The annual Educause conference starts today, and educators from all over the world will be flocking to the Rocky Mountains to learn about the latest in education innovation. There is a lot to be excited about, as new learning models and technologies are helping educators at institutions of all sizes increase access to learning opportunities, boost student engagement, enhance the experience on and off campus, and drive innovative research. The potential to enhance teaching, learning, and research has never been greater.

But, as we all know, one step forward with new capabilities can often mean two steps backward in usability. As educators, we have a lot on our plates, and we can't afford to sacrifice time spent teaching to grapple with new solutions that don't fit with our routines. For technology to deliver on its promising potential for education:

• It needs to be simple and easy to use.
• It needs to be a conduit for teaching and learning, and not the subject of the class.
• It needs to make my life easier and just work.

That's why the Cisco team has been working on improving the interoperability of our solutions for digital learning. Cisco Webex already provides us with the means to blend learning environments, bolster project-based learning, engage distance learners, personalize instruction, and foster global experiences for our students, wherever they are. Today, Cisco is excited to announce an enhancement to Webex that will more tightly embed collaboration into our teaching routines and learning processes.

Cisco Webex Education Connectoris a Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) integration that natively integrates Webex Meetings and Teams into the Learning Management System (LMS) environment. Now, my students and I can join classes with one click, engage in project spaces and personalized discussion, and access lecture recordings directly inside the LMS course. I can schedule video meetings and virtual office hours without ever leaving my course shell. Cisco Webex Education Connector brings the best classroom and project collaboration experience to where we plan and students learn-on any device, and at no added cost for Webex customers.

The Education Connector works with major LMS applications, including:

• Blackboard Learn
• Canvas
• D2L Brightspace
• Moodle
• Sakai

It's easy to deploy and simple to use, so teachers can focus on doing what they do best: helping students learn.

These integrations will be available within the next few weeks, and you can learn about the capabilities in advance on our Education page on Cisco.com (link below). If you are attending Educause, we invite you to join us at the Cisco booth to learn more about the Education Connector and to see it in action.

To learn more about Cisco's solutions for Education, visit cisco.com/go/education