Higher Ed Av Podcast

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Leom Holley, Assistant Chief Information Officer (ACIO) of Infrastructure Services at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), to the show. They discuss Leom's role, how to manage a large enterprise organization, creating the community and strategic plan, a business mindset, and the importance of aligning with campus partners for success. Oh, and there may be a pretty influential hot take about pizza. Watch and listen!Connect with Leom Holley:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leomholley/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Stephanie Orr, Director, Learning and Collaborative Environments, at The Ohio State University, to the show. They discuss her role overseeing space strategy, design, and the AVS group. Stephanie discusses gaining consensus through voice-of-the-customer and how to gain student feedback and input when it comes to designing the classroom and learning space experience. Oh, and don't miss the Halloween hot take. Watch and listen!Connect with Stephanie Orr:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/orrville/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Matt O'Reilly, Manager, Events and Classroom Technology, at the University of Toronto Mississauga, to the show. They discuss Matt's role and career trajectory, the differences in commerical integration and live events, the AVIXA certification committee, power of CTS, and involvement in the AV industry. Oh, and we play a fun game of overrated-underrated. Watch and listen!Connect with Matt O'Reilly:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-oreilly-cts-d/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Marc Cholewczynski, Associate Director of Academic Technology at Oregon State University, to the show. They discuss Marc's role, career at OSU, and the value in being able to work across your org. They also touch on the direction of AV, both audiovisual and "automation and visualization." And of course, they hit on a little AV Superfriends. Watch and listen!Connect with Marc Cholewczynski:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-cholewczynski/Connect with AV Superfriends:Web: https://www.avsuperfriends.comConnect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Daniel Wray, AV Field Tech at the University of Virginia to the show. He discusses his career trajectory, how he moved from a music background into commercial AV, and the power of community. Oh, and maybe there's some breakdancing involved? Watch and listen!Connect with Daniel Wray:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamdanieldanielwray/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Lex Evans, Account Manager, Corporate AV & Live Events at Epiphan Video to duscuss her new role and journey through higher ed. Lex offers insights on how her nine years working in the higher ed vertical helped her take the next step into the corporate side. She offers advice for others on how to take the next steps in their careers and the value of involving yourself in the community. Oh, and she gives her exit interview of Joe. Watch and listen!Connect with Lex Evans:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/howdyitslex/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Tim Neviska, Senior Audiovisual Solutions Manager at Kenyon College. They discuss Tim's career trajectory, daily role, differences in running events and commercial integration, and changes in the industry. Also, we talk the county fair and pork advocacy in likely the best "rapid round" in the show's history. Watch and listen!Connect with Tim Neviska:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-neviska-875b331b/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, we are presenting a replay of Episode 30 from March 12, 2019. Chris Neto and Mark Coxon takeover the show where Joe Way and BC Hatchett announce the launch of HETMA. Check out their early vision and compare to how the organization has taken off in only six years. Watch and listen!Connect with Chris Neto:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopherneto/X (Formerly Twitter): https://x.com/chris_netoConnect with Mark Coxon:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markcoxon2/X (Formerly Twitter): https://x.com/AVPhenomConnect with BC Hatchett:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bc-hatchett-88746312/X (Formerly Twitter): https://x.com/bchatchettConnect with HETMA:Community: https://community.heta.orgWeb: https://www.hetma.orgLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hetmaX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/hetma_orgConnect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagr

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way replays the HETMA Press Conference annoucning the #RoadTo10K initiative. On Tuesday, July 1, 2025, Erin Maher-Moran, Troy Powers, Joe Way, and BC Hatchett introduced the most life-changing and ambitious goal in the history of HETMA, aimed at strengthening both the organization and the membership. Watch and listen!Connect with HETMA:Community: https://community.heta.orgWeb: https://www.hetma.orgLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hetmaX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/hetma_orgConnect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Chris Kelly, Senior IT Support Specialist to the show. They discuss his move into higher education, the value in goin "all-in" when getting involved, and the future of HETMA and the advisory council. Watch and listen!Connect with Chris Kelly:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-kelly-272155122/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

In this InfoComm 2025 spotlight, we meet Jeff VandeHoef and Jeremy Meyer from CableEZ, whose deceptively simple hardware is solving a frustrating and costly AV problem: disappearing or damaged cables. Born out of classroom experience, CableEZ offers customizable, wall-mounted solutions that lock cables in place, relieve connector stress, and drastically reduce downtime. It’s low-tech, high-impact, and already showing up on campuses where IT teams are tired of chasing missing HDMI cords and broken USB-C ports.

In this InfoComm 2025 follow-up, BC Hatchett sits down with Jeff Meyer of Inogeni to unpack what the Canadian AV engineering firm showcased this year — and why it matters for higher ed. Jeff walks us through the launch of the IP2USB converter for NDI camera integration, the new TOGGLE DOCK for affordable BYOD/BYOM in huddle spaces, and a wall plate version of the uBridge 3 USB extender. With all products shipping soon and designed around real-world use cases, Inogeni’s focus on simplicity, reliability, and higher ed priorities makes them a standout for campus AV teams.

In this post-InfoComm 2025 conversation, Ryan catches up with Steve Bogart from Atlona, who shares what the company rolled out during the show season — even though he missed the booth due to an unfortunate fishing accident. Steve walks us through Atlona’s new USB/HDMI transmitter switcher, a flexible SDVoE matrix, and an upgraded room scheduling gateway. The discussion touches on open architecture, real-world integration for higher ed AV, and why Atlona is leaning into local events and feedback-driven development. It’s a grounded, practical look at AV evolution from a partner who’s still showing up — just on crutches.

At InfoComm 2025, HETMA’s BC Hatchett sat down with Kaleo Lee and Sophia Negyesi from Korbyt to explore how the company is moving beyond traditional digital signage and toward a full-fledged communication platform. While BC’s mic was faint in the recording, the conversation still captured strong insights into Korbyt’s push for targeted, cross-channel content delivery — reaching students, faculty, and staff where they are. From live data dashboards to personalized campus messaging, Korbyt is thinking bigger than screens — and aiming to become a core part of higher ed’s communication ecosystem.

In the constant buzz of InfoComm 2025, some booths felt like product launch parties. Others felt like technical deep dives. But the Huddly booth? That felt like a conversation — about flexibility, AI, and how hybrid learning is (still) reshaping what we ask from cameras in higher education spaces.Shadi Tefagh, Huddly’s Senior Marketing Director for the Americas, met up with HETMA’s Ryan Gray to talk about where Huddly is headed, what they brought to booth 4415, and why their very first all-in-one video bar is more than just a checklist item. The message throughout: Huddly’s evolving — and listening.

Live from InfoComm 2025, Daryl Krall of Panasonic joined HETMA to walk through their higher ed-ready AV portfolio — including laser projectors, PTZ cameras, and centralized control tools. With a calm, focused booth presence and a no-nonsense product lineup, Panasonic showed they’re listening to what higher ed actually needs: reliability, interoperability, and gear that stays out of the way and just works.

This week on the Higher Ed AV Podcast, Joe Way welcomes Matt Kaminski, Audio Visual & Digital Services Program Director, at the University of California, Berkeley on the show. They discuss his career trajectory through UC Berkeley, his previous award winning projects, some upcoming projects (without breaking any NDAs), and some top takeaways from #InfoComm25 and HETMA. Watch and listen!Connect with Matt Kaminski:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthieu-kaminski/Connect with Joe Way:Web: https://www.josiahway.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josiahwayX (Formerly Twitter): https://www.x.com/josiahwayInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/josiahwayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/josiahway 

Live at InfoComm 2025, Richard Hunt of Sharp joined HETMA at the booth to talk through Sharp’s latest launches for higher ed — including long-life laser projectors, interactive displays, and a renewed focus on supporting standardized, sustainable AV across campus. With steady booth traffic and honest conversations, the takeaway was clear: Sharp isn’t chasing trends; they’re solving real problems for real schools.

From the InfoComm 2025 show floor, Rob Abbott joined HETMA at the Nureva booth to break down how their new HDX Series is making large room audio simpler for higher ed teams. He highlighted the launch of the HDL410, designed for lecture halls and complex teaching spaces, and emphasized how Nureva’s approach—shaped by real feedback from schools—is all about fast installs, scalable management, and intuitive tools that let campus AV teams focus on users, not gear.

Live from the HETMA booth at InfoComm 2025, Ryan Budvitis of Shure talks about new products designed to simplify and scale campus audio — including IntelliMix Room Kits, the ANX4 network extender, and Microflex Wireless updates. He shares how his team works directly with colleges and universities to gather feedback that shapes Shure’s development process. The tone is honest, collaborative, and focused on removing friction from everyday AV workflows.