Case Study
NC State’s Park Shops 130 Hybrid Classroom Transformation
How Middle Atlantic furniture and acoustic solutions turned Park Shops 130 into a broadcast-ready hybrid classroom
At NC State, the Digital Education and Learning Technology Applications (DELTA) department gives faculty the tools to teach students near and far. For the hundreds of students learning remotely, the quality of lecture capture isn't just a nice-to-have, it's their entire experience of a course. Students depend on them as their primary educational experience, which means every classroom has to perform at broadcast standard, every time. When DELTA identified Park Shops 130, an 88-seat tiered lecture hall in one of NC State’s oldest and most celebrated buildings, as the next space for a full technology upgrade, AV and Network Infrastructure Manager Tim Hinds saw it as an opportunity to set a new benchmark. What the team built has since become one of the most-toured classroom spaces on campus.
Setting a New Standard for Hybrid Learning
Park Shops is one of NC State’s most storied buildings. Originally constructed in 1914 to house the Mechanical Engineering department’s shop classes, the three-story masonry structure was later adaptively reused into a modern multi-functional facility, earning AIA Honor Awards at the national, regional, and state level. The goal for Park Shops 130 was straightforward: bring the room’s AV capabilities in line with the building’s standing and deliver an experience worthy of every student who depends on it. The existing setup of ceiling-mounted projectors, dual wall screens, and a smart monitor had done its job, and DELTA was ready to do more.
“There are students who never come to campus. Their entire education depends on what we capture in these rooms,” said Hinds. “The Middle Atlantic acoustic panels, the Forum Lectern, the rack and cable management, those components are what make broadcast-quality capture possible for every single class.”
The move to LED video walls gave DELTA the opportunity to reimagine the entire space: display, acoustics, furniture, infrastructure, and the support systems behind it all. The front wall was rebuilt to support the new displays, new electrical circuits were run throughout the space, and ClarkPowell, a regional AV integrator with deep expertise in higher education environments, designed and installed the complete system.
Designing a Classroom Built for Every Student
Park Shops 130 now centers on dual video walls flanking a 98-inch monitor. During Zoom sessions, remote participants appear on the center screen, giving in-room students a visual connection to classmates joining from off campus. Course content displays on the video walls, clearly visible from every seat in the tiered hall, giving instructors the freedom to move around the room without any interference from the display setup.
The acoustic upgrade delivers one of the most meaningful improvements in a large lecture environment: consistently clear audio for everyone in the room and everyone watching the recording. Middle Atlantic TruTile Acoustic Wall Panels were installed on the walls and Nivo Acoustic Ceiling Tiles on the ceiling, reducing echo and improving speech intelligibility throughout the space. The panels enhance both the in-room listening experience and the quality of encoded recordings delivered to remote students, while their clean, modern finish complements the contemporary classroom design.
“Sound is the most important thing in these spaces, and the Middle Atlantic acoustic solutions completely changed the room. The echo is gone, the recordings sound professional, and we didn’t have to compromise the look of the space to get there,” said Hinds.
Each DELTA classroom is equipped with a minimum of four cameras and extensive microphone coverage, closer in scope to a production studio than a traditional lecture hall. In Park Shops 130, the Middle Atlantic rack and cable infrastructure supports that full production footprint within a clean, uncluttered room.
Furniture Built for the Way Instructors Actually Teach
At the center of the renovated space sits the Middle Atlantic Forum Lectern, configured with a custom NC State logo panel and provisions for control system touch panels on the worksurface. The Forum Side Rack houses AV and IT equipment securely within the same footprint, while on-carpet cable management runs cleanly from the loor box to the Forum Side Rack, eliminating exposed cabling without requiring floor penetration.
For DELTA, purpose-built furniture is an operational decision, not a finishing touch. Instructors who can confidently control their environment stay focused on teaching. When they need support, DELTA’s centralized control room steps in. Operators remotely access classroom systems, adjust audio, switch cameras, and respond to help alerts from the lectern, keeping every session running smoothly.
“The Forum Lectern is the command center of the room. Touch panel controls right on the worksurface, the Side Rack keeping all the equipment secure and accessible, clean cable runs, professors can focus entirely on teaching because the Middle Atlantic setup handles the rest,” said Hinds.
One Portfolio, One Relationship, Fewer Complications
DELTA has worked with Legrand | AV for more than a decade. For a department managing dozens of classroom spaces, that continuity means streamlined procurement, consistent support, and a trusted partner across every project.
“From the racks and cable management to the acoustic panels and the lectern, every Middle Atlantic product we’ve deployed has held up across years of heavy daily use. Having that consistency from a single portfolio makes specifying the next project that much easier,” said Hinds.
A Room Other Schools Want to See
Since the renovation, Park Shops 130 has drawn attention beyond campus. When the university hosted the annual ETC (Educational Technology Collaborative) conference in October, the room was on the facilities tour; attendees stopped to ask about the design and the acoustic system. Calls have come in from peer institutions asking to visit. The project has also shaped what comes next, DELTA is currently converting a former production studio on Centennial Campus into a new hybrid classroom, applying the standards established at Park Shops 130.
Hinds concluded: “Other universities walk in and immediately ask about the TruTile panels and the Forum Lectern. We’ve had schools call just to come see the room. When the equipment is generating that kind of attention on its own, you know it was the right choice.”
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