A flat, pastel-colored illustration showing a computer monitor with a simplified Blackboard interface on the screen. A woman with long dark hair stands in front of the monitor, pointing toward the layout blocks. Above the scene, large text reads “New changes to Blackboard layout and navigation,” with a white arrow pointing to the right. Stylized leaf shapes frame the background, creating a clean, modern look.

Blackboard’s new look for 2026!

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On January 8, 2026, a few areas of Blackboard will receive a visual refresh. These changes will be part of the Blackboard January update and are designed to maximize space, reduce clicks, and create faster and easier navigation. The Base Navigation page will be refreshed to create a more modern and cleaner look, and your courses will open as full-screen pages. 

Modernized Base Navigation 

Base Navigation, the first page you see when signing into Blackboard, will see minimal changes. The cleaner layout moves your profile to the top of the navigation tabs and reduces the size of the menu items. These are aesthetic changes that do not impact course content or performance. 

New Base Navigation Menu

New base navigation menu with user name at top and institution below. It shows a cleaner look with less spacing between items.

Old Base Navigation Menu

Old base navigation menu. Institution page was the top item, followed by the user. Items have larger icons and there is more spacing between items.

Full Screen Course Pages  

Your courses will open as a full screen instead of a panel, which maximizes space and reduces visual clutter. The header includes a new Home button, a course drop-down selector, and the course name. The course name and ID will appear on top of the course banner.

All courses will now have a banner, as well. If you don’t add a banner image, the banner will be a dark red gradient. The banner will automatically include the course name and course ID, added as accessible text.

New Design

Screen capture of the new layout of the course banner, course name, and new navigation features. The image has a home button at the top left, a course switcher drop down, and the course title. Additionally, the coure name appears on top of the course banner.

Old Design

Screen shot of the old course banner and course title. The course name and number appear at the top. The coure page menu is below the title and the course banner appears below the menu.

Home Button 

The red X is gone from the top-level pages in your course – and so is accidentally closing your course when you click it by mistake! To exit a course, you will click the new Home button to return to the Institution Page. Content items such as Documents, Tests, and Assignments will still appear as slide-out panels and will need to be closed with the red exit button (X). However, Blackboard has plans to also change these in the future.

Screen shot of the new course menu. The home button is highlighted and is located at the top left.

Course Switcher 

To streamline navigation, Blackboard is adding a new Course Switcher drop down which allows you to quickly and efficiently move between courses. You will no longer need to return to the Courses page to move to a different course. For now, the Course Switcher will show the most recent 4 courses that you have accessed, but future enhancements will add more courses and search functionality. 

Screen shot of the new course menu. The course switcher button is highlighted and is located near the top left.

Tips and Support 

Due to Blackboard’s release schedule, these changes will go live on Thursday, January 8, so there isn’t much time to try it out before the start of the semester. If you’d like a sneak peek, you can self-enroll in this course on our test server to see it in action. You can also request a Shell on the test server (which is great for trying out banners with the new course name overlay).  

If you need support navigating these new changes, please email CITL or schedule an individual consultation. 

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