The School of Liberal Arts Global Engagement Lab Transforms Learning
The state-of-the-art classroom enables distance education, remote collaboration and immersive learning experiences.
The School of Liberal Arts (SOLA) Global Engagement Lab has transformed into a new state-of -the-art remote collaboration classroom that is designed to allow for distance education and other learning experiences. The impetus for building the lab was to meet the needs of contemporary language learning and give students the opportunity for direct engagement with native speakers on a global scale. The space was previously used as a traditional language instruction classroom. It is located in Miguel Hall, room 304 and was funded by a $111,000 grant from the George I. Alden Trust. 
The Global Engagement Lab has been designed as a space for students and faculty from Modern Languages, Digital Humanities and many other disciplines.The classroom serves up to 270 students and eight faculty members through approximately 19 courses each semester. Its already existing 24 desktop computers and monitors have been upgraded to be compatible with new remote communication tools and virtual and augmented reality software. A new audio and four-camera system allows for greater clarity of communication and discussion. There is new furniture, new projectors and two televisions that have been installed to facilitate group learning. Lightweight desks in the room can be arranged in various ways from six-person groups to individual rows. This ease of movement and flexibility of classroom arrangement, enhances both in-class and remote engagement.
“The open-concept, flexible design of the room coupled with remote collaboration technology, allows for maximum creativity in building courses that take advantage of the global potential and perspectives that define liberal arts courses at Manhattan College," said Cory Blad, Ph.D., dean of the School of Liberal Arts.
There is an emphasis on multimedia conferencing equipment and flexible room design to facilitate student engagement with native speakers of different languages through remote educational opportunities in countries around the world.