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Grand Valley State University
We want to make sure that you are "Ultra Awesome and Ultra Ready" so please review the various ways we can assist you with Blackboard Ultra. In this issue, we encourage you to consider registering for the GVSU-sponsored Michigan Blackboard User’s Group conference, introduce you to our Blackboard Learn Ultra Care Package, highlight our drop-in office hour appointments, promote our upcoming Blackboard Ultra training opportunities, and share 4 common FAQs.

Last call for the FREE Michigan Blackboard User's Group Conference!

Grand Valley State University will be hosting the Spring 2023 conference for the Michigan Blackboard Users Group (miBUG) on Friday May 5, 2023. This year’s conference will focus on Blackboard Ultra, lessons learned, and best practices. Conference registration is FREE, but we need your registration for the catering order. Registration will close on April 14, 2023.
When: Friday May 5, 2023 from 8am – 3pm
Where: DeVos Center, Loosemore Auditorium, Exhibit hall and adjoining classrooms
Registration: https://www.gvsu.edu/elearn/mibug-2023-126.htm

Unwrap Your Blackboard Learn Ultra Care Package!

Course assignments can occur at any time. Sometimes attending training webinars or workshops isn’t possible, but learning how to use Blackboard Ultra is still needed. The Blackboard Ultra Care Package is designed to provide you with the tools you need to get started using Blackboard Ultra. The care package also provides course design strategies to improve student engagement with your content.

Sample Ultra Course Tours

Looking for some ideas on how to organize your Blackboard Ultra course? Check out our latest Blackboard Ultra course tour.
More Ultra tours are available on our Blackboard Ultra Champions page. Be sure to review this Knowledge Base article for additional Blcakboard Ultra course design best practices.

Blackboard Classic Practice Test Courses Disabled May 3, 2023

With the move to Ultra Course View for all courses, we will stop creating new Classic view "practice test courses" for faculty and staff accounts on Tuesday May 3, 2023. When this change happens, all Classic Practice Test Courses will be disabled. If you need your Classic Practice Test Course after May 3, please fill out an eLearning Technologies Service Ticket requesting your Classic Practice Test Course be enabled again.

Blackboard Login Accounts for T_ and S_ GVSU Students

On May 3rd, we will be changing how Blackboard accounts are created for any student at GVSU who is also a temporary or student employee. At this time, the s_ or t_ account is used for Blackboard login. Beginning May 3rd, any Blackboard account for a student who also has an s_ or t_ account in Banner will remain the student login.

Drop-in Blackboard Ultra Office Hours

No reservations needed! Bring your laptop and your questions and meet with members of the eLearning Technologies team.
Allendale Campus • MAK B-2-226
Tuesday, 4/11 from 9am – 12pm
Monday, 4/17 from 1pm – 4pm
Pew Campus • DEV 119E
Tuesday, 4/11 from 1pm – 3pm
Tuesday, 4/18 from 9am – 11am
Health Campus
Wednesday, 4/12 from 9am - 12pm • RFH 404
Thursday, 4/13 from 1pm – 3pm • DCIH 510
We also have two graduate assistants who are available Monday – Friday, 9am – 4pm to help with Ultra questions. Stop by KHS 4450 on the Allendale campus. Sam and Daniel will be available to answer questions. No appointment necessary.

Upcoming Blackboard Ultra Training

Our eLearning Technologies Blackboard Ultra training comes in various formats to meet everyone's scheduling needs, so be sure to bookmark our eLearning Training/Webinars page.
Here's a snapshot of all our upcoming Blackboard Ultra professional development for the next few weeks, including the Sprout links for easy registration access.
  • Blackboard Ultra Essentials are 60-minute overviews of the most commonly used tools and functionality in Blackboard Ultra.
    • April 24, 2023 and April 27, 2023 • 11am – 12pm
    • April 27, 2023 • 7pm – 8pm
    • May 1, 2023 • 1pm – 2pm
  • Blackboard Ultra Lunch-and-Learns are quick 20-minute sessions offered around the noon hour, with the remaining time available for Q&A's. Bring your questions and stay as long as you need. 
    • 4/13/23, 4/17/23, 4/19/23, 4/25/23, 4/27/23
    • 5/2/23, 5/4/23
  • Blackboard Ultra Course Build-a-thons provide a deeper 2–3 hour dive into getting your course converted and ready for Blackboard Ultra.Sessions take place in Zoom and participants will be moved into breakout rooms to work in small groups with eLearning team members.
    • April 14, 2023 • 9am – 11:30am
  • Five Steps for Course Design. In this month's session, assessment ideas for student engagement and components available in Ultra will be discussed.
    • April 18, 2023 • 2pm – 3pm

Answering 4 Common Ultra Questions

When will Fall 2023 Ultra courses become available?
  • Fall 2023 course sites will be created the week of July 10, 2023. Those who want to begin working on their courses early can request a template course site.
How long will Bb classic courses remain available to review and copy content into Ultra?
  • All Blackboard Classic courses will follow the existing policy on course availability. Courses will remain available within Blackboard for one academic year plus one semester. After that point, courses enter an archive where they remain for three full academic years. Courses can be temporarily restored from the archive by completing this Service Portal ticket.
Will Blackboard Organizations be Moving to Ultra?
  • Blackboard organizations that are used for personnel purposes will stay in Blackboard Classic through May 1, 2024. Organizations will not be asked to convert to Ultra, but any new organizations that are created will be Ultra organizations. Did you know that Bb organizations are great to use for committee work, research or special projects? If you are interested in getting a Bb organization, please submit this request ticket.
Can an adjunct get early access to Bb Ultra to begin training?
  • The GVSU IT team has created a form for Department Chairs and PSS to request temporary Blackboard accounts to be used before the GVSU network account is created. Instructions for requesting a temporary Blackboard account are available in this Knowledge Base article found on our service portal.

Remember…your eLearning liaisons are ready to help you with the transition!

Each department has been assigned a Senior Instructional Designer and an Instructional Technology Project Specialist. To find out “who” your liaisons are, be sure to review our liaison website or use our liaison search tool.   Let us know how we can help.
Sincerely,

Kim Kenward
Director of eLearning Technologies
GVSU Information Technology
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4490 Kindschi Hall of Science
Allendale, MI 49401
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