Solutions · Learning Technology · Experience Design
Blackboard Ultra Transformation
Designed a scalable digital learning framework supporting course migration, academic onboarding, reusable tools, training and consistent student experiences.
- Organisation
- University of Notre Dame Australia
- My role
- Learning technology, experience design, front-end development and implementation
- Technology
- Blackboard Ultra · HTML · CSS · JavaScript · Power Platform · Microsoft 365
The challenge
Moving from Blackboard Original to Ultra required more than a technical migration: academics needed a usable path into the platform and students needed consistent, accessible course experiences.
Existing environment
A large institutional LMS environment with varied course structures, academic practices, accessibility needs and different levels of platform confidence.
Requirements
- Create a consistent institutional course foundation
- Support academic onboarding and early adopters
- Provide reusable guidance and tools
- Improve accessibility and assessment structures
- Track professional development and migration readiness
Solution architecture
Design decisions
A shared course template established consistency while leaving room for discipline-specific teaching.
Sandpits gave academics a safe environment to learn by doing.
Small browser-based tools reduced repetitive content-building work inside platform constraints.
Reusable flight paths made course building and facilitator development visible as a sequence rather than a document dump.
Experience design
The framework connects onboarding, sandpits, templates, course preparation guidance, communications and reusable tools into one coherent journey for academics and students.
Implementation
Work covered the Ultra course template, Homepage Hub, Medicine onboarding, facilitator professional development, course-builder flight paths, accessibility patterns, staff communications and training tracking.
Outcome
The institution gained a repeatable framework for preparing staff and courses for Ultra, with clearer patterns for navigation, assessment and accessible content.
What I learned
Platform change succeeds when capability-building, content design and technical implementation are designed as one system.