Blackboard Learn Ultra: Jackie Burchum, College of Nursing

“I teach using Blackboard Ultra because all didactic courses in the College of Nursing’s (CON) Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program are online and housed in this learning management system (LMS). (Dr. Ken Hohmeier provides an excellent synopsis on uses of Blackboard at https://www.uthsc.edu/tlc/whos-using-it.php)

After Blackboard’s merger with Anthology, a new product, Blackboard Ultra, was introduced as the replacement for Blackboard. The CON had been using the original Blackboard LMS since the early 2000s. It was familiar and predictable. Ultra was vastly different both operationally and in layout. Add to this that earlier versions of Ultra were, as yet, incomplete. (In fact, improvements are ongoing with monthly updates made available to users.) I was one of the first faculty members to make the transition. During that time, I am relatively certain that no one complained about this transition more than I did. That being said, I am now an ardent supporter of Blackboard Ultra and you couldn’t pay me to go back to the original Blackboard!

So, how did I go from resigned transitioner to enthusiastic supporter? Here are my tips.

1. I took advantage of classes and webinars offered to teach how to design and set up courses in Ultra. (See https://www.anthology.com/webinar/learn-ultra-course-seminar-start-preparing-your-courses-in-the-ultra-course-view)
2. I completed Anthology’s Exemplary Course Program (ECP) webinar series. The ECP recognizes excellence in course design demonstrated by faculty and designers. (See https://learn.anthology.com/exemplary-course-program)
3. I became an ECP course reviewer. This volunteer position not only benefited the ECP, but also it exposed me to a variety of creative designs employed by faculty at other universities. (Register to see recordings of the most recent webinar at https://learn.anthology.com/join?event=58516861)
4. Perhaps most importantly, when issues developed that I could not resolve, I turned to the Teaching and Learning Center’s Product Manager, Jennifer Stewart. She was almost always able to guide me to a successful solution and, if one did not exist, she ensured that the Ultra developers would address it in an upcoming innovation. (In fact, many of the improvements can be traced directly to her interventions!)

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