We’ve nearly reached the conclusion of our first full year as a “Canvas Campus,” and I hope your transition from Moodle has been as smooth as possible and you’re feeling comfortable with the next term change-over. As you prepare your courses for your next teaching semester, please keep the following simple course preparation tips in mind: import your course before making adjustments, manage your course navigation panel to streamline the student experience, and complete a “click audit” of your course to ensure all links, modules, and activities function as intended. 

For all the latest Canvas tips, recommendations, and feature updates, check out Ed Tech’s Canvas Corner offerings. We produce 20 original Corners each school year. While Ed Tech does not have any formal Spring Canvas training sessions scheduled, we are preparing Canvas, Respondus, and Accessibility tools training opportunities for August, so watch your inbox later this summer as those opportunities become available. As always, if you want personalized Canvas assistance, please reach out to your favorite NMC Ed Tech specialist and we’d be happy to schedule a 1-on-1 training on the topic of your choice. We will meet you wherever is most convenient (Zoom, office, coffee shop, or Bora Bora, provided you cover our travel expenses).

As we head into the sunny season, please also keep the following Canvas-related dates in mind as we approach the start of NMC’s summer term:

• Monday, May 4th — Students are populated into 12-week summer 2026 (2603) courses. You’ll be able to see students in your participant lists on this date, provided your course starts on May 9. Students are populated into courses five days before the course’s official start date, so if your course starts later you’ll see your student list later, most likely on June 6.
• Wednesday, May 6th @ 11 am — Spring 2026 (2602) grades are due.
• Thursday, May 8th @ 8 am  — Summer 2026 (2603) courses are made available to students. Courses are opened two days before the semester begins so students can confirm their course enrollments. Make sure your course shells have at least a welcome message by this date. If some of your content is not ready, you can always un-publish modules that are not ready yet. 
• Saturday, May 9th — Summer 2026 (2603) semester begins.
• Friday, May 22nd — Spring 2026 (2602) courses are turned off to students. We turn courses off 20 days after a term concludes. If you need a course left open, please submit a ticket and let us know the course and the student(s) who need to maintain access to your materials.
• Thursday, June 11th — Most late-start summer courses begin. Students will appear in these courses on Saturday, June 6 and gain access to them on June 9 at 8 am.
• Friday, July 10th — After this date, Instructors can no longer edit Spring 2026 courses. These courses will remain available for review and course imports, but become non-editable to instructors two months after the term concludes.

If you’ve been assigned to teach a course in Summer or Fall 2026 but it does not appear on your Canvas “All Courses” page, please check with your department manager to confirm you’ve been assigned in the registration system.

If you have any questions about these upcoming dates, feel free to give us a call or submit a ticket.