eLearning is authorized to add additional users to Canvas courses in accordance with institutional policies and regulatory guidelines. This includes adhering strictly to FERPA regulations and consulting with our FERPA compliance officer to ensure the integrity of student data. Our capabilities for adding users are defined by both state and federal guidelines, as well as stipulations from the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
To add users to a Canvas course, requests must be submitted by the course instructor or the owner of the Canvas course. This procedure ensures that all additions are appropriately authorized and compliant with existing educational standards.
For details on the types of users who can be added to courses containing students, please refer to the sections below which outline each approved user category:
To request to add users to a Canvas course, review the March 27, 2017 Memo from Dave Stolier, Washington State Sr. Assistant Attorney General, then click on the Request Service button on the right-hand side of the screen and fill out the form.
Observer (ARCs and Evals)
Only the instructor of the course can request the addition of online course observers for Academic Review Committees (ARCs) and faculty evaluations. This is in line with the Faculty Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article XXI: eLearning, Section H eLearning Evaluations and Observations, “the faculty being observed will choose whether to allow the observer to have a forty-eight-hour access ‘window’ to online courses, or to arrange a face-to-face meeting in an amount of time comparable with a face-to-face course; and, the faculty being observed, and the observer, will pre-arrange the level of access the observer will have, with a minimum of Observer Level of access."
To efficiently manage numerous requests for observations and evaluations, we have established specific times for adding and removing observers. Observers are added to courses every Tuesday at 10 AM and removed on Thursday at 10 AM. This scheduling helps maintain order and adherence to observation timelines.
For FERPA-trained employees, such as faculty, administrators, and staff, direct addition to the course they are observing is permitted. In contrast, student observers cannot be placed directly into live courses with other students due to FERPA regulations. To facilitate their observation, a separate course shell is created, and the course content is copied over, ensuring compliance with privacy standards. Instructors are required to complete a specific form to authorize the setup of this shell and the addition of both the instructor and the student observer, maintaining the integrity of the educational process and safeguarding student information.
To ensure accurate calculation of Faculty Workload, additional instructors must be added to credit-bearing Canvas classes via the ctcLink system. This includes any lab instructors, substitutes, or other instructional roles that need to be recognized officially in the course roster. To facilitate this, instructors should contact their Administrative Assistant (AA4) to manage the addition through ctcLink. If you are looking to add another instructor to your course and do not want them to be paid for their work, again, you must reach out to your AA4, they have ways to add these individuals to your course. Please note that eLearning does not have the capability to add instructors directly to Canvas courses for these specific administrative purposes. This process ensures that all teaching activities are properly documented and aligned with institutional workload accounting.
If a student in your course requires accommodations and you need assistance from an Accessibility Specialist, the first step is to contact the Student Accessibility Services (SAS) office. Inform them of your needs, and they will assign a specialist to support you and your student. Once an Accessibility Specialist has been designated, please complete the necessary form to facilitate their addition to your Canvas course. It is important for us to know the identity of the assigned specialist in order to proceed with their integration into the course, ensuring that all student accommodations are properly supported.
Librarians can be added to Canvas courses solely for the purpose of providing Instructional Support. For instance, faculty members may collaborate with librarians to integrate a specialized module into their course. If you require such support, please initiate direct communication with a librarian to discuss your specific needs. Once you have agreed on the collaboration, you must inform us of the librarian's identity by filling out the appropriate form to ensure they are properly added to your course. This process helps facilitate the effective integration of library resources and expertise into the educational experience.
Peer Mentors are student employees who support COL 90 & 101 courses. Please only request the addition of a Peer Mentor for COL 90 & 101.
Cohort programs often have FERPA-trained Program or Course Navigators who support students through the course. Please only request the addition of a Navigator for those pre-approved courses only.
IBEST support personnel have been pre-approved to be added to specific programs. Please only request the addition of a IBEST Support person for those pre-approved courses only.
CECO support personnel have been pre-approved to be added to specific programs. Please only request the addition of a CECO Support person for those pre-approved courses only.
Only pre-approved STEM courses are eligible for the addition of FERPA-trained Lab Technicians who provide essential support to students throughout the course duration. If your course qualifies and you require the assistance of an Instructional/Lab Technician, please ensure that it is one of the designated pre-approved courses before submitting your request.
Students who have been granted an incomplete in their course cannot be added to new courses with other students to complete their missing assignments due to FERPA-related issues. Instead, they should continue within their original course to complete the required work, or if the nature of the assignments has changed since the course officially ended, you may opt to create a shell course specifically tailored to meet the updated requirements per your contract with the student. If you choose to keep the student in the current course, we in eLearning will create and add this student into a new section in your course and extend the end date to that student only. Please click here to request eLearning to add a new section to your course and the date you want access removed. This date should be the same as on the contract and will be the date when they lose access like a regular course.
Starting from Spring 2024, students eligible for tuition waivers will have the ability to register directly for their courses without requiring manual additions by eLearning. This streamlined process is designed to facilitate easier access and reduce administrative overhead. Should you have any questions about the registration process or encounter any issues, please consult with Enrollment Services for further assistance.
For those looking to establish a Canvas shell where students will interact with anyone, like a club, study group, book club, or any similar setup, it is important to adhere to FERPA regulations throughout the setup process. First, you will want to contact Student Life to set you up with the Formstack FERPA waiver that all students need to sign before they are added to the Canvas shell. If you do not already possess a Canvas shell for your group, you will first need to create one. We recommend setting up the course as Self-Enrolled to simplify the registration process. Before adding students, ensure that you have received the email verifying that the student signed that FERPA waiver. Once you have that, you can send the self-enroll link to the student. The next time the student logs into Canvas, they will need to accept the course invitation. eLearning does not need to be involved in this procedure, but we are available to assist should you require help in setting up or managing your Canvas shell.