After a scorching summer of burnt-out lawns and days at the beach — or just dreaming of days at the beach — we turn our attention to the start of a new academic season. Alongside our fall reset, after the summer recharge, will be a new Moodle version and theme. Please make note of the following dates as we progress through August:

• SATURDAY, AUGUST 12 — Moodle gets a new look: The day after summer courses conclude, we will be upgrading Moodle from version 3.9 and the Cognitio theme to version 4.1 and the Boost theme. This upgrade will be fairly dramatic in appearance as well as how users navigate their way through Moodle. Please note, however, that outside of the loss of MB2 elements and the Quickmail block, all other Moodle functions and features remain (including the ability to email students from within Moodle). For support in using Moodle 4.1, please join us for a Zoom training session on August 10 (click to add this event to your calendar). NOTE: that session will be recorded and shared.
• MONDAY, AUGUST 21 — Summer 2023 (2303) courses turned off: We turn courses off 10 days after final grades have been submitted. If you need a course left open, please submit a ticket and let us know the course and the student(s) who need continued access
• MONDAY, AUGUST 21 — Students populated in standard-start Fall 2023 (2401) courses: If your course starts on the 26th, you’ll be able to see students in Moodle on this day. If you’re teaching a late-start course, look for students to be populated in the participant’s list 5 days before that course’s listed start date. Students in standard-start courses won’t be able to see their courses until Friday (see below)
• THURSDAY, AUGUST 24 (9 am – 5 pm) — #RUMoodleReady? (VIRTUAL & IN-PERSON): Ed Tech will be available in multiple formats to help with anything Moodle-related – from gradebook setup, the creation of META shells, course transfers, or help on developing content and instructional design. We will be in the Timothy J. Nelson Innovation Center room 123 all day or you can join us via Zoom (click to add this event to your calendar). There will be snacks!
• FRIDAY, AUGUST 25 between 1-2 pm — Fall 2023 (2401) courses turned on for students: The semester begins August 26th. We turn on courses (and hide META child courses) one day before the semester begins so students are able to 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 hide sections from students
• SATURDAY, AUGUST 26 — Fall 2023 (2401) semester begins: Let’s go, Hawk Owls!
• FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 — Spring 2022 (2202) courses removed: We continually remove older Moodle courses to keep the Moodle server running optimally. You can backup/download a Moodle course on your own or reach out to us for help. Ed Tech also backs up courses before they’re removed from Moodle and saves copies of older courses remotely for an additional 3 years. If you need access to an older course, please submit a ticket

If you’ve been assigned to teach a course in the Fall of 2023, but the course doesn’t appear in your Moodle dashboard, check with your department manager to make sure you’ve been assigned to the course in Banner.

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