Four faculty will redesign and teach courses using Blackboard’s Ultra Experience, the next generation of Blackboard’s learning management system during the SP2018 semester.

As part of a unique partnership with Blackboard, the pilot is a collaboration between UMBC’s Blackboard Faculty Advisory Team, DoIT, and Blackboard staff to ensure a successful faculty and student experience before a scaled deployment of a major upgrade.The partnership also allows faculty, students, and instructional technology staff to provide essential feedback about the current state of the Ultra Experience and shape its future development. 

The four faculty and courses are:

• Liz Stanwyck - STAT 451: Introduction to Probability Theory
• Tim Phin - HIST 456: The Roman Empire
• Gary Williams - EHS 102: Emergency Medical Responder
• Mary Tabaa - EDUC 792: TESOL Internship

What is the Ultra Experience?

The Ultra Experience is the first completely cloud-based system from Blackboard, representing a new focus on improved workflows and deep integrations to support teaching and learning. Featuring a more personalized, proactive, and intuitive interface for faculty and students, users will encounter a navigation and activity stream that provides quick access to the most critical information to easily stay updated and take action in and outside of the virtual course environment. 

Embedded analytics keep students informed about their progress and tell quantitative stories about learning. The new interface provides a more seamless transition between mobile and desktop, allowing students to move between app and browser. 

Why the Ultra Experience?

Since 2000, UMBC has maintained the original Bb Learn 9.1 environment, beginning with self-hosted servers on campus. In January 2015, UMBC migrated its self-hosted environment to Blackboard’s managed hosting facility in Virginia. During the Summer 2017 term, DoIT announced the transition to Blackboard’s cloud-based architecture to update our system with little to no downtime, increase the scale the system in response to load, and increase services when demand is high. The transition to Blackboard cloud was also a technical requirement to evaluate and subsequently migrate to Blackboard’s future systems using the Ultra Experience, which was announced by Blackboard in July 2015.

Tools have been added, upgraded, or retired over the years to Bb Learn 9.1, but with the exception of Blackboard Collaborate, which was deployed in the Ultra Experience to all courses in WT2017, no significant changes to the overall Learn 9.1 interface has occurred. Each month, however, Blackboard releases new tools and improvements to the Ultra Experience, allowing faculty to quickly innovate. Although the original Learn 9.1 experience we currently use will be supported in the near future with some modest development, the future of Blackboard is in Ultra. 

We’re very excited to introduce the Ultra Experience to you over the next 18 months. As you explore the new interface, redesign your content, or take classes, please tell us how you use Ultra to enhance and improve the way you teach and learn. In the coming months, we will share a migration website and timeline, frequently asked questions, and roadmaps with demos.

Blackboard course shells for WT2018 and SP2018 were created on December 6, 2017.

About Course Creation

Bb shells for WT/SP2018 are available for all courses (designated as lecture, lab, field or discussion) listed in the UMBC Schedule of Classes (SOC), provided that there is an instructor of record listed. As new course sections and/or instructors are added to the SOC by Department Scheduling Coordinators, corresponding Bb shells are automatically generated overnight. 

• If you are an instructor, and your name is not associated with the course you are teaching in the SOC, please see your Departmental Scheduling Coordinator to resolve the issue. Once you are listed in the SOC, your Bb course shell will be created automatically. 
• If you and your Department Scheduling Coordinator believe you are correctly assigned as the instructor of record in the SOC and you do not see your course shell in Blackboard, please submit a Request Tracker (RT) ticket via my.umbc.edu/help.
• If you need a Bb shell for a research or independent study course, please submit a new course request.

Instructors who teach multiple sections of the same course will find those enrollments merged into one Bb course shell. These sections may be split upon request by an RT ticket, which we recommend submitting at least one week before the semester starts, if not as soon as courses are created in Blackboard.

Student enrollment in Bb mirrors the official registration in SA and updates hourly. However, courses are not accessible to students by default until the instructor of record makes them available.

As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:

• Check our extensive FAQ collection
• Open a ticket via RT
• Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups
• Request a consult with instructional technology staff

The Winter Dissertation House is coming to UMBC (January 16-19, 2018). Graduate students who plan to participate should follow the application procedures on the application webpage for the Dissertation House (below). Open application period: November 8, 2017– December 31, 2017. (Please note that there are only 12 to 15 slots for this event, consider applying early). Applications received after December 31, 2017 will be considered for the DH waiting list.

Event: Winter 2018 Dissertation House

Dates: January 16, 2018 – January 19, 2018

Time: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM each day

Location: University of Maryland Baltimore County, Commons 329 and Commons 328

Registration: Please login to MyUMBC (https://my.umbc.edu/groups/promise/events/54676), click “I can attend” below, *AND* follow the application procedures on the main website for the Dissertation House: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/apply/. Application period to apply to attend the Dissertation House: Nov 8 – Dec 31, 2017.

Event Details: 

• The Dissertation House runs from 9 AM – 5PM, for four days, Tuesday, January 16 through Friday, January 19.
• Students must plan to attend the full session, for each of the 4 days. 
• Daily schedule includes 2 mini-lectures, and 5 hours of writing per day.
• Breakfast, Lunch, and a snack will be served daily.
• The Dissertation House is free for UMBC’s graduate students.
• There are 15 to 18 spaces available for the Dissertation House. 
• Details regarding eligibility can be found on the application page of the website for the Dissertation House.

Read about The Dissertation House in UMBC’s Alumni Magazine: Byrne, R.  (2011, Fall) “The Write Stuff”, UMBC Magazine. p. 12. More information about the DissertationHouse: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/about/

Dissertation House Application Procedures

Both the on-campus setting and the retreat setting provide Dissertation House participants with productive and rewarding scholastic engagement.  Students who participate in this program will spend each day thinking, writing, and sharing ideas about their doctoral dissertations.  Students will learn effective time-management skills; learn how to set small manageable goals, and will meet with a dissertation coach in one-on-one consultations to discuss and address obstacles that might prevent them completing their degrees.

The Dissertation House period can span either a Tuesday – Friday (9 a.m. – 5 p.m., non-residential) or a Friday – Sunday weekend (includes evening sessions) commitment to focus on the doctoral dissertation.  The Dissertation House activities focus on areas where students typically have difficulty: conceptualizing a topic, writing a literature review, transitioning from a proposal to a dissertation, analyzing data, writing the last chapter, and editing.
Students may apply to attend the next Dissertation House during open application enrollment, by submitting two parts of an application.

PART I:

I. Submit a brief description (maximum 2 pages, font size 11-12 point 1 inch margins) that describes the project that you wish to accomplish during the Dissertation Houseperiod.  Applications will neither be reviewed nor accepted outside of the application enrollment period.

PART II:

II. Please use the following guidelines  for the application:

(1) Summary of the project, including research question(s), data or texts, and method

(2) Amount completed on the project to date

(3) Any obstacles that you are encountering that hinder completion of the dissertation.

(4) Include the following header information with the description:

• Name
• Address
• Telephone numbers (home, office, and fax)
• E-mail address
• Academic Program and Year in the program

Dates/Location: January 16 to 19 (Tuesday – Friday), 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Dissertation House will be held in COMM 329 (for Dissertation House) and COMM 328 (for one-on-one sessions).

Application Enrollment Period: Application can be submitted within a designated 2-week period, usually scheduled 1-2 months prior to the next Dissertation House session.  Email applications to promisestaff@gmail.com.  Please use the words “Dissertation House” in the subject line of your email.

Selection Process: Eighteen participants will be selected for participation in the Dissertation House.  The following applicants will have priority:  (1) Applicants who plan to finish the Ph.D. within the next 6 months; (2) Individuals who are working on dissertations and theses rather than a proposal; (3) Applicants who submit earliest; and (4) Individuals who appear most able to benefit from the services offered at the Dissertation House.

If your application is accepted, you will receive an acceptance notice via email and additional details about the Dissertation House.  All students, including those who have not applied or those who are not selected, have the option to participate in the next online challenge, a virtual version of the Dissertation House.

The Winter Dissertation House is coming to UMBC (January 16-19, 2018). Graduate students who plan to participate should follow the application procedures on the application webpage for the Dissertation House (below). Open application period: November 8, 2017– December 31, 2017. (Please note that there are only 12 to 15 slots for this event, consider applying early). Applications received after December 31, 2017 will be considered for the DH waiting list.

Event: Winter 2018 Dissertation House

Dates: January 16, 2018 – January 19, 2018

Time: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM each day

Location: University of Maryland Baltimore County, Commons 329 and Commons 328

Registration: Please login to MyUMBC (https://my.umbc.edu/groups/promise/events/54676), click “I can attend” below, *AND* follow the application procedures on the main website for the Dissertation House: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/apply/. Application period to apply to attend the Dissertation House: Nov 8 – Dec 31, 2017.

Event Details: 

• The Dissertation House runs from 9 AM – 5PM, for four days, Tuesday, January 16 through Friday, January 19.
• Students must plan to attend the full session, for each of the 4 days. 
• Daily schedule includes 2 mini-lectures, and 5 hours of writing per day.
• Breakfast, Lunch, and a snack will be served daily.
• The Dissertation House is free for UMBC’s graduate students.
• There are 15 to 18 spaces available for the Dissertation House. 
• Details regarding eligibility can be found on the application page of the website for the Dissertation House.

Read about The Dissertation House in UMBC’s Alumni Magazine: Byrne, R.  (2011, Fall) “The Write Stuff”, UMBC Magazine. p. 12. More information about the DissertationHouse: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/about/

Dissertation House Application Procedures

Both the on-campus setting and the retreat setting provide Dissertation House participants with productive and rewarding scholastic engagement.  Students who participate in this program will spend each day thinking, writing, and sharing ideas about their doctoral dissertations.  Students will learn effective time-management skills; learn how to set small manageable goals, and will meet with a dissertation coach in one-on-one consultations to discuss and address obstacles that might prevent them completing their degrees.

The Dissertation House period can span either a Tuesday – Friday (9 a.m. – 5 p.m., non-residential) or a Friday – Sunday weekend (includes evening sessions) commitment to focus on the doctoral dissertation.  The Dissertation House activities focus on areas where students typically have difficulty: conceptualizing a topic, writing a literature review, transitioning from a proposal to a dissertation, analyzing data, writing the last chapter, and editing.
Students may apply to attend the next Dissertation House during open application enrollment, by submitting two parts of an application.

PART I:

I. Submit a brief description (maximum 2 pages, font size 11-12 point 1 inch margins) that describes the project that you wish to accomplish during the Dissertation Houseperiod.  Applications will neither be reviewed nor accepted outside of the application enrollment period.

PART II:

II. Please use the following guidelines  for the application:

(1) Summary of the project, including research question(s), data or texts, and method

(2) Amount completed on the project to date

(3) Any obstacles that you are encountering that hinder completion of the dissertation.

(4) Include the following header information with the description:

• Name
• Address
• Telephone numbers (home, office, and fax)
• E-mail address
• Academic Program and Year in the program

Dates/Location: January 16 to 19 (Tuesday – Friday), 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Dissertation House will be held in COMM 329 (for Dissertation House) and COMM 328 (for one-on-one sessions).

Application Enrollment Period: Application can be submitted within a designated 2-week period, usually scheduled 1-2 months prior to the next Dissertation House session.  Email applications to promisestaff@gmail.com.  Please use the words “Dissertation House” in the subject line of your email.

Selection Process: Eighteen participants will be selected for participation in the Dissertation House.  The following applicants will have priority:  (1) Applicants who plan to finish the Ph.D. within the next 6 months; (2) Individuals who are working on dissertations and theses rather than a proposal; (3) Applicants who submit earliest; and (4) Individuals who appear most able to benefit from the services offered at the Dissertation House.

If your application is accepted, you will receive an acceptance notice via email and additional details about the Dissertation House.  All students, including those who have not applied or those who are not selected, have the option to participate in the next online challenge, a virtual version of the Dissertation House