NIC’s Stan Hagen Theatre is undergoing a retrofit to make it more accessible for hearing aid users.
A B.C. company, Advanced Listening, has been adapting the venue with technology to improve the listening experience for students, audience members and others.
The work is part of NIC’s commitment to making the college environment more accessible and has its roots in the Accessibility Plan 2023-2026. The plan is a priority of NIC’s Accessibility Advisory Committee, which includes students and employees reflecting the diversity of the institution. Already, NIC has undertaken a number of projects, such as incorporating Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) for its new website.
“Our new NIC website, developed to meet WCAG 2.1 guidelines, and the recent purchase of an assistive listening system for the Stan Hagen Theatre, are but two examples of our commitments to accessibility in action,” said Ken Crewe, Associate Vice President, People, Equity and Inclusion, and co-chair of the Accessibility Advisory Committee.
The Stan Hagen Theatre project is two-fold with one part looking toward the analog past and one toward the digital future. The company installed technology known as an Induction Hearing Loop in the floor that broadcasts audio signals using an analog antenna wire that can be picked up by Telecoil receivers built into hearing aids.
As well as theatres, it is often used in facilities like churches, conference halls, government chambers, courtrooms and even at retail or service counters. The loop can be used in large or small venues, but it is also appropriate for one-on-one conversations.
The other part of the job for Advanced Listening was to install the latest Bluetooth LE ‘Auracast’ technology. Described on the Bluetooth website as the “next generation” of technology when it comes to assistive listening, Auracast expands the availability of assistive listening for people with hearing loss and is designed to take into account users with all levels hearing health.
“North Island College is one of the first places in Canada with this new technology,” said Derrick Doll of Advanced Listening.
The company spent three days in late June installing the technology. At one point, Doll walked around wearing a receiver headset to test the sound. The receiver provides an up-close sound for users. NIC expects the work at the theatre to be completed in the next few weeks.
The theatre opened at the Comox Valley campus in 1992 and was named after longtime MLA and cabinet minister Stan Hagen. Along with college programming, the 200-seat theatre is a community use facility and provides a venue for a number of events and groups, including NIC partners like Comox Valley ElderCollege.