Blackboard Ultra (Faculty) - End-of-Semester Activities

The following are suggested end-of-semester activities for faculty using Blackboard. Please contact ITS for questions or assistance at 618-650-5500 or help@siue.edu.

1. Check your Grade Center Total, Weighted Total, or Overall Grade (Ultra) column(s) to be sure they are set up to calculate correctly. The Mercer University Online Weighted Average Grade Calculator is a useful tool for checking your Weighted Total calculations.
   
   
2. Download a copy of your Grade Center or Gradebook available in Ultra for your records.
   
   
3. Download Assignment  available in Ultra and Turnitin Assignment submissions available in Ultra) for your records.
   
   
4. Export the course  available in Ultra to keep a copy for importing into future courses. Under the 5+1 retention policy, only course shells from the five previous semesters, as well as the current semester, are kept in Blackboard. Course shells outside of 5+1 will be removed at the start of the spring, summer, and fall semesters. Faculty are responsible for downloading and keeping copies of older course shells. No backups of deleted courses will be retained by ITS.
   
   
5. If you are teaching multiple sections of the same course next semester and want them in a single Blackboard shell, get a head start by requesting a merged course. 

     6. Post an announcement reminding students to download any course materials or personal submissions before the course closes. After the term ends, they must request access from the instructor to retrieve those materials. 

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