Organize course projects with group sets created from Slack
Translate a settled cohort plan into a structure learners can use.
Trigger
Channel Message Received
Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.
Action
Create group set
Creates a new group set within a specified course in the blackboard learn platform. this endpoint allows instructors or administrators to set up a structured group of students for collaborative work, discussions, or other course activities. the group set can be configured with various settings controlling its visibility, enrollment method, and description. use this when you need to organize students into groups for project work, facilitate peer reviews, or create focused discussion spaces within a course. it's particularly useful for larger classes where multiple small groups are needed for effective collaboration and management.
Why this helps
Group organization takes extra setup after the team has already spent time agreeing how a project should run.
- Reduce repeated setup after a project plan is settled.
- Create a structured collaboration space in the course.
- Keep group organization connected to the plan that prompted it.
Setup
Build it in a few focused steps.
- 1Connect Slack and Blackboard to Notis once through the portal.
- 2Create an automation in Automations and name it for project group sets.
- 3Use one plain-language prompt to describe when an approved Slack plan should create a Blackboard group set.
- 4Pick the Slack channel message trigger, select where Notis reports runs, and test with one confirmed plan.
Questions about this workflow
Does this enroll learners into groups?
This action creates a group set. Use the prompt to describe the intended setup, and handle membership only if supported by your Blackboard process.
Can tentative project plans trigger it?
Tell Notis to act only when the group plan is explicitly approved in Slack.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
Supported Triggers and Actions
Notis builds workflows that link Slack to Blackboard. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.
Slack triggers
Blackboard actions
Recurring trigger
Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.
Course Announcements Access
Retrieves a list of announcements for a specific course in the blackboard learning management system. this endpoint allows users to access important messages, updates, or notifications related to a particular course. it should be used when there's a need to fetch all announcements or check for recent updates in a course. the tool returns announcement data but does not provide functionality for creating, updating, or deleting announcements. keep in mind that the returned list may be paginated if there are many announcements, and additional calls might be necessary to retrieve all data.
Webhook trigger
Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.
Get course announcement by id
Retrieves a specific announcement from a particular course in the blackboard learn system. this endpoint allows users to fetch detailed information about a single announcement, including its content, creation date, and any attachments. it is particularly useful for displaying announcement details in external applications or for retrieving updated information about a previously known announcement. the endpoint requires both the course id and the announcement id to ensure precise retrieval of the intended announcement. it should be used when specific announcement details are needed, rather than for listing all announcements in a course.
New Channel Created Trigger
Triggered when a new channel is created in Slack.
Update child course in parent
This endpoint updates the relationship between a parent course and its child course in the blackboard learning management system. it is used to modify existing course hierarchies, allowing administrators to restructure course organizations or adjust course relationships. the endpoint should be used when there's a need to change the parent-child association between two courses, such as moving a sub-course to a different parent course or updating the hierarchical structure of courses. it's important to note that this endpoint only modifies existing relationships and does not create new courses or new child-parent associations if they don't already exist in some form.
Channel Message Received
Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.
Upload file to attempt in gradebook
This endpoint allows for the upload and attachment of files to a specific attempt within a course's gradebook in the blackboard learning management system. it is used to associate submitted work, supporting documents, or any relevant files with a student's attempt on an assignment, quiz, or other assessable items. the endpoint should be called after the initial file upload process, using the generated uploadid to link the file to the specific attempt. it's particularly useful for instructors or system integrators who need to programmatically attach files to student submissions, or for building custom submission interfaces that interact with blackboard's backend. this endpoint does not handle the actual file transfer; it assumes the file has already been uploaded to blackboard's system and is now being associated with a specific attempt.
Direct Message Received
Triggered when a new direct message (DM) is sent to a user in Slack. Catches all DMs across all DM channels.
Get oauth2 authorization code
Initiates the oauth 2.0 authorization code flow for the blackboard api. this endpoint is used to obtain an authorization code, which is a crucial step in the oauth 2.0 authentication process. the authorization code can later be exchanged for an access token, granting limited access to user resources on the blackboard platform. this endpoint should be called when an application needs to request permission from a user to access their blackboard data. it's important to note that this endpoint does not directly provide access to user data; it only initiates the authorization process. the response will typically include a redirect url containing the authorization code, which the client application must handle appropriately.
Message Reaction Added
Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.
Get user gradebook for course
Retrieves the gradebook information for a specific user within a particular course in blackboard. this endpoint allows instructors or authorized personnel to access individual student grade data, including assignment scores, overall course grade, and any custom gradebook columns. it should be used when detailed grade information for a single student in a specific course is needed, such as for progress monitoring or grade reviews. the endpoint does not modify any data and is read-only. note that this tool only provides grade data and does not include other course or user information beyond what's directly related to the gradebook.
Message Reaction Removed
Triggered when a reaction is removed from a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.
Copy course with specific options
The coursecopytool allows you to create a copy of a blackboard course with fine-grained control over which elements are included in the copy. this endpoint is used when you need to duplicate a course, either creating a new course or overwriting an existing one, while selectively choosing which components to transfer. it's particularly useful for course administrators or instructors preparing for a new semester or creating variations of an existing course. the tool provides extensive customization options, allowing you to include or exclude specific course elements such as content areas, assessments, gradebook settings, and more. however, it does not handle enrollment of students or instructors in the new course - this must be done separately after the copy is complete.
Reaction Added Trigger
DEPRECATED: use `SLACK_MESSAGE_REACTION_ADDED` instead. Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack.
Copy course by courseid
This endpoint creates a copy of an existing course in the blackboard learning management system. it allows instructors or administrators to duplicate course content, settings, and structure into a new or existing course. use this endpoint when you need to replicate a course for a new semester, create a template from an existing course, or backup course content. the operation copies all copyable elements of the source course into the target course specified by the courseid. note that this process may take some time for large courses, and certain elements (such as student data or time-sensitive content) may not be copied. the endpoint does not provide real-time progress updates on the copying process.
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When this happens · Trigger
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