Table of Contents
- Course Shell Creation
- Course Set-up
- Course Availability for Students
- Course Section Merge
- Course Deletions
Course Shell Creation
Blackboard shells are available 75 days before the term start date. Courses and enrollments are automatically synced from Colleague.
Course Set-up
Online Courses
- VWU Global Campus coordinates the copying of material for each Mini-Term from a “master” shell. An Instructional Support Specialist will contact each instructor upon completion.
Traditional Courses
- For all other courses, instructors set-up their own material. Many instructors choose to copy material from previous semesters:
Copying an older course into an existing course
Copying individual content from one course to another
Learn Ultra Courses
- For the Blackboard Learn Ultra Pilot, course shells will be changed to Instructor Choice:
Blackboard Learn Ultra@VWU
Course Availability for Students
- Courses in upcoming terms will not be available to students until
- two weeks prior to the first day of the term
- the instructor makes their course “available” (see below) or on the official first day of the term
- Course shells default to “unavailable” for student viewing. An instructor can make a course “available” for student viewing by following these instructions:
- Courses become unavailable 1 month after the final exam period (or the last day of classes for online terms) by default, but can be made available again by the instructor following the aforementioned instructions.
Making courses available to students
Courses will be made available on the first day of the term if the instructor has not already done so.
Course Section Merge
Instructors wishing to have two or more course sections merged should contact the Office of the Registrar at reg@vwu.edu and provide them with the term and course section numbers.
DO NOT develop courses before they are merged, a course merge creates a NEW course and you will no longer have access to the original course sections.
Items to Consider Before Requesting Sections to be Merged:
- Active courses—courses with student submissions, grades, and discussions—should never be merged as student submissions would be lost.
- Understand how FERPA applies to situations with multiple sections and either choose not to merge your sections or ensure your course is designed to meet student privacy and compliance requirements.
Course Deletions
Courses over three years old that do not have "KEEP" added to the title will be subject for deletion. Two weeks after the semester end date on the Academic Calendar, courses over three years are subject for deletion. Read more: