I Study in My Bedroom

That was Stephen Boyd’s response to the Herman Miller Education Solutions team’s question for college students: “Where Do You Learn Best?” Boyd was the first place winner of our first video contest encouraging students to capture on camera what makes an ideal location for learning. The contest was targeted toward full-time students attending 2-or 4-year U.S. colleges or universities.

Contest entries were accepted from January 22 through March 26, 2010. Representatives from the Herman Miller Education Solutions team selected three finalists who best represented creativity, originality, and appropriateness to the theme. Prizes were in the form of Visa gift cards: $2500 for first place; $1500 for second place; and $1000 for third place.

The three finalists will also be invited to attend the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) annual international conference in Minneapolis July 10-14 to share their videos and meet academic leaders.

“We get that learning can happen anywhere,” says Jeff Vredevoogd, Herman Miller’s Director of Education Solutions. “This became clear in the student submissions. Each video shares a student’s story and captures where they learn best. Not only did they tell us where they learn best, they also told us why those places were their best places.”

Common themes that came out of the videos include the students’ desire for comfort, personalization, collaboration, and inspiration. Today’s students want options and they want the opportunity to make their own choices. So today’s campus must be able to respond.

Vredevoogd adds that the results will be of great interest to campus leadership as well as faculty and students. “This contest will promote discussion about the rapidly changing needs of students and how higher education facilities can respond to those needs,” he notes.

Visit the Student Video Contest site to see the second and third place winners, George Hayward from Pennsylvania State University and Cody Smucker from The Ohio State University.

Educause Learning Initiative: On the Cutting Edge

The 2010 Educause Learning Initiative (ELI) Annual Conference in Austin, Texas proved to be the hot spot for higher education professionals last week. Focusing on the theme “Learning Environments for a Web 2.0 World,” they were seeking how to best utilize the latest technological tools to enhance their students’ experience on campus.

Once again, Herman Miller’s Education Solutions team was a sponsor for the event, offering attendees the opportunity to experience how our furniture can address the needs of today’s more collaborative and interactive learning environment.

A host of educational sessions focused on the benefits of utilizing popular social networking tools, such as Second Life and Google Wave, to connect students from around the world in a more real-time and personable way. Mobile learning sessions provided an in-depth look at how the wildly popular iPod Touch has been used effectively on Abilene Christian University’s campus. It was exciting to engage with faculty and administrators on the cutting edge of what’s next in higher education.

As Herman Miller continues to be a resource to higher education professionals in the holistic design of learning spaces, our Education Solutions team will always value the unique insights we gain from participating in the ELI annual conference.