Welcome to the April 2025 edition of Online Campus & Edtech News, a student-focused newsletter to support your success in online learning and use of educational technology resources at Milwaukee Area Technical College. In this edition, we share resources to orient you to using our online tools and help start your studies with confidence.
 

Summer & Fall 2025 Registration

Continuing students in a degree, diploma or certificate program who are taking classes this semester can now register for Summer and Fall by Pathway on:
 
Monday, April 7: Military veterans
Tuesday, April 8: Healthcare; Community Education 
Wednesday, April 9: Business & Management; STEM 
Thursday, April 10: Community & Human Services; General Education
Friday, April 11: Creative Arts, Design & Media; Manufacturing, Construction & Transportation
April 14-21: New, continuing and returning student registration by Pathway begins.
April 22: Open Registration begins.

AI Literacy Essentials For Students Micro-Credential

AI Literacy Essentials For Students: A Micro-Credential For Maximum Impact is a comprehensive six-part micro-credential series designed to equip college students with a fundamental understanding and practical knowledge of Artificial Intelligence (AI). This program covers everything from basic concepts and ethical considerations to the application of AI tools in academic and professional settings. Each 15-minute session is tailored to enhance students' AI literacy, preparing you for both academic success and future career challenges.
 
 
Please check with your instructor prior to using AI tools.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is about being honest when completing coursework and avoiding shortcuts that could harm your education or reputation. To demonstrate academic integrity, give credit to others' ideas and do not cheat on assessments. This ensures everyone's efforts are respected and valued. Refer to the Student Code of Conduct and other resources below to learn about the college’s expectations for academic integrity. 

Academic Integrity and ChatGPT in Written Works

ChatGPT is a new tool on the internet that can create a text response to any question you ask it. Although it might be tempting to use ChatGPT to write essays, ChatGPT can oftentimes give wrong or biased information! Your teachers want to see your own ideas and experiences in the work you do. If you choose to use ChatGPT as a study tool, always use critical thinking and check the accuracy of the information. Cite the use of AI writing tools in papers through the guidelines shared in the Resources panel on this page. Presenting AI written content as your own without attributing the source counts as plagiarism.  Please check with your instructor prior to using ChatGPT.


Scholarship Opportunities

Student Lingo Success Quests
Available through our Online Orientation's Student Success Workshops page, students who participate in Student Lingo workshops have the chance to win a $500 scholarship April 2025. See the Student Lingo Success Quest FAQ for details. If you have questions, please reach out to support@ieinfo.org.

Spring 2025 Scholarships
The MATC Foundation awards scholarships based on academic merit, leadership/participation, financial need, or any combination of these.  Applications for current and returning students closed on Sunday, March 30th. 
 
Applications for new students will open on Thursday, May 1st and will close on Saturday, May 31st.  Click here to apply!
 
PLEASE NOTE: The MATC Foundation strives to help as many students with scholarships as we can, but we receive more scholarship applications than we have funds to award.  No student is guaranteed a scholarship.

Tools & Resources

Online Learning Resources
If you are taking online or partially online courses this semester, we strongly view the self-paced Online Readiness module or attend a live orientation webinar to learn about the tools, tasks, and strategies to start your studies strong. Additional student success workshops are available for on-demand training on specific academic and career skills.
Introduction to Online Learning
Log into the Online Readiness module with an MATC network account for a self-paced overview of the tools and processes successful online students use in their courses.
Log into the Online Orientation and click Student Success Workshops for on-demand training on financial literacy, reducing test anxiety, student success strategies for first generation students, and more!
MATC Campus
See this schedule to attend a weekly virtual Blackboard orientation in Google Meet led by experts from the Online Campus. These sessions are perfect for viewing live demonstrations and asking questions.

Blackboard Navigation Support
The college's official platform for delivering courses is Blackboard. All online and partially online courses use Blackboard, but instructors teaching face to face courses may also use Blackboard to provide content, assessments, and grade feedback. See the Online Access Guide and the Online Student Support Website for support.
 
If you have questions or concerns about online learning, contact the Online Campus.

Using Ally in Blackboard Ultra
Did you know that you can download course materials from Blackboard in alternative formats and languages? Wherever you see the Ally "A" symbol in an Ultra Course, you can click to download content as speech-to-text MP3 audio, machine translated language, and electronic braille, or use assistive tools such as beeline reader and immersive reader
Watch this video to learn about Ally's features.
Watch this video to learn about alternative document formats.

The MATC Student Experience

Discover unique opportunities at Milwaukee Area Technical College! Join groups and participate in events that meet your interests.
 

Student Support Hub


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Online Campus
Milwaukee Area Technical College, Online Campus
onlinelearning@matc.edu
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