This week marks the beginning of the Fall 2020 academic semester. In anticipation of the start of classes on Wednesday, Aug. 26, we would like to invite you to participate in one of the following virtual training and/or drop-in sessions being offered by the Faculty Center for Professional Development:

  • Semester Start Up: Getting Your Courses Ready for Launch on Blackboard (Bb) –  This workshop will review all of the tasks instructors need to complete at the beginning of the semester to finalize their online presence in Bb for the Fall 2020 semester. Topics will include confirming your courses, navigating the Bb course shell and customizing your course design, adding and updating content, setting up your Grade Center, making your courses available to students, and more. It will be presented in conjunction with access to the Faculty Center Remote Course Build Resource Center as we continue to expand the resources there for CSI Faculty.
  • Virtual Drop-in Center –  In addition to the courses and workshops running this week, we will be offering evening Virtual Drop-in Center hours. The Center’s Virtual Drop-in sessions will be open from 6:30pm to 8:00pm daily, Monday to Friday. Sessions can be accessed 15 minutes prior to the start of the session via the direct link in the schedule below, or by using the Virtual Drop-in Center button located on the main page of the Faculty Center Info Hub (CSI) Bb Organization available to all teaching faculty at CSI in the “My Organizations” box of your Bb Homepage.

The schedule of session days and times for this week is online. There is no sign-up needed to participate. To attend, simply click on the access link provided next to the session date/time you want to attend anytime within 15 minutes of the start of the workshop. Once clicked, Blackboard Collaborate will appear at the top of the screen. It will show the specific training session you are joining and offer a place for you to type your name (please enter both your first and last name to ensure you receive credit for having attended). Select Join Session after typing your full name.

For more information or questions about any of the trainings listed above please contact Kristen Lindtvedt at kristen.lindtvedt@csi.cuny.edu.

By Kristen Lindtvedt