HughesON MediaSignage Earns High Marks for Campus-wide Communications

Digital signage is an ideal way to welcome students, faculty, and staff back to campus, and to keep the school community better informed, engaged, and connected throughout the year. That’s the lesson Manila Elementary School learned after it implemented the HughesON™ MediaSignage solution.

Manila, one of the largest elementary schools in Utah’s Alpine School District, is home to more than 48 staff members and 600 students. When Paul Finlayson arrived as its new principal three years ago, he noticed: “Our communications were ineffective. Faculty and parents regularly expressed their frustration over missed or outdated announcements. Students asked the same questions to our front office staff. Simply put, I thought we could do things much more effectively.”

When he discovered HughesON MediaSignage, Mr. Finlayson knew the cloud-based digital signage and content management tool could help solve these issues.

“It has been nothing short of a gamechanger for our communications capabilities,” he said. “Staff and I can schedule all sorts of announcements quickly and easily.” One of Manila’s 4th grade teachers oversees the initiative, creating digital templates, announcements, graphics, and videos to post across the school’s network of SmartTVs.

“The software is so easy to use, we even allow 6th graders who show interest to create and post content,” Mr. Finlayson added.

With its user-friendly interface and the ability to update screens from any Internet-enabled device, the signs can be updated to share information in real-time. This is especially useful when it comes to imparting vital or time-sensitive announcements.

“We share everything from social distancing reminders and special event details to student and faculty birthdays, to our daily lunch menus. All this content shows up when and where we want it. In the event of an emergency, we can post messages and be sure they’ll be seen by students and staff.” What’s more, the system connects to the school’s front door security cameras with a live feed displayed within a small section on screen for monitoring by the front-office.

Parents too have provided positive feedback on having digital signage in the school, said Charlene Day, PTA Board Member.

“Parents love the reminders of events and announcements. Our PTA is a very active group,” Ms. Day explained. Consequently, Manila decided to enable PTA members to post their own content, including messages, pictures, and videos. Adding the PTA’s Instagram feed as well as those from other school districts provides a wider variety of interesting and engaging content.

For schools preparing to welcome students, families, faculty, and staff back to campus and to the classroom, the time is right to deploy HughesON MediaSignage – before that first bell rings!

Watch the video for more details on the Manila Elementary School’s use of HughesON MediaSignage.