FAQ

How can I access the learning management system (LMS), Classes?

You can access the new by going to classes.pace.edu and entering your Pace University username and password.

What browsers are supported by Classes?

Firefox, Chrome, Safari and Edge are supported. Internet Explorer is NOT supported.

What is the difference between D2L, Brightspace and Classes?

Desire to Learn (D2L) is the name of the company. Brightspace is the name of the Learning Management System. Classes.pace.edu is the URL for Pace's instance of Brightspace.

When are courses made available to me and my students?

• Faculty gain access to a course 90 days prior to the official start date.
• Student enrollments are fed to the system 30 days prior to the official start date., Even though faculty can see the students in the course (Classlist), students do not automatically have access to the course at this time.
• To see student enrollment in a course prior to 30 days before the start date, access the course roster in the Pace portal.
• Students automatically gain access to a course on the official start date unless the instructor requests to make the course available within 30 days of the official start date.

When do students have access to their courses?

Students get access to a course on the official start date unless an instructor requests that the course is made available earlier.

How can I make my course available to students before the official start date?

You can make your course available to students up to 30 days before the official start date by sending an email to acadtech@pace.edu with the CRN and desired availability date. The Office of Academic Technology will change the date for you.

Why is “converted-” in my class title?

This is a course that was converted from Blackboard. It is an old course. You will not use this course as a real, teaching shell, but you can import content from it into a future course shell. To learn how to copy components from one Classes course to another, please review the Copy Components tutorial.

Which sessions do I need to take?

There are no requirements for anyone to take any training session. If, however, you choose to attend a session, then you must register by clicking the registration link in our schedule of events.

​Where can I go to learn how to use Classes (Brightspace) on my own?

There are a series of in-house training videos under the calendar of events on the ITS Events page. You can also use the Brightspace Community site. For information on how to join the community and get started, review the How to Join the Brightspace Community and Access the Subscription Training tutorial. Additional resources include the help link on the blue navigation bar in Classes where you can find Brightspace written and youtube video tutorials, and the Pace ITS Digital Toolkit.

Is there self paced learning that I can view to start learning (Classes) Brightspace on my own?

Go to LinkedInLearning and enter your Pace credentials. Search for "Learning Brightspace by D2L".

Will I have access to D2L Brightspace support via the phone?

Phone: 1 (877) 325-7778 (North America) Additionally, you may click Help on the blue navigation bar and then select Need help? Click here! at the bottom of the drop-down menu. For email or phone support, click Contact Support. For Live Chat Support, on the bottom right of the screen, click the Chat with Support button.

How can I get assistance for some of the third party tools added to Classes?

We have compiled a list of third party tools and their contact information for you.

Will students receive Announcements in their email?

Students will not receive Announcements in their email by default. We recommend that instructors tell students to change their notification settings so they receive email when an announcement is created/updated.

Here are the instructions that you can send your students:

• Click your name at the top-right.
• Select Notifications.
• Scroll down and check the checkboxes for the two Announcement options.
• Click Save.

How do I request an organization/community in Classes.

Please send a note to acadtech@pace.edu with the community name, the names of the leaders and whether students will be manually enrolled or the banner coding for students to be auto-enrolled.

How do I request a course combine and what are the course combine policies?

Please provide the course IDs (e.g., ACC-101-23345.202120) of the courses you would like combined and submit a Help Desk ticket (by sending an email to acadtech@pace.edu) at least 2 weeks before the start of the semester. Please note in the email that you acknowledge the below points:

• The two (or more) constituent courses will no longer be available to either you or your students once the combination process is complete.
• The combined course will not have any content that is currently in the constituent courses. A new course is created that is an empty shell.
• The combination process cannot be reversed—a combined course cannot be divided into its constituent courses again.
• You will still enter separate final grades via Portal for the original constituent courses.
• If you desire a specific course name, then provide it in the help ticket. Otherwise, the name will be the same as the course ID.

How do I see my class photo roster?

• Go into your course and click on Tools.
• Click Classlist

How do I email my students before the class starts?

Up to 30 days prior to course official start date, you can email your students by

• Going to the course Classlist tool and selecting the Email Classlist button.
• You can compose an email to CRN.termcode@pace.edu.

How do I enroll a TA or Librarian to my course?

• Click on Tools and select the Classlist.
• Click Add Participants and then Add Existing User.
• Enter the username or name of the individual and click the magnifying glass.
• Scroll down to select the checkbox next to the user
• Scroll to the right to change the role to TA or Librarian and choose the course name from the dropdown list
• Click Enroll Selected Users.

How do I link to Library resources (E-reserves, databases, E-books, publications, and full-text articles)?

For instructions on linking Library resources, please review the Library guide on linking to Library resources in Classes.

Do grades in Classes get automatically transferred to Banner?

No, instructors will still need to enter grades through the portal. For more information please review the tutorial on entering final grades in portal (PDF).

How do I get access to old courses?

In order to maintain a streamlined, easily navigable Brightspace/CLASSES environment, the Department of Academic Technology continually archives, and eventually deletes, courses from previous semesters. Please make note of our archival policies:

• Courses taught within the last three years will be accessible as usual in Brightspace/CLASSES.
• Courses from the three years prior to the three-year period accessible in Brightspace/CLASSES will be archived, and accessible to faculty only by emailing us at acadtech@pace.edu with your request. To fulfill an archive retrieval request, we require both the five-digit CRN and the semester of the desired course.
• When a course is more than six years old, it is permanently deleted.

These policies mean that at any given time, faculty have access to the previous six years of Brightspace/CLASSES courses. You can also create course export and archive files yourself, by following the steps in our tutorial:

Archiving/Exporting a Brightspace/CLASSES Course

Please note that the files produced in this manner are not usable in the normal sense. They can be provided to the Academic Technology Department to reconstruct your course, but cannot be directly opened to access, for example, Word files and PDFs uploaded to the course.

How do I navigate Classes?

Review the Classes Student Navigation Overview.

Is there a student overview of the most common tasks?

Yes, please review the Classes Student Video Tutorial.

How can I receive course announcements in my email?

• Click your name at the top-right.
• Select Notifications.
• Scroll down and check the checkboxes for the two Announcement options.
• Click Save.

I’m logged into Blackboard and don’t see my upcoming/current courses.

As of January 1, 2021, courses are no longer being taught in Blackboard. We have switched to a new LMS called Classes. The URL is classes.pace.edu

I’m not receiving emails or notifications from Classes.

Log in to Classes and on the top right, click on your name, then click Notifications. Edit your contact methods and select the checkboxes for the activities for which you’d like to receive notifications. If you’ve already done the previous steps and are still having difficulties, check your spam, junk and blocked senders.

I’m logged into Classes and don’t see my current courses (after the start date of the course).

• Scroll down to the My Courses widget.
• Use the left and right arrows in the widget to scroll to the desired term.
• If you still do not see your course, go to Pace portal to ensure you are enrolled.
• If you enrolled in the course today, check back tomorrow after the system has refreshed.

Where can students go for 24 hour phone support?
Phone: 1 (877) 325-7778

Will I have access to Turnitin, Kaltura, Panopto and other 3rd party tools?

Yes, we have added the 3rd party tools. To learn where you can find them, please review the 3rd Party tool location training video.

It seems that colors, fonts, etc., are locked down a lot. Why?

We need to ensure that all course content is accessible to all students. Classes has an inherent, accessibility-checking system and an aspect of the system is to ensure we stay away from obscure formatting schemes.

Why are the students’ addresses in an email sent to multiple recipients located in the Bcc: field?

To protect the privacy of all recipients. If an email is addressed to one student, the address is then in the To: field.

Are course announcements sent as emails?

No. Please ask your students to opt in to new announcements notifications or send the contents of your announcement to your students in an email by clicking the Email Classlist button in the Classlist tool in the navigation bar.

What is the quota for each course in the new LMS? Is it 1GB or will it be more?

There is no actual course size limit in Classes. However, videos should NEVER be uploaded directly to a course. Videos should be loaded to Kaltura (Faculty and Students) or Panopto (Faculty) and then embedded into the course from those 3rd-party tools. This includes video content from faculty and submissions from students.