The Office of the Provost and UMass IT have announced new measures to strengthen resiliency of the Canvas learning management system and support continuity of teaching and learning.

The new measures were developed and implemented this summer by the Canvas Resiliency Group in response to a global Canvas service disruption in May 2026. The group, led by Tammy Rahhal, associate vice provost for undergraduate education, brought together colleagues from the Provost’s Office, UMass IT, Instructional Design, Engagement, and Support (IDEAS), and Emergency Management.

In a joint email to all faculty and staff on Tuesday, October 13, Fouad Abd-El-Khalick, provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs, and Christopher Misra, vice chancellor for information technology and CIO, announced that a full backup of Canvas courses is now operational.

Canvas course data is now continuously replicated through Scaffold DataX, with complete course information backed up within an approximately two-hour window. During a critical outage, Scaffold DataX will provide instructors and students with access to information contained within Canvas including grades, previous submissions, course rosters, and due dates.

The Provost’s Office has also published new guidance outlining steps instructors can take to prepare for and respond to a Canvas outage. The resources include options for communicating with students, continuing instruction, and administering assessments when Canvas is unavailable.