If there are less than five students at a campus, students should be allowed to attend the class via a location of their choice.  This reduces the need to reserve a room for the class. 

The Campus Registrar will be able to assist you in directing students to quiet study spaces or rooms where they can attend class. 

For a list of all campus registrars: https://www.registrar.psu.edu/contact/campus-registrar-directory.cfm 

When courses are shared across multiple campuses, LionPATH creates individual sections in Canvas for each of the campuses where a student is enrolled. These sections must be ‘merged’ into one Canvas space prior to the start of the semester. This process will combine all the students into a single Canvas course in which you can then add your content. Please reach out to an instructional designer for assistance with merging courses or follow these instructions.

For Instructors

All VR and VC classrooms are equipped with the following technology to support your classroom to classroom instruction:

• Webcam
• Touch screen monitors, iPad, or similar touchpad technology
• A webcam microphone
• Podium or USB speakerphone

If you need additional technology in either your broadcasting or receiving classroom, please work with the campus IT department to secure what is needed.

Software at Penn State 

Penn State faculty, staff and students have access to a variety of software at either no cost or low-cost. You can browse the various categories to see all current offerings, including subject-specific software. 

Courseware at Penn State 

As you explore digital applications or software used by you or your students, it is important to review and have approval through Courseware at Penn State. All courseware to be used in a class must be reviewed and authorized by the University to ensure it meets the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and accessibility requirements. 

For Students

If your students indicate that they need technology in order for them to successfully engage in your class, please have them fill out this request form.

Connect to Tech Student Guide 

Penn State offers many Information Technology (IT) resources to help students get the most out of their time at the University. The Connect to Tech Student Guide is a website that will help your students familiarize themselves with resources and help to ease their transition to college life. 

Penn State uses Canvas as it’s Learning Management System (LMS). Regardless of your course delivery mode, shared courses should include a robust Canvas course structure. For best practices on Canvas setup, please see Canvas Setup – Keep It Simple. Additionally, please contact your instructional designer for access to shared course Canvas templates which include student orientation modules specific to shared courses. For an in-depth self-paced training in Canvas, please see the Canvas Learning Path.

Penn State has an institutional Zoom license which allows faculty, staff, and students to connect via video-conferencing technology. Log in to Zoom to view training documentation.

Kaltura is Penn State’s media management system that can be used to record, edit, store, and share video and other media content. To view a self-paced training on Kaltura, please see the Kaltura Learning Path.

All Penn State faculty, staff, and students have access to Office365 products, such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Word and PowerPoint can easily be shared, making it easier to collaborate at a distance. Many Shared Programs faculty use Microsoft Teams in their classes as a way for students to connect more easily across campuses.

The Google for Education Suite is another option for student and faculty collaboration. The Google Suite includes Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, and more. Jamboard is a popular tool to use during Zoom classes as a way to gather feedback, brainstorm, or share ideas from all students, regardless of location. To learn more about what Google for Education has to offer, please visit: Google: Applications and Training

Top Hat is a great option for shared courses because it allows all students to participate and engage with course content, the instructor, and each other. Top Hat is a comprehensive tool that can be used to take attendance and give polls and quizzes. Top Hat can be used in a Zoom class or as an asynchronous activity. Top Hat is integrated with Canvas, making it easy to synchronize grades.

LionPath is Penn State’s course registration website. Faculty use LionPath to view their teaching schedule and class rosters, as well as to enter/import grades. For LionPATH Login and Support, please visit LionPATH Support.

Starfish is Penn State’s academic advising program. Instructors can share their communication preferences, complete early progress reporting, and set up academic advising within Starfish.

When the offering campus is closed due to inclement weather, etc., the class will be cancelled.

When a receiving site campus is closed due to inclement weather, etc., the instructor at the offering site should continue the class session with all open sites. Students at the closed receiving site will be responsible for making up work asynchronously prior to the next class.

To make sure you are aware of any campus delay or closure, sign up for PSUAlert so you can receive notifications by text, email, and/or phone. You might want to subscribe to your campus and to your instructor’s campus. To subscribe for PSUAlerts and manage your campus selections:

• Go to PSUAlert
• Click ‘Manage My Alerts’
• Click ‘PSUAlert’
  • Use the Alert Settings section to add a phone number for Mobile Alerts, additional email address, or phone number for Voice Alerts (click the yellow plus sign)
  • Use the Campus Selection section to select all the campuses for which you want to receive alerts, then click Save

For more information, see PSUAlert: Frequently Asked Questions.