Youngstown State Online

Looking for simple ways to save time, engage students, improve accessibility, or enhance your Blackboard course? Join Youngstown State Online for Tech Speed Dating, a fast-paced virtual event featuring a series of 15-minute technology demonstrations.

During each "tech match", you will meet a different Blackboard feature or supported instructional technology, see a practical teaching example, and learn one simple way to try it in your course.

Attend the entire event or join only for the demonstrations that interest you most. Each event will be offered twice—once in the morning and again in the afternoon—so you can choose the time that works best for your schedule.

See a tool you would like to know better? Choose your "second date" at the end of the event!

Large files, uploaded videos, and years of copied content can slow things down for both you and your students. In this session, we’ll explore practical strategies to right-size your Blackboard course such as improving performance, simplifying course management, and enhancing the student experience. From quick fixes to smarter design choices, you’ll learn what contributes to large course sizes, what to avoid, and how to streamline your content without sacrificing quality. You’ll leave with simple, actionable steps you can apply right away to make your course more efficient and easier for students to navigate.

Providing timely, constructive, and supportive feedback is essential to student success in online learning environments. This training will equip instructors and facilitators with the skills and strategies needed to deliver feedback that motivates learners, fosters improvement, and builds a positive online learning community.

This session will guide you through setting up your overall grade as well as verifying and customizing your grading schema to ensure it accurately reflects your syllabus. Additionally, you'll become familiar with the newly implemented workflow for submitting final grades to Banner. We'll walk you through all the necessary steps, from preparing your gradebook in Blackboard to successfully transmitting grades to Banner.

After much anticipation, you can now duplicate any item from the Course Content page. The duplicated item retains all content and settings from the original item, making it much faster to create consistent, repeating course structures.

To use this feature, open the More Options menu next to any item and select Duplicate.

Learn more about duplicating course content items.

We are seeking mentors from all of the YSU colleges! Sustainable technological adoption relies on trusted, grassroots peer networks. Do you find yourself having informal conversations about AI with colleagues, experimenting with tools in your courses, or creatively approaching AI-aware assessments? Do you want to help shape the campus conversation on generative AI? If so, please consider joining this interdisciplinary initiative sponsored by YSU Online, the ITL, and IT Training Services.

The program connects mentoring faculty (full and part-time) who are exploring and applying generative AI at YSU with peers looking for informal guidance, fresh ideas, discipline-specific applications, and collaborative exploration. As a mentor, you will serve as an informal peer resource and visible catalyst for thoughtful AI experimentation. Mentors receive a $500 stipend per semester.

We are pleased to announce that following our successful pilot program, Youngstown State University has officially signed a 5-year partnership contract with FeedbackFruits, running from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2031! You can now integrate these tools into your courses with long-term confidence, knowing they are a fully supported fixture of our instructional ecosystem.

What is Included?

Our institutional subscription covers all academic units across YSU and gives us access to a suite of Customized Pedagogies! We have access to five active learning activities at any given time, which we can adapt as our campus needs evolve

Our current active toolkit includes:

Get Ready for Fall: New Trainings & Support

To help you make the most of these powerful tools, YSU Online will be offering targeted training sessions starting in August 2026 and continuing throughout the Fall 2026 semester. Whether you want to automate writing feedback, supercharge peer evaluations, or make your course media fully interactive, we are here to support you.

Keep an eye on your inbox for our upcoming workshop schedule and registration links. We look forward to building dynamic learning experiences together this fall!

AI can support course design in powerful ways, but effective teaching still depends on the human connection between instructors and students. This EDUCASE article explores how AI can help streamline course development while reinforcing the importance of instructor presence, feedback, and interaction. It offers a thoughtful perspective on using AI as a support for teaching, not a replacement for it.

Read the full article: AI and Course Design: Machines Can Help, but Only Humans Can Teach

Have questions about Blackboard or course design? We're here to help!

Meet the YSU Online Team:

📧iddc@ysu.edu   |   📱x3244   |   🔗Website   |   📅Schedule a Consultation

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Youngstown State University
1 Tressel Way
Youngstown, OH 44555
330.941.3000