Campus physical plants that have become internets of things — requiring cloud-based management, machine learning, and visualization tools — could serve as more than unseen controllers of the classroom environment. They could be the classroom.

University of Akron has more than 27,000 students and offers in excess of 300 undergraduate and graduate programs. Located in metropolitan Akron, the university has more than 80 buildings on 218 acres. Since 2000, it has added 22 buildings, completed 18 major additions, acquisitions and renovations, and created 34 acres of green space.