Training and support are essential components of a successful transition to the Ultra Experience. This past summer, about 30 faculty and staff attended the Ultra Experience Boot Camp, one of several training solutions available to the campus community. This semester, about 30% of the UMBC faculty who attended the boot camps opted to teach with Ultra. Their fourteen courses include traditional, hybrid, and fully online formats with more than 500 students.
The FA2018 pilot faculty are not the only instructors with access to the Ultra Experience! All FA2018 faculty now have access to an Ultra Course Preview sandbox... do you know what to do with it?
First, look over the FAQ and video about the Ultra Course Preview. The Ultra Course Adoption Center also has useful information.
Next, check out the Ultra Learn Essentials self-paced resources. All FA2018 faculty were enrolled in this self-paced course.
If you have questions, plan to attend an Ultra orientation, stop by a walk-in clinic, or open an RT ticket to make an appointment to speak to instructional technology staff.
Self-paced training and boot camps are not the only options. We are also prepared to offer:
Instructional Technology staff are available for department training and orientation requests. These workshops may be scheduled in 45-minute, 90-minute, half-day, or full-day sessions on pre-packaged topics or mix & match themes. Please open an RT ticket to schedule this training.
This fast-paced program is intended for advanced Blackboard users who are very comfortable with the existing system. By the end of the workshop, participants should be able create and upload content to an Ultra course, create and grade assignments, configure the gradebook, and create, monitor, and grade discussions.
Virtual trainings (45 minutes) provided by Instructional Technology staff and Blackboard offer flexible solutions for faculty training. Topics include Skill Builder workshops, Blackboard Innovative Teaching Series, Best of Bb World, course development, flipped classrooms, best practices, what’s new updates, or other customizable sessions.
Focusing less on “button-ology” of using Ultra, this program is a 2-day workshop designed to support faculty as they redesign and redevelop their existing Blackboard courses for the Ultra Experience. Faculty will compare conversion vs. redesign options when migrating to UX, prepare Original courses for conversion to the Ultra Experience, and check courses for quality.
Instructional Technology staff are available to deliver a 2-hour workshop for Teaching Assistants on the effective use of Bb’s Ultra Experience specifically for teaching assistants. Please open an RT ticket to schedule this training.
As always, if you have any questions, please consider the following options:
Follow the Instructional Technology & DoIT myUMBC groups
Request a consult with instructional technology staff
Most businesses and institutions once had a foundation made up entirely of paper processes that tied every memo, report, paycheck, and signature into an elegantly elaborate, if incomprehensibly Gordian knot of redundancy. Nothing could get done before the right document was, to use the insightful words from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, “...signed in triplicate, sent in, sent back, queried, lost, found, subjected to public enquiry, lost again, and finally buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters.”
Back on Earth, UMBC is one of many higher education institutions taking the proverbial sword to the knot of archaic business processes. The Campus Card and Mail Services department has made headway by converting to digital forms for the Departmental Campus Card (DCARD).
The DCARD allows certain staff and faculty to charge their department for work- related expenses such as small food purchases, copier use, pay-for-print services, postal goods and/or small UMBC Bookstore purchases. Assistant Director Drew Belcher says that since most people do not think in terms of back-end verification and auditing, they do not always grasp the financial power the DCARD gives an individual and the steps necessary to ensure it is authorized and utilized properly.
Despite the complex approval process required for DCARD forms, UMBC’s electronic signature and digital workflow vendor, DocuSign, provides a simple, automated solution. IT Support Assistant Kristen Hodges, B.A. ‘14, English Communication and Technology, can create a single template that can be used for many departments. The program’s interface allows her to easily create a signing order and designate each field on the form to a specific individual. Once it is sent, the form is automatically routed to each signer via secure email, eliminating the time once spent transporting forms by hand or mail.
One particularly useful feature of digital forms is the tracking data that the system automatically records. This includes timestamps created every time someone views, edits, or signs a document. This information is critical during an internal or state audit that checks the validity of DCARD expenses. Belcher says he can easily create a document with all of the important data for any particular form and easily share it with third-party overseers in Financial Services.
Moving forward, Campus Card and Mail Services is looking to convert more forms to DocuSign, especially those requiring signatures from off-campus partners. Doing so will, “increase our productivity and allow us to accomplish more during the work day,” says Hodges.
Robust, versatile, and easy to use, digital signature technology empowers administrators to challenge the status quo and use its foundation to build a new process that is faster, smarter, and immune to parody.
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By Eleanor Lewis
Damian Doyle ‘99, B.S. Computer Science, ‘16 M.S Information Systems, says building trust and relationships are essential to his work every day at UMBC.
Doyle, assistant vice president of enterprise infrastructure in the Division of Information Technology (DoIT), is being recognized with Educause’s prestigious Rising Star award, “For demonstrating exemplary leadership in the implementation and deployment of information technology in support of the educational mission; for strong mentorship and promotion of diversity for those aspiring to the IT profession; for modeling collaborative partnerships within his institution and in the greater higher education community.”He’ll receive the award at the annual Educause Conference this week.
Like a number of DoIT staff, Doyle began his career as a student worker, and was hired full time after graduation (51 of DoIT’s 75 FT staff are UMBC alumni). Over time, he began taking on leadership roles in network service and security, technology to support classroom learning, and cloud services. Doyle’s collaborative, positive, and thoughtful approach extends beyond DoIT to his work across campus and beyond.
Doyle is a member of UMBC’s Center for Women in Information Technology (CWIT) internal board, and works closely with CWIT Scholars. He has developed an internship program for the scholars to receive hands-on experience in DoIT’s cybersecurity, UNIX infrastructure, and advanced networking teams. Doyle is also committed to working in shared governance and is currently president of the university’s Professional Staff Senate (PSS) and active with its University Steering Committee (USC). He is chair of the planning committee for Maryland’s First Lego League (FLL) and is one of the state head referees. He also coaches his son’s school FLL team.
“Damian has been a partner with the Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) as an advocate for women and underrepresented students, educator, supervisor to CWIT students, and ally within the University of Maryland, Baltimore County,” says Erica D’Eramo, assistant director of CWIT. “He has promoted the opportunities for employment and technical experience in DoIT, and he participates in professional development exercises with new CWIT students and multiple networking opportunities throughout the year for all class years. We greatly appreciate his support of CWIT's mission and thoughtful collaborations for the past several years.”
DoIT Vice President and CIO Jack Suess, B.S. ‘81 mathematics, and M.S. ‘94, information systems operations analysis, says, “I am thrilled that the EDUCAUSE Awards Committee agreed that Damian's body of work was exceptional and that he was awarded the Rising Star Award. Damian’s technical and managerial leadership has not only advanced IT at UMBC; he’s taken that leadership and talent to work across campus and in the community, and he is seen as a national leader in the field, especially in the use of cloud technology.”
“I love building bridges,” Doyle explains. “I’m able to work with people on campus and learn what they are doing, then find and match technology to that, in order to help make their work better.
“IT staff see themselves as partners with the university community and so we’re committed to intentional customer service. It’s important to take time with people, to hear their viewpoints and understand their needs. If we’re going to change how we do something, it has to be because it’s of benefit, not just because it’s cool technology.
We’re at a point where you can’t teach and learn without technology, so we have to implement it in a way that serves the community.”
Doyle has also helped DoIT create a culture that is inclusive and welcoming too. Beyond his work with CWIT, Doyle says it’s been important for DoIT keep in mind the wide range of ways people from all backgrounds bring different perspectives on problems and solutions to their work. “I feel we have good values around this, but we want to make sure students understand and have that in an intentional way.” He says DoIT will continue to work on developing this area, and they are planning to launch some new initiatives this spring.
When he’s not at UMBC, Doyle takes time away from IT, playing ultimate frisbee and tennis, running, and biking. But he also loves science fiction and video games, which he often plays with his son, Leo, who shares his love of technology. Doyle, whose parents were part of UMBC’s first graduating class, now enjoys this time with Leo much like he did as a child when he and his father built computers together. He says he explains to his son that using technology and understanding how it works are two different things. That understanding has not only helped Doyle in his career, but has become part of a philosophy that has made a difference to the UMBC community as well.
In an interview with Educause Review, Doyle shared what keeps him inspired. “The people within higher education and their stories, passions, and dreams have a huge impact every day on my thinking and motivation. I’m continually impressed by the challenges many students have overcome to get where they are, and by the faculty, staff, and colleagues who are changing lives through their work, their research, and their commitment to education. The more people I talk with, learn from, and connect with, the more inspired I am to help them succeed and achieve their goals.”
]]>On the evening of Wednesday, November 7th we will be upgrading REX Guided Reports. This upgraded version will bring many enhancements and we wanted to touch upon a few of them here.
Browser independence
New look and feel
Report Favorites
Improved Printing
Further details on each can be found here.
If you have any questions on the upgrade please reach out to us by visiting the REX website (rex.umbc.edu) and submitting a ticket (under Getting Help > REX Reporting Request Form).
One in four students take some of their courses online, and two-thirds do so at a public institution in the same state where they live (Allen, Seaman, Pouline, & Straut, 2016; Allen & Seaman, 2017). In early November, UMBC celebrates the 11th anniversary of National Distance Learning Week (NDLW) with a series of lunchtime conversations. Topics include:
Hybrid or Online? Learn about the Alternate Delivery Program
Attend this information session to learn more about the Alternate Delivery Program. Ask specific questions related to the ADP Course Designer Track Call to Participate for Spring/Summer 2019. Previous ADP alumni will be on hand to share their experiences!
Support Student Engagement with Collaborate Ultra
Imagine a room that was perfectly outfitted for collaboration -- except the room only exists online. Collaborate Ultra is an integrated web conferencing tool available to faculty through their Blackboard course shells. Attend this virtual session to learn best practices, workflows, and use cases.
Panopto Lunch ‘n’ Learn
UMBC has recently announced the licensing of Panopto, our new and improved screencasting platform. Learn about how Panopto could change the way you think about lecturing.
Explore Accessibility in the Technology Test Kitchen
Bring your own device (laptop, tablet, smartphone) to one of our Technology Test Kitchen areas to learn and explore both faculty and student approaches to accessibility. Each Kitchen features “chefs” from Accessibility & Disability Services or IT to discuss “recipes” (strategies, tools, resources, etc.) for addressing a particular issue.
Monthly Blackboard Ultra Experience Orientation
UMBC's current flavor of Blackboard has not changed significantly in many years, but that's about to change with the Ultra Experience! Attendees will receive information about training opportunities and how to access an Ultra Experience sandbox. Discuss the differences between course conversion and course redesign, and learn about other features exclusive to the Ultra Experience.
Please RSVP: A light lunch will be provided for in-person sessions.
Can't make these National Distance Learning Week sessions? Try these virtual events?
Technology vs. Innovation: Strategies to Build an Engaging Online Course
Does the inclusion of technology alone make a course innovative? Learn strategies to make your courses more engaging through multiple modalities.
The IT Experiences of Undergraduate Students: EDUCAUSE’s 2018 ECAR Report
Topics will include student device access and ownership, device use and importance, student technology experiences, LMS use and satisfaction, learning environment preferences, experiences with instructors and technology, home internet access, a day in the online life of a student, accessibility, and student success tools.
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References
Allen, I. E., Seaman, J., Poulin, R., & Straut, T. T. (2016). Online report card: Tracking online education in the United States. Oakland, CA: Babson Survey Research Group. Retrieved from http://onlinelearningsurvey.com/reports/onlinereportcard.pdf
Allen, I. E., & Seaman, J. (2017). Digital learning compass: Distance education enrollment report 2017. Oakland, CA: Babson Survey Research Group. Retrieved from http://onlinelearningsurvey.com/reports/digtiallearningcompassenrollment2017.pdf