Overview

There are three main approaches for facilitating a remote speaker event without additional equipment and technical support: 

1. Display the speaker’s Zoom window using a single laptop connected to a projector or flat panel, which could be the same computer used by an in-room instructor/presenter.  After the speaker’s remarks, the faculty member or a designee relays oral questions from the audience to the speaker, repeating the questions as necessary.  This is technically the simplest solution; the guest speaker, however, will have questions to them mediated by a third party, and may not be able to see the audience to which they are speaking. 
2. Set up a laptop with a webcam (internal or external) facing the audience in a small seminar room.  Connect to Zoom, display the laptop screen on the projector or flat panel.  Positioning this in a logical location where a guest speaker would be, if in person, can make this feel more natural for both parties, when in-room participants address the remote speaker during Q&A etc.  
3. Connect an all-in-one device with microphone, speaker, and camera (e.g. Logitech Meetup Camera, Meeting Owl Pro) to a laptop, and connect the laptop to the in-room projection system.  Note that this approach is fundamentally the same as #1; the audio and video quality, however, will be much higher than with a laptop’s built-in webcam and microphone.

Technical considerations for a remote speaker  

As soon as you are considering bringing in a remote speaker to the classroom via technology, reach out to Education Support Services (ESS) at ess@fas.harvard.edu. We can consult with you on your plans, and help make technical suggestions for the best outcome.  Please contact us at least 10 business days in advance of the event.

• If you are planning a speaker event in a large space (lecture hall, large classroom, atrium, etc.), please note that there are many potential technical issues which can arise in larger spaces with reverberant (“echo-y”) acoustics, inconsistent lighting, and other environmental factors for which applications like Zoom, etc. are not designed. 
• Consider the range of interactions for your event. Note that an event with a masked in-room audience may be less effective than an online meeting via Zoom.
• If masking requirements are in place for in-room participants, you may wish to consider whether a Zoom-based event will provide better quality and equity for all participants, remote and local.

Because of ESS’s limited capacity to support events with remote speakers this Fall, we encourage our clients to: 

• Try to keep the virtual aspects of the event as simple as possible. 
• Check Harvard guidance on events and guest speakers often. 
• Plan as far in advance as possible.  
• Consider purchasing stand-alone equipment to improve the user experience in department-controlled spaces. 
• Run full tests with the actual hardware in the room where your event will take place.

AV Technology for Classrooms and Conference Rooms 

Any FAS departments who want to invest in AV technology will need to share their plans with the Learning Spaces Steering Committee to ensure that appropriate technology is selected that meets departmental needs and integrates with Harvard’s network and IT infrastructure, that a support model is available, and that appropriate funding is allocated for support, maintenance, repair, and future enhancements. Please complete the AV Purchase Review Form and send it to kgates@fas.harvard.edu. 

For further information, or a consultation on appropriate technologies for your space, please contact ess@fas.harvard.edu.