Syracuse University

A guided tour of Blackboard Learn will be held Tuesday, May 19, from 10-11 a.m. in the Peter
Graham Scholarly Commons in E.S. Bird Library. An upgrade to this version of Blackboard is
now under way at the University.

The new version of Blackboard is the first release of Blackboard Next Generation (Blackboard
NG), and it brings together the product lines of the former Blackboard and WebCT products.
This new version, Blackboard Learn, is highlighted by a new user interface for both users and
instructors. New functionality has been added to several existing tools, along with new
collaborative tools for communication and group work.

Highlights of Blackboard Learn include:

• new user interface with drag and drop capabilities;
  
• in-place editing of all materials via context sensitive menu;
  
• inline confirmations (no receipt pages) and fewer clicks everywhere;
  
• embedded help throughout the application;
  
• notification system that allows for customized alerts around system updates and content
  changes;
  
• enhanced assignment functionality that allows for multiple attempts and group
  assignments; and
  
• new blog and journal tools that support individual and group creation of course materials.
  

Information Technology and Services (ITS) has under way a project-guided by a team that
includes staff from the individual schools and colleges, as well as other campus organizations
such as the SU Library, Student Records and the Academic Integrity Office-to upgrade both
the computing and network infrastructure that supports Blackboard at SU, as well as upgrade to
the latest version of the application, Blackboard Learn (version 9.0). This enhanced system will be
available July 15 to support Fall 2009 classes. The current Blackboard system (version 8.0) will
continue to be available until Aug. 21 to support classes through the end of the 2009 Summer
Sessions.

Blackboard supports more than 2,400 classes (on-campus, distance learning and hybrid) and
approximately 300 organizations per semester. The system has a periodic peak of more than
5,000 concurrent users. These numbers are steadily increasing, clear evidence of Blackboard's
academic and strategic value to SU faculty and students.

For up-to-date information on the Blackboard upgrade at SU, visit
http://blogs.syr.edu/blackboard9upgrade.

For more information about Blackboard or the upgrade, contact Michael Morrison, manager of
academic applications, at memorr02@syr.edu or 443-1806.