Canvas FAQs

Morehead State University is transitioning to Canvas to provide a modern, reliable learning management system that supports effective teaching, improved course organization, and better integration with current educational tools. The transition is designed to provide faculty and students with a consistent and user-friendly environment for teaching and learning while supporting the University’s long-term digital learning strategy.

Canvas is currently available to MSU faculty for training and course development. Staff may request access by emailing canvas@moreheadstate.edu. Students will gain access to Canvas as courses transition to the new system.

Yes. As part of the transition to Canvas, MSU is offering a migration process managed by Instructure to help copy eligible Blackboard courses into Canvas. Much course content (such as pages, assignments, discussions, quizzes, and files) can be copied during this process. After migration, instructors should review their courses in Canvas to ensure that materials are organized appropriately and that links, assignments, and assessments function as expected.

To focus migration efforts on courses most likely to be taught during the transition to Canvas, only courses that were taught between Spring 2025 and Winter 2025 are eligible for the official migration process. These courses are prioritized because they are more likely to be offered again between Fall 2026 and Spring 2027, when Canvas will become the primary learning management system at MSU. Faculty must also submit a migration request in order for an eligible course to be copied into Canvas.

Courses that were not taught between Spring 2025 and Winter 2025 are not included in the official migration process. However, instructors can still move content from Blackboard to Canvas manually if needed. Guidance on manually migrating course materials will be provided by Summer 2026 to help faculty copy and rebuild older courses in Canvas.

No. Faculty are not required to move courses into Canvas immediately. During the transition period, faculty should begin exploring Canvas, attending training sessions, and preparing courses as needed. Migration and course preparation will occur gradually before Canvas becomes the primary learning management system in Fall 2026.

Yes. Blackboard will remain available during the transition period while faculty prepare courses in Canvas. The system is currently expected to remain available for full use through December 2026. After the transition to Canvas is complete, Blackboard will remain available in a read-only state until approximately June 2027, so instructors can reference or copy and paste course materials if needed. All courses will be archived prior to the Blackboard contract end-date.

Faculty may begin developing and preparing courses in Canvas as training and migration opportunities become available. Additional guidance will be shared if opportunities to teach courses in Canvas become available prior to full implementation.

Yes. Students will have access to a self-paced orientation course titled Passport to Canvas (Student Training), which will appear in their Canvas course list. This course introduces students to navigating Canvas, submitting assignments, participating in discussions, and managing course notifications.

Some publisher content and third-party integrations may only support one learning management system at a time. Because of this, some tools may require additional planning or configuration during the transition. More information will be shared as integrations are reviewed and finalized for Canvas.