04/08/2024
By Michael Cipriano and Nancy Ludwig

Please RSVP to the LMS Pilot Open Forum on May 17 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. in UCC-260, Moloney Hall, as the university embarks on a decision impacting the Learning Management System (LMS).

UMass Lowell (and our sister campuses) have been using Blackboard for almost two decades. Our current Blackboard version will soon be retired, and we will need to upgrade to Blackboard Ultra. Blackboard Ultra is significantly different from our current version. Considering this, the LMS pilot was recommended by the Academic Technology Committee (ATC) to further understand the differences, opportunities, and potential challenges with migrating to a new LMS (Canvas) or upgrading to Blackboard Ultra. This exploration met our strategic goals to provide an adaptive, accessible, mobile-first learning management system to meet our students’ current and future needs.

The LMS Pilot was approved by Provost Hartman and was coordinated by staff from GPS and IT. The pilot included 12 faculty (at least one from each college), 12 courses, and approximately 300 students each semester. We piloted Anthology’s Blackboard Ultra in Fall '23 and Canvas by Instructure in Spring '24 with the same faculty, some different courses, and mostly different students. At the end of each semester, faculty and students were asked to participate in a brief LMS evaluation and we have collected feedback on their experience with the LMS software.

LMS Pilot Open Forum Agenda:

  • Presentation: Findings from the pilot, timeline, options, etc.
  • LMS Pilot Faculty Panel will provide their perspectives
  • Q&A

Following the open forum, we will provide an update to the campus regarding how we plan to move forward.

Please register for the LMS Pilot Open Forum by May 10.

Please email bbhelp@uml.edu if you have questions. If you’re unable to attend this live event and would like a copy of the recording, please complete the registration form and we will send you a copy of the recording.