April Gritty Award Winners: Members of DoIT’s Instructional Technology Team

We are proud to announce thatmembers of the DoIT Instructional Technology team: Josh Abrams, Ben Amudzi, Peter Ariev, Susan Biro, Ada Crutchfield, Mariann Hawken, Collin Sullivan, and Tom Penniston have been awarded the April 2025 DoIT Gritty Awardfor their critical support of the Blackboard migration from Original or Classic to Ultra. This project significantly impacted faculty and students. The team did a great job and has earned a reputation for helping all faculty through the efficient and effective use of technology in teaching and learning. They are well-respected on campus, regionally, and nationally. They represent what's best about UMBC's can-do grit and grace. In addition to the April Gritty Award, the team is a nominee for a 2025 Catalyst Award in theLeading Changecategory.

The Gritty Award is in recognition of outstanding work within the Division. Full-time DoIT employees, DoIT student employees, and teams are eligible to be nominated for going above and beyond! Anyone in DoIT can nominate someone for the Gritty by completing this short Gritty Nomination Form. 

Image: The Instructional Team sitting on the steps on UMBC’s beautiful campus. Next to the group picture is the image of the DoIT Gritty Award dog trophy. The trophy states, “The Gritty Award, for outstanding contributions to the Division of Information Technology at UMBC”.

Outstanding Contributions

The entire Instructional Technology team provided extensive training and support to the campus community throughout the Ultra migration. However, we want to acknowledge and thank each of you for your extraordinary contributions to the success of this project!

Josh Abrams, Instructional Design Specialist, led the team’s Blackboard management, including critical systems, core third-party integrations, and digital accessibility, ensuring users were provided with high-touch service and detailed documentation.

Dr. Ben Amudzi, Instructional Technology Specialist, provided users with professional service in support of Ultra tools and third-party systems such as Microsoft Teams, CourseArc, Collaborate, and others.

Dr. Peter Ariev, Instructional Design Specialist, provided key support for VoiceThread and Panopto as well as course development and migration feedback to faculty as they transferred content to Ultra.

Dr. Susan Biro, Manager of Online Learning, planned and delivered faculty training about course migration pathways, leveraging Quality Matters Standards, and promoted digital accessibility with tools such as Ally to create or remediate content and presentations.

Ada Crutchfield, Instructional Design Specialist, developed digital accessibility resources and provided personalized support to faculty for Ultra migration and related third-party tools, including Google Meet and CourseArc.

Dr. Mariann Hawken, Director, coordinated the Ultra migration’s communication and engaged Anthology and Ultra developers to relay and prioritize UMBC faculty technical and pedagogical needs.

Dr. Tom Penniston, Coordinator of Learning Analytics, provided extensive data analysis on course archetypes, learner engagement, and training to better inform the team on current practices or next steps.

DoIT also thanks Collin Sullivan (Program Director, Digital Credential Innovation, DPS) for his contributions and support during his tenure as an Instructional Technology Specialist with the team.

The Blackboard Ultra Migration

The Blackboard Ultra migration was one of UMBC’s most significant instructional technology transformations, requiring a seamless transition for thousands of students and faculty. The project successfully balanced pedagogical, technical, and institutional needs while prioritizing the faculty and student experience.

Rather than mandate an abrupt change, Instructional Technology designed a phased, faculty-centered approach that empowered faculty to adopt Ultra on their own timeline while receiving comprehensive training and support. Despite significant challenges -- including initial faculty skepticism about Ultra’s readiness and migration disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic -- their methodical approach resulted in a 99.5% adoption by the end of 2024. The pace was intentionally slow, allowing faculty the time and space to fully explore and become familiar with the new Blackboard. Learn more about how UMBC reached 99.6% Ultra adoption for Fall 2024 term

Celebrating Success Beyond UMBC: A Catalyst Award Nominee!

In addition to recognizing their work at UMBC, the Instructional Technology Team is officially a nominee for a 2025 Catalyst Award in the Leading Changecategory. Learn more about the Catalyst Awards here.

For all of your exceptional efforts and commitment to excellence, we are proud to present you all with the April DoIT Gritty Award. Congratulations! 

Thank you, Ada, Ben, Collin, Josh, Peter, Mariann, Susan, and Tom, for your dedication to academic success!

The DoIT Community & The DoIT Gritty Committee

Erica D’Eramo

Ally Hepp

Carlos McKinney

David Toothe

Dondre Hatef

Kashka Donaldson

Mariann Hawken (recused herself from voting) 

Nick Beech

Tony Finneran

Roy Prouty