Sakai Project Sites

What is a Sakai project site?

Sakai project sites can be set up to facilitate collaboration for college-sanctioned committees, project teams, task forces, departments, clubs, etc. Project sites work just like course sites, but are not tied to a semester or to a course roster. The same set of tools are available in project sites as in course sites.

Project sites do not have "instructors" or "students" but instead have the following roles:

• maintain = This role has instructor-like privileges: can add, edit, and delete content; can add/remove users; can see unpublished sites.
• access = This role has student-like privileges: can view content; can submit forum posts, assignments, tests, etc; can see only published sites

IMPORTANT: The person requesting the project site will have the "maintain" role and will be responsible for the site's content, for adding/removing users, for assigning appropriate roles to users, and for publishing the site so participants can see it.

How can I get a Sakai project site created?

A Sakai project can be created at the request of a college employee who has completed the requirements to use Sakai as an instructor.

To request a Sakai project site, send an email to sakaihelp@durhamtech.edu with the following information:

• Title for the site (brief is good, spaces are fine)
• Name of person responsible for the site (must be a Durham Tech employee who has completed the requirements to use Sakai as an instructor)
• A brief description of the purpose of the site and who (in general) the participants will be

NOTE: It usually takes a few days for your project site to be created. We will notify you by email when it's ready.

How do I access my project site?

When you have received notification that your project site has been created, to access the site simply log in to Sakai, click on More Sites, and look under the Projects heading. (The Projects heading is usually near the bottom of the More Sites window. You may have to scroll down to see it.)

How do I add content to my project site?

Adding content to a project site works just like adding content to a course site. A wealth of information for setting up a Sakai site can be found on the Sakai Resources for Instructors web site. Or sign up for Sakai Training to refresh your Sakai skills.

How do I add users to my project site?

Before you begin, read this:

• To add users to a project site, you must know each person's Durham Tech login ID (ex: jordanm2323).
• All employees (full and part time) and all CREDIT students should have a Durham Tech login ID. Non-credit students who have taken a class that used Sakai will also have a Durham Tech login ID.
• New employees must submit required HR forms to receive a Durham Tech login ID.
• If a person does not have a Durham Tech login ID, he/she cannot be given access to a Sakai site.

To add users to your project site:

1. In your project site, go to Site Info > Add Participants.
2. In the box provided, enter the Durham Tech login IDs of the persons you wish to add, one per line. Then click Continue. (You can copy/paste login IDs from an Excel column, Word document, or other similar source.)
3. Select the role you want the users to have. If unsure, choose the "access" role, and click Continue. (Later, you can give particular individuals the "maintain" role if needed. See step 6 and the tip below.)
4. You can opt to have an automatic email sent to users letting them know you have added them to the project site. (Do not choose the email option if the site is "unpublished".) Click Continue to move on.
5. Click Finish to add the users.
6. On the lower half of the screen, you will see a list of all site participants. Here, you can change anyone's role if needed. Be sure to click UPDATE at the bottom to save any changes you make to roles.

TIP: Limit the "maintain" role to a small number of trusted users (one to three, as a rule of thumb) and to those who have completed Sakai instructor training. It's generally bad practice to give too many individuals (especially untrained ones!) the full editing and deleting capabilities of the "maintain" role.

How do participants get instructions for accessing the project site?

From you! It's the responsibility of the site maintainer to provide login instructions to participants. Below are some basic instructions you can give them.

To access a project site on Sakai:

• Go to the Sakai login page at http://sakai.durhamtech.edu/
• Your Sakai username and password are the same as your WebAdvisor username and password. If you don't know or can't remember your Web Advisor username or password, use this information:
  • username = last name + first initial + last 4 digits of your Durham Tech ID number
  • password = to reset or set up your password, click Reset Password on the left side of the Sakai home screen
• After logging in, click on More Sites and look under the Projects heading. (The Projects heading is usually near the bottom of the More Sites window. You may have to scroll down to see it.)

Why aren't some participants getting emails sent from the project site?

If you are using the "Send Email" feature in your project site, it is important to check to make sure all site participants have an email address in Sakai.

To check participants' email addresses:

• Add the Roster tool to your project site. (To do this, go to Site Info > Edit Tools, check the box beside Roster, click CONTINUE, click FINISH)
• In the course menu, click Roster and then review the email addresses listed.
• If any email addresses are missing or incorrect, contact the ITS Help Desk at 919-536-7200 X6111 or sakaihelp@durhamtech.edu to have them corrected.

How do I remove users from my project site?

1. In your project site, go to Site Info > Add Participants.
2. Scroll down to view the list of participants.
3. For any participant(s) you wish to remove, click to place a check mark in the REMOVE box to the far right of their name(s).
4. Scroll down and click UPDATE to remove the selected user(s).

How do I publish my project site so others can see it?

In order for users with the "access" role to see your project site, you must "publish" the site.

To publish a site, click the Publish Now button in the upper left area of the site (just under the Durham Tech logo).

If for some reason you need to "unpublish" the site again, go to Site Info > Manage Access, select "Leave as Draft" and click UPDATE.