With new investments, Vermont tech startup aims to improve virtual classrooms Share Updated: 9:48 AM EST Feb 19, 2021 Share Updated: 9:48 AM EST Feb 19, 2021 Hide Transcript Show Transcript THE TOWN MANAGER SAYS IT'S THE TOWN'S LARGEST CONTRACT. A CHAMPLAIN COLLEGE PROFESSOR DIDN'T LIKE HER ONLINE TEACHING TOOLS... SO SHE BUILT HER OWN. SHE'S STARTING TO SEE CAMPUSES ACROSS THE COUNTRY USE THEM TOO. AND AS OUR OWN JACK THURSTON TELLS US. INVESTORS HOPE THE START- UP KEEPS GROWING. BEYOND ITS NEW ENGLAND ROOTS. Vermont's Champlain College: like schools across the country during the pandemic, many classes here are now virtual. Including Narine Hall's. ((NARINE HALL / InSpace Founder: 20:55: one of the hardest things with virtual learning is the ability to keep students engaged.)) The data science professor says when everything first went remote, she was frustrated with digital platforms that may work great for simple meetings but weren't quite right for managing the energy of a classroom the way she wanted. ((NARINE HALL / InSpace Founder: 21:13: I tried everything.)) So she set out to design her own teaching tool - with a longtime coding partner in her native Armenia. InSpace was born - calling itself a virtual classroom by educators for educators. Teachers can broadcast to the whole group, then move themselves around, so they can connect more naturally with students through video, one on one or in small rooms. Students can move their bubbles around, too, to collaborate with peers or to replicate the experience of walking up to their professor and asking a question. The platform got its first tryouts on the Champlain campus - but is now in use at more than 85 U.S. universities and K- 12 schools, and growing every week, the company says. ((REID ANCTIL / Champlain Junior: 18:18: it's so much more interactive.)) Reid Anctil of Westford, Massachusetts is a junior at Champlain. He tells us he's heard of some students doing laundry during remote classes using other systems, but with InSpace's small meeting rooms, professors can more easily see if someone's zoning out or not talking to classmates, so can move that bubble over to check on them and spur thought. ((JACK THURSTON: 12:00: how closely does this platform replicate the in- person learning experience?)) ((REID ANCTIL / Champlain Junior: 15:47: it just kind of encourages more of that interpersonal connection, I think.)) Just this month - InSpace announced 2 and a half million dollars in funding - much of that from the investors at Boston Seed Capital. The co-founder says the new backing should help InSpace reach even more schools - but she knows COVID-19 has made virtual meetings a suddenly very competitive field... ((NARINE HALL / InSpace Founder: 24:15: it is very crowded. It's really good to have competition - it pushes us all.)) She plans to unveil a lot more features to help InSpace keep standing out. With online learning expected to stick around long after the pandemic, the Vermont-born sta