Florida Banner User Group

Sessions

Information about the 2024 FLBUG Conference sessions will be available soon. For now, please review the panels from last year below!

FLBUG 2024

October 10 – 11
Florida SouthWestern State College
Charlotte Campus
26300 Airport Rd
Punta Gorda, FL

RSVP Coming Soon!

  • Argos Practical Solutions For Higher Ed Data: Building a Student Information Portal using Argos Web Views

    Eckerd College needed to migrate their student information portal away from an unsupported custom application. Argos web views, in combination with a slim PHP front-end, allowed them to build a modern replacement targeted at Banner baseline, giving them development flexibility and granular security.

    Presenters

    Mike Ruzek
    Senior Account Executive
    Evisions

    Erik Gern
    Application Support Analyst
    Eckerd College

    Download Presentation
    School & Company: , Download Presentation

    Session Audience & Type: , , ,

  • School Reports

    During our opening session, each school will have the opportunity to share interesting projects their school is working on in the next year.

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  • Faculty Load and Compensation: Navigating and Managing Faculty Load

    In an era where the demands on faculty time and expertise are increasingly diverse and multifaceted, understanding the intricacies of faculty load and compensation has never been more critical. This session will cover Florida SouthWestern State College’s Experience implementing, maintaining and utilizing the FLAC module and discuss the system’s benefits and challenges.

    Join us as we delve into:

    • Benefits of using the FLAC online system
    • Set up, Maintenance and Training/Managing HR Banner Forms
    • Online Approval Processing – Approving and Acknowledging Faculty Contracts
    • Faculty Notifications using BCM (Banner Communication Management)
    • Challenges with the FLAC online system

    Targeted at administrators, faculty leaders/coordinators, and anyone involved in human resources within higher education, this session promises to offer actionable insights that can be applied to your institution. Don’t miss this opportunity to better navigate the challenging terrains of faculty load and compensation.

    Presenters

    Leslie Ryder
    Applications Support Analyst
    Florida SouthWestern State College

    Download Presentation
    Schools:
    Session Audience & Type: ,

  • How CFEED Research Helped Shape the Osceola Prosper Program

    The Central Florida Education Ecosystem Database Project, CFEED, is an innovative collaboration among Valencia College, the University of Central Florida, Orange County Public Schools and the School District of Osceola County. All four institutions share student data resulting in a view from Kindergarten through matriculation to College, Transfer to the University and ultimately, Graduation. This unique project focuses on student success impacts as the result of the insights provided by the data. The Osceola Prosper Program, providing students who have graduated from any high school in Osceola County a tuition free degree from Valencia College, is one such highlight.

    Presenters

    Diana Pienaar
    Director, CFEED
    Valencia College

    Ashton Terry
    Senior Manager, CFEED
    School District of Osceola County

    Download Presentation
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  • Our Journey to Better Sleep: Application Security in Banner

    Banner security innovations at Valencia

    Presenter

    David Diaz
    Enterprise Application Services
    Senior Application Security Administrator
    Valencia College

    Download Presentation
    School:
    Session Audience & Type: ,

  • Documents in the Fast Lane: Automating documents from TargetX to BDMS

    This presentation shows the process of student documents that comes in from TargetX student application being imported and auto indexed into ApplicationXtender using the Index Image Import utility.

    Presenters

    Manisha Chalise
    Enterprise Application Services
    Software Developer/Analyst
    Valencia College

    Edwin Cruz
    Enterprise Application Services
    Applications Administrator
    Valencia College

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  • CRM to Banner Integration

    Automation of bi-directional data feeds between Valencia’s CRM (TargetX/Salesforce) and Banner.

    Presenters

    Miguel Tonido
    Software & Integration Architect
    Valencia College

    Boris Alemnka
    Applications Administrator
    Valencia College

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  • Student Communication

    Student communication is a hot-button topic for any higher ed institution. This panel will discuss strategies, tools & analytics in place at these colleges.

    Panelists

    Mike Ruzek
    Sr. Account Executive
    Evisions

    Kailee Mateika, MA
    AVP of Marketing & Digital Strategies
    Florida SouthWestern State College

    Marsha Smith
    Academic Affairs Office Specialist
    St. John’s River State College

    Monica Negron
    Manager, Enterprise Application Support
    Valencia College

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  • Banner SaaS & Cloud

    Lessons learned implementing Banner SaaS. Hear from two colleges who have moved to Banner SaaS & one of Ellucian’s Project Managers.

    Panelists

    Bob Stack
    VP, Institutional Technology & Risk Management
    Polk State College

    Kimberly Harrison
    Director of ERP Systems
    Gulf Coast State College

    Stephen Pelc
    Senior Director of Project Management
    Ellucian

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  • Florida State Syllabus requirement

    Implementation strategies and tools for meeting the Florida State syllabus requirement for Gen Ed Courses.

    Panelists

    Monica Negron
    Manager, Enterprise Application Support
    Valencia College

    Steven Kolberg
    Coordinator, Accessibility and LMS Administration
    Florida SouthWestern State College

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  • Digital Accessibility

    Birds of a Feather
    Digital Accessibility in Higher Education: Working with vendors to provide a more accessible tool for all students

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  • Banner Upgrades

    Birds of a Feather
    How do we deal with the increase in frequency, volume & complexity of Banner Upgrades?

    Download Presentation

    Quarterly Banner DBA/Tech Group Discussions

    If anyone at FLBug wants to join the Quarterly Banner DBA/Tech Group Discussions, please email an invite request to Christopher Myers

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  • Banner SaaS

    Birds of a Feather
    Discussions of pros, cons, trials & tribulations of moving to Banner Saas

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  • Training

    Birds of a Feather

    Topics:

    • Developer Training
    • End User Training
    , ,

  • Student

    Birds of a Feather

    Student focused discussions

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  • Financial Aid

    Birds of a Feather

    Financial Aid focused discussions

    ,

  • HR/Finance

    Birds of a Feather

    Discussion of HR/Finance topics

    ,

  • Banner APIs

    Here at SCF, we have been doing some interesting things with Banner APIs and improving process flow with additional web pages that update banner through those APIs. While we aren’t using Banner Extensibility, what we’re doing could easily be migrated to Banner Extensibility to allow for greater flexibility for those not as familiar with HTML.

    I will demonstrate what we are doing with dashboards and our admissions web application process to show what can be done, and then look a little closer at those APIs being used behind the scenes, and how we format them.

    Presenter

    Kimberly Garnto
    Senior Programmer/Analyst
    State College of Florida

    Download Presentation
    School:
    Session Audience & Type: ,

  • Unlocking Educational Potential Through Integrated Dashboards: A Guide to Ellucian’s Experience Solutions

    Join Florida Southwestern State College & Eckerd College to explore how Ellucian’s centralized, user-friendly dashboards empower staff, faculty and students by simplifying access to personalized, branded content.

    • An overview of the Experience portal and its capabilities
    • How Experience integrates with existing Banner modules for seamless process management
    • Real-world case studies demonstrating how Experience is transforming campus life at FSW
    • Best practices for implementing Experience in your institution to maximize benefits

    Presenters

    Danny Ramos
    Director, Application Development & Administration
    Florida Southwestern State College

    Theodore Tramonte
    Assistant Director, Web Applications
    Florida Southwestern State College

    Colton Herschberger
    Web Developer
    Eckerd College

    Download Presentation
    Schools: ,
    Session Audience & Type: , ,

  • Behind the Screens: The Partnerships Powering FSW’s Guided Pathways Initiative

    Guided pathways are revolutionizing the academic Experience, offering a structured and efficient route for students to achieve their educational and career goals. Florida SouthWestern State College (FSW) has been at the forefront of this movement, actively participating in the Florida Pathways Institute alongside 12 other Florida College System institutions. In this presentation, we will explore how FSW students identify and select a pathway that aligns with their goals and how the Office of Information Technology empowered Academic Advising to manage pathways, program maps, and meta-majors using custom admin forms.

    Presenter

    Andrae Jones
    Director, Student Technologies and Strategy
    Florida Southwestern State College

    School:
    Session Audience & Type: , ,

  • State of Ellucian – SaaS and Latest Products discussion

    Discussion on the technical aspects of Banner and talk about the future of the platform from an architecture perspective. Presenter will also be available to take any questions from the group.

    Presenter

    Brett Hansen
    Principal Architect
    Ellucian

    Session Audience & Type: , , , , ,

  • CIO Discussions

    Birds of a Feather

    Discussion of CIO focused topics

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  • FLBUG Collaboration among schools

    Birds of a Feather
    Discussion on how Florida Banner Schools could work together more closely. What is the future of FLBug?

    Session Audience u0026amp; Type: , , , , ,

  • Introduction to modern Web Application Development with Banner

    Learn about some industry standard technologies that can be used to leverage functionality with the Ellucian Banner database to create performant, fluid, and easy-to-use web applications for your institution. The technologies being utilized include Typescript/Javascript, React, TypeORM, and GraphQL.

    Presenters

    Sean Tiexera
    Senior Software Developer / Analyst
    Valencia College

    Jeffrey Reed
    Senior Web Developer
    Valencia College

    Download Presentation
    School:
    Session Audience & Type: ,

  • Developing a modern web application in Javascript/Typescript

    Learn how to use modern industry standard technologies such as Typescript, GraphQL, React and more to develop custom, functional, and simple single page web applications for your institution.

    Presenters

    Sean Tiexera
    Senior Software Developer / Analyst
    Valencia College

    Jeffrey Reed
    Senior Web Developer
    Valencia College

    School:
    Session Audience & Type: ,

  • Bridging the Gap between users and IT: Business Process Improvements

    Presenters

    Elizabeth Diaz
    Functional IS Support Specialist
    Valencia College

    Angie Parrales
    Software Developer/Analyst
    Valencia College

    School:
    Session Audience & Type: , , ,

  • Financial Aid and Student Account Updates

    Showcase of new functionality in the FA and Student Account modules. Follow along with a day in the life demo showcasing the native baseline functionality that the functional users can see in real time. Presenter will also be around to answer any questions from the group.

    Presenter

    Serena Hyche
    Principal Solutions Consultant
    Ellucian

    Session Audience u0026amp; Type: , ,

  • Squash the Email Bug: FLBUG’s New Discussion Forum is Live!

    The Florida Banner User Group now has a dedicated space for year‑round collaboration. We’ve launched a Discourse forum where you can connect with other institutions, swap tips, and solve Banner challenges together.

    Visit https://flbug.discourse.group/ and click Sign Up to create your profile and start posting today.

    Check it out and start some buzz‑worthy discourse with your knowledgeable peers!

    Screenshot of the Florida Banner User Group Discourse forum homepage, showcasing user categories including General, Banner Finance, Banner Financial Aid, Banner HR/Payroll, Banner SAAS, Banner Student, and Ellucian CRM.

  • The Buzz is Back: Register Now for the 2025 FLBUG Conference!

    The Florida Banner User Group Conference is returning for 2025 and registration is officially open. This year’s gathering is your chance to connect with colleagues from across Florida, trade Banner tips, and discover new ways to tackle the challenges we all share.

    Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors Evisions, Gravyty, Softdocs, Transact + CBORD, Coursedog, and Nelnet Campus Commerce, registration is completely free once again.

    Click here to register and join the conversation that keeps our community buzzing year round. Check it out, sign up, and bring your fellow bugs along for the ride.

    Banner graphic for the 2025 Florida Banner User Group Conference featuring the text 'FLBUG 2025 CONFERENCE' against a dark background with a blue light accent.

  • Register by Sept. 15 for Your Limited Edition Shirt!

    Back by popular demand, an awesome limited edition shirt will be available for attendees of the FLBUG conference this year! Register for the conference by Sept. 15 to secure your shirt.

    Register Now
    Let Us Know Your Shirt Preferences

  • Introducing BUG Bytes at FLBUG 2025

    Big ideas do not always need long presentations. This year at the Florida Banner Users Group (FLBUG) Conference we are excited to launch BUG Bytes.

    What is BUG Bytes?

    BUG Bytes is a fast-paced, show and tell session where schools share an Ellucian Product win or lesson learned in about 5 minutes. Quick, practical, and easy to apply, it is the perfect way to highlight ideas that make a difference.

    Why Participate?

    • Share how your team solved a challenge or improved a process
    • Learn useful strategies from peers across institutions
    • Receive a limited-edition swag kit and entry into a premium giveaway

    How to Join

    Just complete the presentation proposal form and select BUG Bytes. We welcome all kinds of topics, from clever automation tricks to creative reporting solutions.

    Ready to pitch your BUG Byte?

    Byte Away!

  • Preliminary Schedule Available

    We are still working on our final schedule of sessions for FLBUG, but we know many of you will need to submit something for travel purposes. Please see the following preliminary schedule which will soon be filled in with presentations like:

    • SaaS Lessons Learned; Banner Tips & Tricks; FCLE & Graduation in Experience; Admissions Automation; Web Time; Schedule Search; Deferment Automation
    • State Processing; Direct Lending Year End Closeout; Self-Service; Automated Write-offs; State Reporting Custom Banner Forms; ViKi Virtual Kiosk; Argos X
    • New Hire Checklist; Student Communications & Increased Enrollment; Evergreen BCM; From Static to Strategic: A Cost-Effective APEX Solution; Banner, TDX, and iPaaS
    2025 FLBUG Preliminary ScheduleDownload

    See you in October!

  • Thank You to This Year’s Sponsors!

    Thank You to Our FLBUG 2025 Sponsors

    As we get ready for the FLBUG 2025 Conference, we want to extend a heartfelt thank-you to our generous sponsors. Their support makes it possible for FLBUG to remain free for all attendees year after year. From the food and swag to the activities that bring us together, our sponsors provide the funding that makes this event not only possible but memorable.

    We are proud to recognize the organizations investing in our community:

    • Evisions
    • Ellucian
    • Remote Technical Solutions Inc.
    • Gravyty
    • Softdocs
    • Transact + CBORD
    • Coursedog
    • Nelnet Campus Commerce
    • Emburse
    • NEOED

    Thanks to their generosity, the Banner user community across Florida will gather once again to share knowledge, spark ideas, and strengthen connections. We’re grateful for their commitment to innovation, collaboration, and student success… and for helping us make FLBUG 2025 an event to remember.

    Logos for our sponsors: Ellucian, Remote Technical Solutions, Evisions, Grtavyty, Emburse, Coursedog, Nelnet Campus Commerce, Softdocs, Transact + CBORD, NEOED

  • Dates Announced for FLBUG 2026 Conference

    Mark your calendars and join FSW once again for the FLBUG 2026 Conference!

    Florida Banner User Group 2026 Conference, Nov. 5-6, 2026, Fort Myers, FL

    FLBUG 2026 is Officially Open for RSVPs and Proposals

    FLBUG returns November 5-6, 2026 in Fort Myers, FL at the FSW Lee Campus, the same great location as last year.

    • RSVPs are now open, so grab your spot and get ready for two days of collaboration, learning, and Banner magic.
    • Calls for proposals are also live. If you’ve got practical wins, clever solutions, or lessons worth sharing, send them our way.
    • Hotel details will be available before the end of the month, so stay tuned for travel info to help you plan.