see there.”

The committee surveyed students on campus through a survey conducted by the university’s Council of Student Leaders. The committee also held a town hall to talk with faculty and staff about what types of technology they would like.

Faculty have been using the new technology in the classrooms for about a month, since the fall semester started, and students seem to be receptive to it.

Kymoree Wynn, an integrated marketing major who takes classes in Johnson Hall, said the upgrades will create a better environment.

“The classrooms that we do have, they are very nice, but just to see a new clean environment, it gives you a whole new mental space, to how you should work and how you’re able to work,” said Wynn.

Grigg said Facilities Management plans to finish the makeovers of other classrooms over fall and winter break, which is just one part of the overall beautification plan for the Winthrop campus.