AI Initiatives

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, this page will highlight what free resources are available to use and what options exist to use GenAI while safeguarding UMBC institutional data safely.

For staff providing support, we encourage people to look at Administrative AI, as a starting point. Our goal is to save folks time and improve the quality of their work, thus increasing productivity. We highlight some tools that DoIT is providing for support.

Additionally, we have launched an AI-supported search bar called myUMBC Answers.  We are seeking partners to work with DoIT to expand myUMBC Answers. The key to your office leveraging myUMBC Answers is providing validated and accurate content, such as FAQs or a handbook produced annually.

For faculty, we encourage you to also explore instructional AI and research AI. An excellent resource in the College of Engineering is the UMBC Center for AI.  You can follow news about the UMBC Center for AI on social media through its sites on LinkedIn, Bluesky, X, 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

Showing items tagged ultra-experience. Show All

Fall 24 Blackboard Courses to Use Ultra by Default

However, faculty can still use Original upon request

In consultation with the Deans as well as the Faculty Senate Computer Policy Committee (CPC), DoIT will make Ultra the default version of Blackboard for all Fall 2024 course shells that are...

Posted: May 7, 2024, 10:04 AM

4 Reasons to Use Copy Content to Prepare an Ultra Course

Choose an easy path to Ultra course readiness

It’s the start of a new semester and you open Blackboard to discover a new Ultra course. As you look over your course materials, gathered and perfected over years of teaching, the thought of...

Posted: May 2, 2024, 2:39 PM

Advanced release conditions customize Ultra content in May

Improvements to gradebook calculations, reduce animations

With the latest update to Ultra in May, instructors can design a learning pathway where students must demonstrate proficiency in multiple content areas (e.g., at least 80% mastery on separate...

Posted: April 29, 2024, 2:38 PM

Deeper Feedback Options & Anon Discussions in Ultra

Improvements to grade calculations with BigFraction update

The April update to Ultra features several enhancements designed to improve the teaching and learning experience. This update, driven by user feedback from UMBC and the broader global community,...

Posted: March 26, 2024, 12:02 PM

Ultra Adoption by Faculty Eclipses Original for SP2024

Instructional Technology ready for Ultra migration support

In the final nine months of UMBC's Ultra migration, the overall faculty adoption rate continues to grow. For the spring 2024 term, Original course usage decreased by 33% between fall 23 and spring...

Posted: March 12, 2024, 2:43 PM