The connected
campus: Exploring
the future of
digital and smart
campuses

Students need seamless connectivity throughout the campus to stay productive academically, professionally and personally. Not only is a connected campus essential for an immersive learning experience, but it’s also crucial for personalized learning, enhanced stadium experiences and public safety.

Here's how a smart campus, also known as a digital campus, can give students the satisfying experiences they expect while also enhancing campus safety, improving sustainability and simplifying collaboration.

According to Deloitte, a smart campus leverages innovative next-gen technologies to create a digitally connected campus. By enabling a connected campus, schools can significantly improve their ability to deliver accessible, safe and reliable experiences. For example, students can use smart campus solutions to access Wi-Fi on buses, travel more safely and efficiently to and from school, use contactless payment for campus purchases and even digitally reserve specific resources if they choose.

Schools can also tap Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to improve safety and security. For example, the IoT can enable timely emergency notifications, improve security cameras and enhance access control to buildings. Social media monitoring tools can also help administrators analyze campus sentiment and identify potential instances of bullying. All of these solutions can improve campus safety and security for students, teachers and staff while better managing the risk that a potential incident might pose to the school's reputation.

A connected campus can also be a more energy-efficient campus, which matters to students and prospective students for whom sustainability is top of mind. Schools can use IoT technologies to enable smart buildings that help to minimize energy consumption, anticipate faults and minor incidents, and support a more comfortable environment for students, faculty and staff. Administrators can use the cost savings from these initiatives to pursue more improvements that benefit the school community.

Enhanced campus connectivity also simplifies collaboration between teachers, parents and staff. For example, with Wi-Fi connectivity on buses, students can maintain an open line of communication with both parents and teachers while commuting to and from school. A connected campus can also support virtual learning opportunities in remote and hybrid learning environments. This same technology can also be used to make classes accessible to students who aren't able to attend school in person, allowing them to catch up at their own pace when they're able. These online classes can bring out the best in the school as well as its students even in the face of unexpected disruptions such as the pandemic.

A smart campus can also enable virtual meetings. For example, schools can hold virtual parent-teacher conferences or faculty meetings when not all parties are able to participate in person. Video conferencing tools can also support collaboration between classmates. For example, students can use them to gather class highlights, assign action items, share meeting summaries, and download transcripts, highlights and videos. Teachers can even integrate these solutions with scheduling, messaging and productivity tools that further enhance instruction and collaboration. These technologies can also be standardized throughout an entire district, streamlining communication among colleagues at various schools.