October 2024 Newsletter

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Happy Halloween to all who celebrate! This edition of our newsletter is all treats, no tricks. Read on for a recap of the fantastic fall customer gathering we held earlier this week, a resource roundup, and some events you won’t want to miss!
Fall Customer Gathering Banner

Our semi-annual virtual customer gathering on October 29th was a blast! We loved sharing so many exciting updates and are so grateful for all of the interest, enthusiasm, and feedback from those who attended. In case you missed it, here are some highlights:

To better support your accessibility efforts, over the coming months we will be delivering key enhancements to UDOIT, including:

  • A configurable accessibility scorecard that will provide actionable information at the course and account levels
  • Expanded accessibility reporting to help you better monitor and demonstrate progress over time
  • A rapid remediation tool, optionally powered by AI, that generates suggested resolutions such as alt text, link descriptions, and more

To power the important work you do to manage loads of Canvas courses as they are developed, delivered, and continuously improved, we will be releasing a brand new, enhanced version of ReadyGO, which lets you easily:

  • Access and track meaningful Canvas course details
  • Organize work and simplify team communication
  • Ensure course quality standards are met to scale your best practices

…ALL without ever leaving Canvas! To register your interest in the ReadyGO beta, which will be available by the end of the year, please fill out this form.

Last, but definitely not least, we shared some exciting things that are on the DesignPLUS roadmap, including:

  • A page design wizard that makes it easier than ever to add beautifully styled content elements to a course
  • Course-wide tools that allow you to apply page-level DesignPLUS magic – such as applying a theme, inserting a progress bar, or cleaning up external assets – to your entire course in one step!
  • Additional design elements such as flip cards, charts, audio embeds, and more
  • A new and improved Multi-Tool

Stay tuned for many more details in the coming months! Join our Customer Slack Community for timely updates and community connection.

Product Updates

Recent Releases

Over the past month, we released updates to the following products that include minor enhancements and bug fixes, which you can read all about in the respective Release Notes: To receive product release notifications, join our Customer Slack Community.

Events

In Case You Missed It:
Scaling Course Design Best Practices

Do you daydream about what design feats you could accomplish if there were only more of you or your team? Then you’ll want to check out our recent webinar! Enter the vortex of possibility to learn how to achieve course design feats in terms of speed and course quality that you didn’t know were possible. Scaffold an entire course in minutes? ZIP! Embed instructions for using templates or meeting quality course standards exactly where needed? BAM! Easily monitor course quality and readiness? POW! Join Cidi Labs instructional designers to see game-changing tools in action that can give you super-stretching reach to scale best practices from right inside Canvas.

Upcoming Webinars:

Templates to the Rescue! A Design Matters Live Webinar

November 19th at 1pm MT
Have you been hoping to unlock the secrets of designing effective templates for your institution and users? We’ve heard your call! Cidi Labs instructional designers are here to walk through research-backed design and implementation considerations to help you tailor templates to your needs. Of course, they’ll also show you how to use DesignPLUS tools to give you the superpowers needed to support instructor use, scale with speed, and streamline nearly-endless customization. Join us to learn how a well-designed template solution could be the hero your courses need!

A Less-Stress Path to Accessible Canvas Courses

December 5th at 11am MT
Are you finding your accessibility journey daunting? Hoping to accelerate your progress but feel limited by existing staffing and resources? Imagine if you had the right tools to guide your way and smooth your path to accessible Canvas courses!

Join Cidi Labs as we showcase ways our clever tools can dramatically reduce your accessibility workload, give you the data you need to assess and manage that work, and accelerate your content remediation and accessible design processes. Plus–our tools document your journey so you can demonstrate your progress toward accessibility milestones! Whether you’re just beginning to map out a new accessibility strategy or you’re well on your way, this session will help you trek back to your institution with practical solutions for easily navigating the terrain to accessible courses–for all learners!

Upcoming In-Person Events

Members of our team will be attending the following conferences through the end of the year – we hope to see you on the road!

November 2024

December 2024

Stay Connected

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Wishing you a sweet final day of October,

🎃 The Cidi Labs Team 🎃

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