How Kansas City Art Institute Uses the Meeting Owl for Hybrid Learning

Kansas City Art Institute (KCAI) prides itself on being able to provide an immersive studio-arts experience for its students. Most of the 13 majors offered at KCAI include a significant amount of hands-on learning and studio time.

During the pandemic, Jake Fowler, KCAI’s Director of Campus Technology, worked closely with the Director of Education Technology to find a solution that would enable immersive hybrid learning as students began to return to campus.

Jake knew he wanted something that was high quality, yet affordable. “The low price point was a huge factor for us. We didn’t demo other products early on because the Owl was exactly what we needed at a cost that made sense for us.”

Jake was also looking for a portable solution:

“So many classrooms have video cameras and audio systems that need to be installed and wired in. We wanted our hybrid solution to be more flexible — something portable that could be moved around based on where the teacher was teaching from that day.”

In June of 2020, Jake placed an order for eight Meeting Owls. With the help of the Director of Education, Jake taught faculty members how to use the Owl in their classrooms. “They were able to pick it up very quickly.” Now, professors across KCAI’s campus are using Owls to enable immersive classroom experiences for remote students.

In addition to using their Owls for classes, Jake is also seeing the Meeting Owl being used for faculty and staff meetings in the president’s office. “They use it a lot there. Often, not everyone can get together in the same room, so the Owl has proven to be a great solution to keep those meetings running.”

The Meeting Owl Pro supports hybrid faculty meetings and classes, so campuses can continue operating regardless of where students are located.