Blackboard and New Users

Want to get started using Blackboard?

Outlined below are basic steps for using Blackboard, beginning with obtaining your myACCESS login and password. Of course, if you are not a brand new COD instructor, you can skip to the second section.

Get myACCESS login and password

NOTE: Your account is created within 3 business days from the time HR sends your information to IT. Use your account login and password to access COD email, myACCESS, InsideCOD (the employee portal), and Blackboard.

Newly hired Full Time Faculty – After Human Resources collects necessary personal information from you, HR notifies Information Technology of your hire. IT creates an account and sends the account information to your Supervisor who will give you the account information.
Newly hired Part-Time Faculty - After Human Resources collects necessary personal information from you, HR notifies Information Technology of your hire. IT creates an account and sends the account information to the Part-Time Faculty Center. The account information is then printed and sent by U.S. Mail to your home.

Login to Blackboard

Go to the COD Blackboard site: http://bb.cod.edu
Enter myACCESS ID and password on login screen.
If you have any trouble, check the hardware/software requirements of your system.
Still having trouble? Contact the COD Helpdesk (630-942-HELP).

Enter your course

NOTE: Once you have been assigned a course to teach by your Division, you will see the course listed in Blackboard the next day.

Once Blackboard opens, look for the My Courses module. Find the name of the course you are assigned to teach.
You may see the word (unavailable) next to the course name. This means the course is unavailable to students, but you can access the course.
Click the name of the course to enter the course site.

Add information to your course

NOTE: Turn Edit Mode ON using the toggle switch at the top right of the page in order to enable instructor editing tools. Edit Mode OFF is the student view of your course.

Unless you are assigned to teach an online course, please prepare your Blackboard course as outlined below:

Add Syllabus Information
- Attach a syllabus
Add Instructor Information
- Entering Instructor Information
Add a Welcome Announcement*
- How to Create an Announcement

* If you do not want to use announcements, please see this video, Manage the Announcements Link, to see how you may hide or remove the Announcements link from the course menu. IMPORTANT: Before you hide or delete the Announcements link, you must first add information to the Syllabus area. Otherwise, the course entry point may default to one of the external links, and you will be unable to edit your course.

If you are assigned to teach a COD Online course, you will be given a zip file containing course information to import. Follow these Export/Import instructions and edit the course as needed. Be sure to Delete Old Discussion Posts found in the course.

Open the course to Students

Students can not access the course until you make it available to them. After you have finished adding content, be sure to make the course available to students.