New IT Systems Will Improve LCC Learning Environment
This fall LCC faculty and students are discovering exciting new technological "toys" in their offices, labs and classrooms that will enhance their teaching and learning. Thanks to a $420,000 (1.03 million Lt) grant from EU Structural Funds, LCC has been able to systematically upgrade its computer and educational facilities and stay at the cutting edge of the educational marketplace.
Smart Boards at LCC International University
The project, begun in the summer and scheduled to be completed by November 7, has kept the LCC Information Technology staff busy installing new equipment and training its users. The grant covered the purchase of various IT systems to modernize the classrooms and enhance the quality of learning including:
* one hundred new computers for students and faculty,
* two new servers to support the big computer lab and update the database of faculty,
* Smart boards (interactive white boards), sound system, and podium equipment (computer, touch-sensitive screen, DVD player) in 10 classrooms,
* a professional sound system, four meter screen, and a simultaneous translation system which allows an interpreter to record in Neufeld Auditorium,
* Windows 7 operating system with Microsoft Office 2010 software suite for all computers on campus, and
* an experimental video streaming platform for distance learning, with capabilities for capturing lectures and lecture materials and allowing for remote participation.
"LCC was always known as a university which highly incorporates technology in the teaching process. Unfortunately, our technology was outdated already, and a professionally prepared Power Point presentation was not always enough," says Povilas Norbutas, Director of Information Technology. "LCC, celebrating its 20th anniversary, has also made a decision to take the next big step with learning technology, which will open new possibilities for lecturers and improve the quality of studies."
