Retiring the Blackboard Service

The university's Blackboard license expired on December 20, 2023.  The Blackboard application and all supporting infrastructure will be entirely decommissioned and no longer in operation for our campus.  The campus has completed the process of switching to the new learning management system, Brightspace.  This page provides important information and common questions about retiring the Blackboard service.

When will Blackboard no longer be used for classes?

Spring 2023 was the final semester in which Blackboard was be used for active classes.  All scheduled classes will have a course created in the Brightspace system for future semesters.

Will my Blackboard courses be copied to Brightspace?

Courses that were offered from Summer 2021 through Fall 2022 have been copied into development courses in the Brightspace system.  This process copied course content and most tools into the Brightspace course but DID NOT include student rosters or student records, like assignment submissions, grades, and the like.

What will happen to electronic reserves materials that have been linked in Blackboard?

Electronic course reserves content is available for faculty to download from the Libraries for upload into their corresponding Brightspace courses. Course content for Fall 2010 through Spring 2023 is available for download.  For assistance with or questions about this process, reach out to circulation@albany.edu for assistance.

When will my access to Blackboard be disabled?

Instructors were able to access the system and their course, materials, and students records until September 15, 2023 at 4:00PM.  Blackboard is no longer available.

What if students need to submit coursework to resolve an Incomplete grade?

Please arrange for alternative methods outside of Blackboard for students to complete their incomplete coursework.

How can I access my Blackboard course data in the future?

Your course materials will be copied into a corresponding course in Brightspace, so you will have access to these files there.  ITS will maintain a Blackboard archive environment for course records.  If you need data from one of your Blackboard courses, please submit this form (TBD).

Is there anything I need to do with my Blackboard courses?

Yes!!  You should archive your Blackboard courses as well as download any files, data, course materials, student rosters, grade center, and any other information you need for easy access.  You could import or restore the packages into a compatible Blackboard system in the future, if necessary.  Additionally, the packages could also be imported into other learning management systems, including Brightspace.  While the course export/archive ZIP package itself cannot be unpackaged and opened outside of Blackboard, the separately downloaded content files, grade data, etc., can be accessed directly from your selected storage system.

Archive Your Blackboard Course

In the past, I had organizations in the Community tab in Blackboard.  Will these be copied into Brightspace?

Generally, no.  Most non-standard courses and organizations in Blackboard WILL NOT be copied or recreated in Brightspace.  

While Blackboard provided the Community feature that was intended to support campus organizations, Brightspace does not include such a feature.  Rather, it is intentionally designed with an essential function of delivery and support of degree and certificate programs.  To support you in navigating a move from Blackboard, we encourage you to explore other services offered by ITS for supporting communication and collaboration with your campus groups and constituents. 

If you were an instructor or leader of a non-standard course or organization in Blackboard, ITS sent a status update specific to each course or organization to your UAlbany email address.

Communication About Retiring Blackboard