The Higher Ed AV Awards are the official industry-specific celebration honoring AV professionals who serve the higher education vertical. Each year, the awards recognize the people, projects, and products making a meaningful impact across our campuses and throughout the industry.
The highlight of the evening is the induction of the Higher Ed AV Hall-of-Fame, recognizing those whose careers have helped shape, advance, and redefine the higher ed AV community.
Now in its fourth year, HETMA and Higher Ed AV are proud to announce the 2026 Hall-of-Fame class, celebrating four outstanding higher ed professionals and one exceptional industry ally:
🏆 Frank Alaimo, University of Nevada, Las Vegas
🏆 Ernie Bailey, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
🏆 Mark Dunlop, University of Aberdeen
🏆 Dan Noullet, Carnegie Mellon University
🏆 David Labuskes, AVIXA
Join us as we honor this year’s inductees on Monday, June 15, 2026, from 6:00–10:00 PM at the Cabaret Theater at the Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas, as part of InfoComm 2026.
Learn more and purchase tickets at HigherEdAVAwards.com.
Frank Alaimo
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Frank Alaimo, the Manager of Classroom Technology Services at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), where he has served within the Office of Information Technology for the past 14 years, is a nationally recognized leader in higher education audiovisual technology with more than 30 years of experience spanning higher education, entertainment, and hospitality. Frank oversees the design, deployment, support, and lifecycle management of classroom and enterprise AV systems across one of the nation’s most innovative university campuses. His leadership has helped establish UNLV as a model for technology-enabled teaching and learning, earning widespread recognition throughout the higher education and professional AV industries.
Throughout his career, Frank has been at the forefront of transforming learning environments through thoughtful technology integration and institutional standardization. He led the development of UNLV’s groundbreaking RebelFlex initiative, a hybrid learning model that seamlessly blended face-to-face and remote instruction and became a national example of how universities could maintain academic continuity while enhancing student engagement. His work has also included the creation of award-winning learning spaces including a 3D Motion capture Golf facility, Flexatorium, and immersive Dolby Atmos classroom.
Frank has consistently delivered high-impact environments that blend academic rigor with world-class technology modernization projects that continue to shape the student experience at UNLV. His leadership on the campus-wide rollout of Epiphan hardware across 200 classrooms earned UNLV the 2025 Higher Ed AV Award “Best in Class” award for Full-Campus Upgrade and the 2024 AVNation Project of the Year.
Frank’s impact extends well beyond his campus where he hosts technology tours throughout the year, he is also frequent presenter, panelist, podcast guest, and industry thought leader whose work has been featured by industry publications and manufacturers. He has presented at InfoComm, Integrated Systems Europe (ISE), Northwest Managers of Educational Technology (NWMET), and Educational Technology Collaborative (ETC) sharing best practices on enterprise AV strategy, classroom innovation, hybrid learning, and project management.
A graduate of Marywood University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Arts and an AVIXA Certified Technology Specialist–Installation (CTS-I), Frank is widely respected for combining visionary leadership with a service-first philosophy that influences the future direction of educational technology globally.
Beyond his professional endeavors, he loves to golf, shooting sports, camping, and spending time with his wife Angelika and taking their bulldog Lord Chesterfield on adventures.
Connect with Frank:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-alaimo-cts-i-01872466/
Ernie Bailey
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Ernie Bailey is a highly respected leader in the audiovisual (AV) and instructional technology field, with more than 40 years of experience advancing technology in education and enterprise environments. A long-standing Certified Technology Specialist (CTS) credential holder for over 25 years, Ernie has built a distinguished career marked by technical expertise, leadership, and sustained contributions to the AV industry.
Ernie currently serves as IT Manager for Classroom Technologies at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), an academic health sciences university and medical center based in Little Rock, Arkansas, with additional campuses statewide. In this role, he leads a team of 10 AV technicians supporting a complex, multi-campus environment that spans five colleges—medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health professions, and public health—as well as a graduate school.
Under his leadership, the Classroom Technologies division provides in-room and remote support for approximately 200 classrooms, lecture halls, meeting spaces, and labs. His team also delivers comprehensive production services, including live event support, livestreaming, and postproduction for administrative meetings, public health forums, and institutional events. In addition, Ernie oversees the in-house design and installation of advanced audiovisual systems for classrooms and large lecture venues, ensuring cutting-edge, reliable learning environments.
Ernie’s influence extends well beyond his institution. A recognized leader within the professional AV community, he was named an InfoComm AV Champion in 2006 and received the InfoComm Harold Theil Volunteer of the Year Award in 2007. He has served as Chair of the InfoComm (now AVIXA) Technology Managers Council and as a member of the InfoComm Board of Governors, helping shape industry standards and direction. His contributions to professional development include 12 years as a subject matter expert (SME) and item writer for the CTS certification exam, as well as service as an InfoComm adjunct faculty member.
Known for his collaborative leadership style and deep technical knowledge, Ernie is passionate about bridging the gap between technology and education. He specializes in aligning AV/IT systems with institutional goals, including advancing strategies in AV/IT convergence, IoT integration, and collaborative technologies. His work emphasizes reliability, scalability, and user-focused design to support both instructors and learners.
Ernie Bailey’s career reflects a strong commitment to innovation, service, and excellence. Through his leadership, UAMS continues to enhance the quality, accessibility, and effectiveness of its technology-enabled learning environments, empowering educators, and improving outcomes for students and the broader community.
Connect with Ernie:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ernie-bailey-6718758/
Mark Dunlop
University of Aberdeen
Mark Dunlop has 24 years of experience working in Higher Education. He spent 20 years working in a variety of technical and management roles at Dundee University before moving to his current employer the University of Aberdeen, where he is currently the Head of Media Services. Operating within the Digital & Information services directorate he manages a multi-disciplinary team of 23 staff and is service owner for AV, Photography, Video production, Graphic Design and Reprographics within the University.
The University is also a teaching hospital and has close links with NHS Grampian. This includes building and facilities sharing, which means spaces need to be designed to work for not just University staff and students but for all staff in the NHS who may need to teach or carry out meetings in these spaces. As a result, Mark holds an Honorary role with the NHS as Head of Media Services and is contracted to provide AV, Clinical Photography, Clinical Video and Medical Illustration services to the NHS.
Mark has a strong background in transforming AV service delivery starting at Dundee University where he ran a multiyear programme provide a standardised user experience within classrooms. Since arriving at Aberdeen, he was worked on developing service management introducing asset management, lifecycle planning and building inter team relationships. Most recently he completed an ambitious project to migrate AV Control and monitoring to a cloud based SAAS platform as well as establishing new AV vLANs and security baselines.
Mark is a firm believer in giving back to the wider HE AV community and joined the schoms executive board in 2015. He has held multiple roles on the executive and after 7 years as Executive Director and chair has stepped down to the vice chair role where he looks forward to supporting the incoming chair. Being part of schoms has enabled Mark in his passion for bringing people together to share ideas and experiences and to create opportunities for staff to develop new skills and confidence in what they do. He also active member in several other user groups and has been an AV Awards judge for the last few years.
Outside of professional achievements he proud father to Isla, Stewart and Sarah and later this year will celebrate 25 years of Marriage to his wife Laura who has supported and encouraged him over his career. He is also former Group Scout Leader and strong advocate for volunteering.
Connect with Mark:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-dunlop/
Dan Noullet
Carnegie Mellon University
Over a 27-year career at Carnegie Mellon University, Dan Noullet has consistently advanced the way institutions design, support, and sustain technology-enabled learning environments, influencing not only his own university but also the broader higher education community. As Director of Digital Media Experiences, he has led the development of scalable, standards-based AV ecosystems that support hundreds of learning and collaboration spaces across campus.
Dan is recognized for creating a pioneering AV service model that transformed audiovisual support in higher education. What began as a pilot serving 13 spaces grew into an enterprise program supporting more than 350 environments, establishing best practices for design, deployment, support, and lifecycle management. This model not only improved user experience and operational efficiency but also became an example of how institutions can successfully scale and sustain enterprise AV services.
Dan is widely respected for his willingness to share knowledge, mentor peers, and foster collaboration across the higher education technology community. As a frequent speaker, panelist, and thought leader, he has helped shape industry conversations around learning environments, audiovisual innovation, service delivery, and the future of technology-enabled education. His work has helped institutions align technology investments with academic goals while advancing the role of AV as a strategic component of the modern learning experience. Through both his direct accomplishments and his lasting influence on peers and institutions across the industry, Dan has left an enduring mark on higher education technology.
Dan resides in Butler, Pennsylvania, with his wife, Heather. Together, they have two adult daughters and enjoy spending time together as a family whenever possible. Outside of his professional responsibilities, Dan enjoys traveling, riding his motorcycle, and exploring the outdoors.
Connect with Dan:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-noullet/
David Labuskes
AVIXA
David Labuskes, CTS, CAE, RCDD, has been the CEO of the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association (AVIXA) since 2012. AVIXA is the global trade association representing the commercial audiovisual industry. Since taking the helm, Labuskes has worked to lead AVIXA as a catalyst for market growth and to serve as the hub for the AV profession. He serves on the Board of Directors of Integrated Systems Events, LLC, a joint venture European trade show company, and InfoComm Asia PTE, Ltd., a Singaporean subsidiary operating AVIXA’s Asian trade show portfolio.
Prior to joining AVIXA, Labuskes served as vice president and Board of Director of RTKL, now a division of ARCADIS, a leading architectural and engineering firm. He is the founder of the company’s Special Systems Design Group, overseeing the delivery of audiovisual, voice, data, wireless, environmental media, electronic security, and acoustics services. Labuskes also served as President and CEO of Premier Technology services, a software and systems design consulting firm, and was Executive Vice President of Accelerated Payment Systems, an electronic payment processing firm. He earned a BA in International Politics from Penn State University and earned an MBA from Loyola University of Maryland.
Connect with David:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidlabuskes/
Reserve your seats today!
The awards are taking place LIVE at InfoComm 2026 on Monday, June 15, 2026, from 6pm-10pm, at the Cabaret Theater at the Westgate Hotel, Las Vegas.
Visit https://www.higheredavawards.com for tickets, entry submissions, and sponsorship info.
