AI Initiatives

UMBC Shield and the black text UMBC Artificial Intelligence

The Division of Information Technology’s AI site will help the UMBC community with information on using artificial intelligence (AI), especially generative AI (GenAI), to support UMBC’s Administrative, Instructional, and Research efforts. This site has been created to help employees advance their use of GenAI.

We recommend that our UMBC community begin by visiting GenAI Tools, a page that highlights free resources and provides guidance on using GenAI while safeguarding UMBC institutional data safely.

For staff seeking support, we encourage people to look at Administrative AI, as a starting point. Our goal is to save folks time, improve the quality of their work, and increase productivity. We showcase tools that DoIT provides to support these objectives.

We have launched myUMBC Answers, an AI-supported search bar. We are seeking partners to expand this tool. The key to leveraging myUMBC Answers is providing validated and accurate content, such as annual FAQs or handbooks.

Faculty, are encouraged to explore Instructional AI and Research AI. The UMBC Center for AI in the College of Engineering is an excellent resource for AI-related research and innovation.  Stay informed by following the center’s social media channels on LinkedIn, BlueskyX, and Facebook.

Members of the UMBC community can subscribe to the UMBC AI Group to receive email about AI-related news and events. If you have news to share with the UMBC AI community or suggestions or comments on the site, please send them to umbc-ai@cs.umbc.edu.

AI News

 

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5 Things to Check After Blackboard Ally Gives You the Green Light

Ally catches a lot. A few important checks still need you.

You launched the Ally course accessibility report, worked through the flagged issues, and watched your score climb to 85% or higher. Green across the board! It feels like the job is done. But a...

Posted: September 1, 2026, 2:59 PM

A human figure with outstretched arms inside a circle of two curved arrows, suggesting movement. Below the figure are two words: digital accessibility.

6 Tips for Troubleshooting Common Ally Errors

Ally flagged it. What to do when guidance isn’t enough

Blackboard Ally is one of the most useful tools in your course accessibility toolkit. It scans your content, flags potential barriers, and offers step-by-step guidance for fixing them. However, ...

Posted: August 25, 2026, 2:12 PM

A human figure with outstretched arms inside a circle of two curved arrows, suggesting movement. Below the figure are two words: digital accessibility.

Mind the Gap: 6 Accessibility Features to Improve Your Ally Score

How to scan, fix, and improve your Blackboard files easily.

You just finished uploading a PDF - a syllabus, lecture notes, or a set of slides exported for printing. It looks fine to you, but how does it perform for a student relying on a screen reader?...

Posted: August 18, 2026, 1:28 PM

A human figure with outstretched arms inside a circle of two curved arrows, suggesting movement. Below the figure are two words: digital accessibility.

5 Quick Wins for an Accessible Syllabus

Small fixes, big difference for every student.

Picture a student pulling up your syllabus before the first day of class. If they're using a screen reader and your document contains unstructured text, complex tables, and images without adequate...

Posted: August 11, 2026, 2:00 PM

A human figure with outstretched arms inside a circle of two curved arrows, suggesting movement. Below the figure are two words: digital accessibility.

Ready, Set, Accessible! Fall Course Prep Day Resources

Recordings, slide decks, and links... oh my!

The USM Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation shared the resources from the Ready, Set, Accessible! Fall Course Prep Day. Held on August 3rd, this half-day virtual event was designed to help...

Posted: August 10, 2026, 9:15 AM

A black circle with a sneaker and the word READY. A yellow circle with a stopwatch and the word SET. A red circle with an accessibility symbol and the word ACCESSIBLE. Below these is the phrase Fall Course Prep day and the stylized swooped colors black, yellow and red.