what does blackboard inc do

by Prof. Maymie Schultz Jr. 6 min read

Blackboard Inc.
TypePrivately held
ServicesPlatform and enterprise consulting, managed hosting, student and training services, online program management
Revenue$700 million (2018)
Number of employees3,000
ParentProvidence Equity Partners
9 more rows

What does Blackboard company do?

Blackboard is a leading EdTech company serving higher education, K-12, business and government clients around the world. We connect a deep understanding of education with the power of technology to continuously push the boundaries of learning.

Is Blackboard going out of business?

The purpose of this deal is a revenue growth opportunity driven by cross-selling, international growth, and the opportunities to combine products and create new value, particularly at the data level. Once the deal closes, Blackboard will no longer exist as a standalone EdTech company.Sep 13, 2021

Who owns Blackboard Inc?

Providence EquityCampus ManagementBlackboard/Parent organizations

What are the key features of Blackboard?

In the Blackboard app, you can perform these tasks:View course items and course announcements.Take assignments and tests.Participate in discussions.Interact with your instructor and class in Blackboard Collaborate.Access both Original and Ultra courses.

What's happening to Blackboard?

Effective on June 30, 2021. Blackboard Open Education will no longer be supported and will no longer be available to current users of the product.

Did Blackboard get bought out?

Anthology, a relatively new higher education software and services company, is acquiring Blackboard, long one of the most prominent companies in the educational technology space. ... Anthology's chief executive will become CEO of the combined company, and Blackboard's CEO will depart once the deal closes.Sep 13, 2021

Do schools still use blackboard?

These days, most chalkboards are sold to restaurants, not to schools. The link between whiteboards and digital culture helped many U.S. schools adopt smartboards. By 2014, 60 percent of K-12 classrooms had interactive whiteboards, a figure that's expected to increase to 73 percent by 2019.Oct 13, 2016

Do all universities use Blackboard?

Seventy-five percent of US colleges and universities and more than half of K–12 districts in the United States use its products and services, and 80 percent of the world's top academic institutions reportedly use Blackboard tools, according to Times Higher Education Reputation Ranking.

What is Chalkboard summary?

A blackboard (also known as a chalkboard) is a reusable writing surface on which text or drawings are made with sticks of calcium sulphate or calcium carbonate, known, when used for this purpose, as chalk. Blackboards were originally made of smooth, thin sheets of black or dark grey slate stone.

What type of software is Blackboard?

interactive learning management systemAbout Blackboard Learn Blackboard Learn is an interactive learning management system (LMS) suitable for higher-education universities, K-12 schools, government and military programs, as well as large businesses in a variety of industries worldwide.

Is Blackboard cloud based?

Blackboard Learn is hosted, delivered, and managed using a modern cloud-computing infrastructure as the environment for our software-as-a-service (SaaS) deployment.

What is Blackboard in college?

Blackboard is a Web-based course-management system designed to allow students and faculty to participate in classes delivered online or use online materials and activities to complement face-to-face teaching.

Who is Blackboard LLC?

Blackboard LLC. Blackboard LLC. was founded in 1997 by Michael Chasen and Matthew Pittinsky and began as a consulting firm contracting to the non-profit IMS Global Learning Consortium developing a prototype for online learning and thinking through online learning standardization.

Where is Blackboard located?

Website. www .blackboard .com. Blackboard Inc. is an American educational technology company with corporate headquarters in Reston, VA. It is known for Blackboard Learn, a learning management system. The company's CEO is William L. Ballhaus, formerly president and CEO of SRA International, who was also named chairman and president, on January 4, ...

What percentage of colleges use blackboard?

Seventy-five percent of US colleges and universities and more than half of K–12 districts in the United States use its products and services, and 80 percent of the world's top academic institutions reportedly use Blackboard tools, according to Times Higher Education Reputation Ranking.

Who is the CEO of Blackboard?

is an American educational technology company with corporate headquarters in Reston, VA. It is known for Blackboard Learn, a learning management system. The company's CEO is William L. Ballhaus, formerly president and CEO of SRA International, who was also named chairman and president, on January 4, 2016, ...

What is Blackboard Analytics?

The Blackboard Analytics platform is a system for data warehousing and analysis, with applications for educational institutions to analyze student numbers, class scheduling, and financial information.

When did Blackboard merge with CourseInfo?

Blackboard Inc. In 1998, after Cane met Chasen at a conference on adaptive learning, Gilfus and Cane decided to merge CourseInfo LLC. with Chasen and Pittinky's Blackboard LLC. company in order to raise money and scale the business. The combined company became a corporation known as Blackboard Inc. They renamed the CourseInfo platform built by ...

What is Blackboard's patent?

The patent established Blackboard's claims to the concept of connecting together web-based tools to create an interconnected university-wide course management system. The firm announced the patent on July 26, 2006, and on the same day it filed a patent infringement lawsuit against rival education software company Desire2Learn Inc. According to news reports, the awarding of the patent and the lawsuit against Desire2Learn led to concerns about patentability in the electronic learning community.

What is a blackboard?

Blackboard is a customizable online learning tool that can replace or supplement traditional face-to-face classes for a school or any other classroom structure. Many conventional classroom functions have equivalents in Blackboard Learn, allowing students and teachers to emulate just about every physical classroom experience element.

What is blackboard learning?

Blackboard Learn is compatible with screen readers, and pages are designed to follow a common structure to allow quick navigation.

What can instructors post in a course?

Instructors can post content, including files, text, images, audio, and video, in their courses. That content can then be organized using learning modules, folders, or lesson plans. To help students navigate their course content, instructors can post a syllabus with descriptions of the course materials, assignments, grading expectations, and more in a section of the course menu or elsewhere within a course.

Innovate with a Transformative LMS Foundation for Your Learning Environment

Decades ago, we reimagined education leading the advent of learning management technology. As teaching and learning continuously evolves, we’re still focused on pioneering advancements to drive student success and institutional performance in education.

We Innovate with the Learner in Mind

Foster engagement, interaction and quality learning throughout the student journey with Blackboard's learning management system offerings—from K-12 to higher education and beyond.

Find the Right LMS for Your Learning Environment

There’s no one right way to do remote learning. What’s important is that you find a mix of habits, tools and technologies that work well for you. With over 20 years of experience in digital learning, we’re here to share our learnings and insights with you. Have you identified a tip that’s working well for you? Tweet @Blackboard to share it with us.

What is Blackboard Learn?

Blackboard Learn is an application for online teaching, learning, community building, and knowledge sharing. You can use any theory or model for teaching your online course because Blackboard Learn is open, flexible, and centered on student achievement.

What is collaborative class?

In Collaborate, your class can meet for a lecture. You can hold office hours and study sessions, have impromptu discussions, and host guest speakers. More on Collaborate. In an asynchronous environment, interactions occur over extended periods of time, such as with discussions.

What is synchronous interaction?

In a synchronous environment, students and instructors have instantaneous or "real-time" interaction. Course members need to meet at a set time which can be seen as a negative. However, a set time can help students stay on track and manage their time. An example of a synchronous tool is Blackboard Collaborate.

What is Blackbaud's corporate citizenship?

Blackbaud has an extensive corporate citizenship and philanthropy program . Volunteer for Vacation is an employee initiative, where the company gives paid vacation to employees who participate in volunteer community service. The company's Reward your Passion initiative allows employees to apply for company-funded grants that help a charity of their choice. In 2013, the company expanded its grant program to include locations beyond its Charleston, South Carolina headquarters. Later that year, Blackbaud launched Business Doing Good, a website that is focused on providing information for small and medium-sized businesses to create their own corporate philanthropy programs. The company also hosts volunteer fairs and other community service events throughout the year.

Who is the founder of Blackbaud?

Blackbaud's history traces back to 1981, when Blackbaud founder Anthony Bakker developed a computerized billing system for the Nightingale-Bamford School in Manhattan, New York City. By 1982, Bakker's expanded client list allowed him to quit his day job as a banker and he incorporated Blackbaud Microsystems.

Where is Blackbaud located?

Blackbaud relocated to Mount Pleasant, South Carolina with the help of a $750,000 business loan. Of the company's original 75 employees, 30 remained in a support and training office in New York City and 15 relocated to Blackbaud's new South Carolina headquarters.

What happened to Blackbaud in 2020?

Cyber attack. In May 2020, Blackbaud fell victim to a cyber attack. Customer data was stolen and Blackbaud paid the criminals a ransom in exchange for "credible confirmation" that the stolen data was deleted.

When did Blackbaud acquire Kintera?

Blackbaud acquired Kintera in 2008. In 2012, the company acquired Convio. In early 2013, Blackbaud announced that CEO Marc Chardon would leave the company by the end of that year. Anthony Boor became Blackbaud's interim CEO in August 2013. Boor joined Blackbaud as the company's chief financial officer in 2011.

What is Microedge software?

MicroEdge was a software provider to foundations, with about 2,000 customers. In October 2017, Blackbaud completed a £95m, about $127.4 million, purchase of JustGiving. In April 2018, Blackbaud acquired Reeher, a St. Paul, Minn.-based predictive modeling platform for colleges and universities, for $40 million.

image

Overview

Blackboard Inc. is an American educational technology company with corporate headquarters in Reston, VA. It is known for Blackboard Learn, a learning management system.
The company's CEO is William L. Ballhaus, formerly president and CEO of SRA International, who was also named chairman and president, on January 4, 201…

History

CourseInfo was founded in late 1996 as a software provider founded by Cornell University students Stephen Gilfus and Daniel Cane. Gilfus wrote the business plan for CourseInfo and its Interactive Learning Network product while an undergraduate at Cornell. CourseInfo (a dorm room start up) with Gilfus as the business lead and Cane as the lead developer had developed an innovative new platform for internet and networked learning called a "Course Management System" by Gilfus. Gi…

Mergers and acquisitions

Blackboard has used the acquisition of other companies as a strategy to both limit competitors and enter new markets. Between 2006 and 2012, the company spent more than $500 million on acquisitions.
Competing learning management platforms that were acquired by Blackboard in order to absorb their users and reduce competition include: George Washington University'scourse management …

Operations

Though previously a public company, following its 2011 buyout by Providence Equity Partners Blackboard now operates as a private company. The company's headquarters are in Washington, D.C. and it has offices in Asia, Australia, Europe and in several locations in North America.

Products and services

The initial product to be offered by the company was its course management software, first available in 1998. The latest version, Blackboard Learn 9.1, was released in April 2010. This is a learning management system that provides a learning system for course delivery and management for institutions; a community and portal system for communication; a content management syst…

Legal matters

The United States Patent and Trademark Officegranted the company U.S. Patent 6,988,138 for "Internet-based education support system and methods" in January 2006. The patent established Blackboard's claims to the concept of connecting together web-based tools to create an interconnected university-wide course management system. The firm announced the patent on July 26, 2006, and on the same day it filed a patent infringement lawsuit against rival education …

See also

• United States portal
• Companies portal
• Courseinfo
• Virtual learning environment

Online Teaching and Learning

  • Online learning can take place in a synchronous or asynchronous environment. In a synchronous environment, students and instructors have instantaneous or "real-time" interaction. Course members need to meet at a set time which can be seen as a negative. However, a set time can help students stay on track and manage their time. An example of a synchronous tool is Blackbo…
See more on help.blackboard.com

Types of Online Courses

  • When we think about online learning, we often think of a fully online course where all content, the activities, and communication happen entirely online. However, Blackboard Learn is often used to supplement traditional face-to-face courses. In fact, if you're new to online learning, you can supplement your classroom course with an online syllabus, discussions, and online activities. A…
See more on help.blackboard.com

Mobile Apps

  • Blackboard: Students receive mobile updates about your courses, take assignments and tests, participate in discussions, launch Collaborate sessions, and view grades. Blackboard Instructor: Blackboard Instructor is a mobile app that enables instructors to view course content, grade assignments, connect with students in discussions, and launch Collaborate sessions.
See more on help.blackboard.com

Ready to Start?

  • Even if you're new to online instruction, you can create a basic course in a short amount of time. You can start with a week or two of materials and add more later. We've compiled some tips and basic steps for the novice Blackboard Learn instructors who want to learn how to create content in an online course. We want to help you with the high-level principles and processes involved w…
See more on help.blackboard.com