When Texas A&M’s Mays Business School realized their faculty looked better teaching from home than in campus studios, it was time for a rethink. Traditional fluorescent lighting created harsh shadows and washed-out video that didn’t meet the school’s standards for professional distance learning. The solution? A lighting upgrade across nine studios using Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology, delivering both power and control through standard Ethernet cables. This approach eliminated the need for electrical permits or major construction while allowing precise, network-based lighting control.

The results were immediate. Faculty looked better on camera, felt more confident teaching in the studios, and were more inclined to use them regularly. The PoE setup also made the studios easier to manage, scalable for future expansion, and flexible enough to support evolving use cases. This includes plans to transition several spaces into XR stages in the coming years. 

It’s a great example of how smart AV and lighting design can directly improve learning experiences while simplifying deployment for higher education teams.

Read the full Texas A&M distance learning lighting case study here

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