Technology Helps Enable Collaborative Learning Environment for Hall County Schools’ Students and Educators

Samsung - U.S.News - Press Releases - February 27, 2013 SAMSUNG Display 

Technology Helps Enable Collaborative Learning Environment for Hall County Schools’ Students and Educators 

Academies of Discovery unveil new facilities featuring LED-lit commercial displays and digital whiteboards to foster interactive education

Gainesville, GA – February 27, 2013 – Samsung Electronics America Inc. and dB Audio & Video announced today the successful completion of a project with Hall County Schools in Gainesville, GA to create a state-of-the-art, collaborative learning environment featuring commercial displays and interactive whiteboards at the district’s innovative Academies of Discovery. 

The culmination of a multi-year collaboration, the project highlights the potential for digital display technology to act as a focal point for learning in the era of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device). 

The Academies of Discovery houses two schools – the Da Vinci Academy at South Hall Middle School and the World Language Academy , a PreK – Grade 7 dual-language immersion school. With a focus on the arts and sciences, these educational facilities provide non-traditional, integrated curriculum and a focus on “hands-on, minds-on” learning. Technology use is pervasive in the schools’ curriculum, with many students bringing their own mobile computing devices to the classroom daily. 

“Interactive display technology has enormous potential in the learning environment, providing instructors and students with a digital canvas to create, interact and collaborate in a whole new way,” said Tod Pike, senior vice president of Samsung’s Enterprise Business Division. “We are proud to partner in this exciting project with Hall County Schools to help realize their vision for 21st century learning.” 

Hall County Schools has equipped several areas throughout the Academies of Discovery with various Samsung display solutions that support collaboration, creativity and interaction, including: 


• Learning Commons – Designed as 21st century media center, the Learning Commons is a two-story lounge space in which Academies of Discovery students learn and interact. Samsung has installed numerous 55-inch MD Series displays within the lounge’s small group workstations, which allow groups of up to 16 students to connect their individual mobile computing devices to collaborate on projects and display work. The commons also houses a video wall, comprised of nine Samsung UD Series displays that offer both visual messaging capabilities in addition to serving as a digital backdrop for student presentations and performances. 

• Classrooms – More than 40 classrooms throughout the facility have been equipped with Samsung’s 65-inch whiteboard solution. The ultra-slim, LED-edgelit ME65B display is combined with a touch overlay accessory that turns the screen into an interactive whiteboard with dual drawing performance ideal for educational institutions looking to create a more engaging environment while reducing energy spend and cost of installation. 

• Hallways – Samsung LED-lit LCD displays are also located throughout the school’s hallways, providing the perfect vehicle to showcase student work and provide information on upcoming events. 

“This was a unique project that goes far beyond the simple upgrade of a traditional classroom setting,” said Neil Philpott, systems advisor for dB Audio & Video, a leading Gainesville-based communications solutions integrator which managed the project. “We worked with Samsung and the Academies of Discovery to identify the right mix of display technology that would both enhance their educational mission as well as fit both their physical space and, of course, their budget.” 

“Installing this technology in our classrooms and Learning Commons fosters the asynchronous and collaborative learning environment we strive to create for our students, which is founded on a student-centered teaching method that uses technology to facilitate information sharing,” said Dr. Aaron Turpin, executive director of technology at Hall County Schools. “LED large-format displays were the perfect solution for our needs as they allow our students to work together in a much more direct and engaging way, providing exceptional visual and audio quality, in addition to helping us reduce our energy consumption and lower our total cost of ownership. This was a win for both our educational objectives and our bottom line.” 

Hall County Schools, which supports approximately 26,000 K-12 students across 33 schools, celebrated the official grand opening of the redesigned space with a ribbon cutting ceremony on February 25. 

About Samsung Electronics America Enterprise Business Division 
As a global leader in Information Technology, Samsung’s Enterprise Business Division (EBD) is committed to introducing new business experiences across a diverse spectrum of industries from retail to healthcare, hospitality to sales. We believe technology brings business and customers together — to better share, collaborate and discover new opportunities. With a market-oriented approach to innovation, EBD is a division of Samsung Electronics America (SEA), Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Company, Ltd. (SEC). For more information, please visit www.samsung.com/business , call 1-866-SAM-4BIZ or follow Samsung EBD via Twitter @SamsungBizUSA . 

About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. 
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of televisions, smartphones, personal computers, printers, cameras, home appliances, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 236,000 people across 79 countries with annual sales exceeding KRW 201 trillion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com .