17 PROJECT SPOTLIGHT CANVAS IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT SPOTLIGHT eLEARNING INNOVATION INITIATIVE Information Technology Services Information Technology Services My experience has been  very positive  in being supported and guided by ITS as we determine how technology  can move our college forward and support and accommodate 21st century learning.  - Mollie Aleshire Faculty, College of Nursing “ “ T he final transition from the previous learning management system (LMS) to Canvas was completed on June 1, 2016 when the old LMS was decommissioned. Careful consideration was put into the decision to make this change. UK students, faculty and staff provided feedback and usability preferences for a “next generation” LMS. They worked in depth with the ITS Learning Management Team to review the existing and future state of the LMS in use, while exploring other systems through small working groups, pilots and a faculty-led LMS review committee. Several vendors proposed systems to meet those expressed campus needs. Each of the systems had unique strengths, however Canvas by Instructure emerged as a proven software-as-a-service (SaaS) system. T hrough funding provided by The Office of the Provost, in cooperation with Information Technology Services (ITS) and the Center for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching (CELT), the eLearning Innovation Initiative (eLII) began in 2013 and concluded with the last cohort selected to run through 2016-2017. In this time, 123 faculty members went through training and 33 courses were developed as either a hybrid course redesign, online degree. or Massive Online Open Course (MOOC). eLII enabled faculty, departments and units to apply for three different funding opportunities: • New online degree programs: support for the development of innovative, technology-rich pedagogy and learning strategies to address needs in a constantly changing learning environment. • Online Learning and/or Blended Learning Faculty Communities: a stipend for faculty to participate in an intensive faculty development program to improve student learning outcomes, student success, engagement and retention by leveraging innovative pedagogies and learning technologies. • Redesign of large-lecture courses: focusing on the development of innovative, technology-rich pedagogy and learningstrategiestoaddressneedsintheconstantlychanging learning environment via synchronous and asynchronous hybrid learning opportunities, “flipped” class designs, and IT enabled personalized/adaptive learning.