Projectors

Des Moines Public Schools Install 2,100 Epson Interactive Projectors

• By Richard Chang
• 11/16/16

Des Moines Public Schools in Iowa have installed more than 2,100 Epson BrightLink 595Wi interactive projectors across its 65 schools over the past year.

With the BrightLink 595Wi projectors, students and teachers can wirelessly project content from their devices to the projector and then use their fingers or interactive pens to annotate on the content, directly on the wall.

“When we decided to upgrade our presentation solution, we mapped critical success factors and focused on a technology that integrated better with both the curriculum and our other technology,” said Dan Warren, director of technology operations, central stores and printing services at Des Moines Public Schools, in a statement. “We looked at flat panels, but we chose the Epson BrightLink 595Wi because it was a clean, easy-to-use solution that both worked with our teaching and learning environment and with our infrastructure.”

The Epson BrightLink was an important part of Hoover High School’s initiative to create new learning environments that challenged traditional classroom design after the school was awarded grant funds from the Iowa governor’s STEM advisory council. The funds were used to create three classrooms: a “redesigned learning environment,” or RLE; an updated Project Lead the Way classroom; and a math classroom — one that challenged traditional design and allowed the district to test the new designs for learning. These classrooms incorporated the BrightLink as part of their redesign.

The renovated classrooms reinforced the use of collaboration and technology, according to a news release. The RLE classroom offers multiple workspaces. The Project Lead the Way classroom is now a STEM maker space with computers, group desks, a 3D printer and the BrightLink 595Wi. The instructor projects students’ designs through the interactive projector and annotates feedback and design improvements. In the updated math classroom, students use mobile desks for group work and the BrightLink 595Wi to learn new math concepts.

After using the BrightLink in Hoover High School’s renovated rooms for a year, Des Moines Public Schools installed BrightLink 595Wi units throughout the entire high school. The following year, every classroom in the district had a BrightLink 595Wi. In addition, Des Moines Public Schools is planning to replicate Hoover High’s collaborative rooms in other schools.

“We are in the midst of an extensive renovation project,” Warren said. “In the last seven to eight years, we have touched every building in the district. When I look into classrooms, I see the projectors being used all day long and our teachers love that the BrightLInks are compatible with the interactive software they were already using.”

The BrightLink 595Wi is a touch-enabled 3LCD interactive projector with ultra-short throw, 3,300 lumens of color brightness and 3,300 lumens of white brightness. It features advanced connectivity options, PC-free interactivity capabilities, interactivity over the network and more.

To learn more about the projector, go to Epson’s website.