History

Blackboard Inc. was formed on the joining of two companies. CourseInfo LLC, founded by Daniel Cane and Stephen Gilfus, and Blackboard LLC, founded by Michael Chasen and Matthew Pittinsky.

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Still paying back loans for college after all these years? Maybe you think the taxes you pay for public schools just aren’t giving your children high quality education. Whether if it’s been ages since you’ve been in a classroom or are still in school, you should know Blackboard Inc. (BBBB) is moving education into the [...]

CourseInfo LLC CourseInfo, one of the two companies forming Blackboard Inc. was founded in 1997 by Dan Cane and Stephen Gilfus while at Cornell University. They joined together to officially form the partnership known as CourseInfo and developed the company into a small course management software provider. The product at the time was called the [...]

October 24th,2004
“E-learning is going to disappear as a [distinct] concept,” predicts Matthew Pittinsky, chairman of Blackboard Inc., whose course-management and other software served 15,000 students in 1998 and six years later reaches 12 million in 50 countries.

October 1st, 2004
A Networked Learning Environment in the Inter­net age applies new technology to a very old con-cept—that learning is much more than classes and grades. It is about the learning that takes place in a vibrant community of people and resources. The Internet has removed the limits of time and proxim­ity that once restricted this community. In a true Networked Learning Environment, any student, instructor or researcher can access any learning resource at anytime from anyplace.

October 1st 2004
Once again, technology potentially comes to the rescue with the Course Management System (CMS). A CMS or course management system is Internet-based software that manages student enrollment, tracks student performance, and creates and distributes course content. In this way, the Course Management System enables teachers to extend the classroom beyond its traditional boundaries of time and space.

JULY 20, 2004
Blackboard (BBBB ) entered the market on June 18 at $14 a share, then rose to $23.38 and finally closed the day at $20.01. With 5.5 million offered shares, representing 21.5% of the company, Blackboard raked in $77 million. IPO analyst Tom Taulli liked what he saw: “This IPO seemed to excite investors, and they seemed to go ahead and jump on the bandwagon,” he says.

4/24/2001 , Washington, D.C. – Microsoft Corp. and Blackboard Inc., the leading Internet infrastructure software company for e-education, today announced a global alliance to redefine and simplify the e-learning experience for students and faculty in higher education. Students and faculty using Blackboard~s learning platform, built on Microsoft® .NET technologies, will be able to more easily [...]

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–April 25, 2000 Blackboard received the honor for its innovation in helping colleges and universities worldwide harness the power of the Internet for teaching and learning. “The Laureates in this year’s Collection are extending the boundaries of technology in some very exciting ways that are bringing about tangible benefits to society in so many [...]

May 18,1999
Stephen Gilfus, company co-founder and VP of Marketing and Sales and Head of Product Strategy and Development at Blackboard will discuss the CourseInfo package recently purchased by Maricopa and discuss features of their new enterprise product, Campus.

January 21st,1999
The Faculty Focus Group consisted of 8 on-campus faculty members and 1 distant faculty member. The skill level ranged from advanced (current CMS users) to beginner (as in basic computer). We loaded demo copies of the software on our server and took the group through the process of creating the course with mock files and media. We spent two 4 hour days on each package.