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Blackboard Ultra Update

What’s New & Why It Matters Enhancements Faculty & Students Love Smart Tools Powered by AI Support & Resources If you’re curious about what’s next or want to get started today, explore the resources at cit.ua.edu or reach out via cit@ua.edu.


Building the Next Generation of Cybersecurity Professionals

In Fall 2025, OIT Security, in partnership with TekStream, launched the University’s first Student Security Operations Center (SOC) Workforce Development Program, welcoming an inaugural cohort of eight students. This program is designed to provide hands-on experience in cybersecurity while addressing a critical national need: the shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals in the United States. Throughout…


Teams Dialing Now Available for Campus Faculty and Staff

The Office of Information Technology made Teams Dialing available Summer 2025. This option is available upon request to all faculty and staff across campus. This new feature allows users to make and receive phone calls directly within the Microsoft Teams interface, eliminating the need for a traditional desk phone. By integrating voice calling into the…


Don’t Fly Solo – You Have a Copilot!

Artificial Intelligence is reshaping productivity, and Microsoft Copilot is at the forefront of this transformation. Integrated into Microsoft 365 apps, Copilot helps users work smarter by assisting with writing, data analysis, content organization, and more. However, not all Copilot experiences are the same. There are two main options available: Knowing the differences between these versions…


Digital Accessibility at UA is Everyone’s Assignment

Federal rules from Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act now require all university digital resources, such as websites, apps, course materials, and more, to be accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities. The compliance deadline is April 2026, so we are actively addressing policies, training, and technology, but success depends on all of…


We Are IT – Bud Hobeck

The University of Alabama’s Office of Information Technology wanted to introduce one of the only completely remote workers, Bud Hobeck. Hobeck works for OIT remotely in Virginia as a Program Analyst IV in Process Automation. Hobeck’s primary role is administering and working with the OnBase system, a repository for the university’s documents, forms, and more.…


Scheduled Network Maintenance: December 14, 6:00–11:00 AM

OIT will be performing critical maintenance on all core routers on Sunday, December 14, between 6:00 AM and 11:00 AM. This will be a rolling outage, meaning different areas of campus will experience up to 30 minutes of network disruption during this window. This includes internet and vpn. Thank you for your patience as we…


Employee H: Drives to be Removed

As part of the University of Alabama’s commitment to proper file management, data security, and compliance with the UA Records Retention Program, all employee H: drives will be permanently removed on February 27, 2026. This decision reinforces our strategic goals for operational efficiency and cost containment, especially as storage costs continue to increase. PLEASE NOTE:…


Upcoming AiM System Upgrade: What You Need to Know

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) will be performing an upgrade to the AiM servers beginning January 16 -19, 2026. Please take note of the following details to prepare for the scheduled downtime. Upgrade Schedule: Start: Friday, January 16, 2026, at 5:00 PM End: Sunday, January 19, 2026, at 9:00 PM During this window, the…


We Are IT – Justin Brown

In this month’s edition of We Are IT, Justin Brown, a Systems Analyst III with the Office of Information Technology, talks about how he works with programs and the University of Alabama. Brown works with the Collaboration Reporting Team on campus, specifically to work alongside Microsoft and Zoom as an administrator. He serves mainly as…