Scaffold Migration & Scaffold Archiving
University at Buffalo
UB Seamlessly Migrates 13,000 Courses to Brightspace and Archives 50,000
The University at Buffalo (UB), a member of the State University of New York (SUNY) system, faced a significant challenge when tasked with migrating 13,000 courses from Blackboard Learn to Brightspace while also archiving 50,000 courses. With a tight timeline, limited internal resources, and the need to ensure faculty readiness, UB needed an efficient and reliable solution.
By partnering with K16 Solutions, UB was able to streamline the migration process, safeguard critical course data, and ensure a smooth transition to their new LMS.
Challenges
Managing a large-scale migration
UB needed to migrate 13,000 courses from Blackboard Learn to Brightspace after using Blackboard for over 22 years. As part of the SUNY system, UB faced a tight deadline to align with SUNY’s adoption of Brightspace, making the migration a large-scale operation. The institution’s limited internal resources amplified this challenge.
Ensuring faculty readiness
With a new LMS comes the need for extensive training and support. UB had to ensure that faculty were comfortable with Brightspace and prepared to use it for teaching. Instructors needed time to clean up old content and familiarize themselves with new features, and the university needed to provide hands-on workshops and ongoing support to ease the transition.
Archiving three years of critical course data
In addition to migrating 13,000 courses, UB had to archive 50,000 courses from Blackboard to preserve historical data. This historical data was essential for students completing courses with incomplete grades and for instructors needing access to past course content for grading and compliance purposes. Without an effective archive solution, UB risked losing valuable data.
Solution
K16 worked closely with UB to create a phased migration approach, breaking the migration project into three phases across six semesters. This strategic approach allowed the small administrative team to manage the migration efficiently without overwhelming faculty and students.
UB was particularly impressed with the hands-off approach K16 offered. “Most of it was behind the scenes. We would just wait for the courses to appear,” Donald Trainor, Learning Management System Administrator at UB, shared. “It was great to hand it off and not worry about it. We wouldn’t have been able to migrate 13,000 courses without K16.”
This ease of migration minimized disruptions and allowed UB’s team to focus on preparing instructors for the new system.
In addition to migration, archiving 50,000 courses through Scaffold Archiving was also seamless. “Once again, we didn’t have to lift a finger,” said Trainor. “We pointed out what courses we wanted archived, and K16 did it.”
Results
Successful migration of 13,000 courses
UB successfully migrated 13,000 courses to Brightspace without delays or disruptions. This large-scale migration would have been impossible without K16’s automated process and support. With only three administrators managing the transition, K16’s involvement allowed UB to focus on other essential tasks without being overwhelmed.
Faculty adoption and readiness
Through K16’s support and phased migration process, UB faculty were able to adopt the new LMS smoothly. “It really was about making the transition easier for instructors so that they could look at content as soon as they got into the system instead of staring at a blank course and wondering, ‘What do I do now?’” said Trainor. This approach gave instructors the time and resources they needed to feel confident using the new LMS while minimizing disruptions to teaching and learning.
Archiving 50,000 courses safely
Scaffold Archiving allowed UB to securely archive over 50,000 courses from Blackboard Learn. This solution gave instructors access to previous course materials, ensuring that student records, grades, and course content were preserved. Additionally, Scaffold Archiving integrated seamlessly with Brightspace, making it easy to access archived courses and retrieve important materials whenever needed. “Having the archive in place gave us a safety net,” noted Trainor. “It was essential for students finishing incompletes or instructors needing access to older content.”