IT News & Announcements

Upcoming Changes to ChatGPT Edu Subscriptions

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The pricing model for ChatGPT will change on July 1, 2026.

Last year, ITS established an official agreement with OpenAI, the organization that developed ChatGPT, and made licenses available to UConn faculty and staff that could be used with institutional data. The ChatGPT Edu subscription, offered at a set price, gave users access to basic and advanced models.

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ADA Title II Regulations Update

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The U.S. Department of Justice has announced a delay in the compliance timeline. The new deadline is April 26, 2027. The requirements themselves have not changed, and our obligation to provide accessible digital content remains exactly the same. UConn needs to remain fully focused on meeting guidelines ASAP. As a public university that believes in the “freedom of academic inquiry and expression,” equitable access is pivotal.

While the revised timeline may ease immediate pressure, it should not change our direction or momentum. Continuing this work now, rather than deferring it, helps us reduce risk, avoid last‑minute remediation, and, most importantly, ensure that our websites and digital services are usable by everyone in our community.

Thank you for the work you’re already doing and for your continued partnership in this effort. If you have questions or would like support prioritizing next steps, contact the ITS Accessibility team at ITAccessibility@uconn.edu.

Modernizing Identity and Access Management

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ITS has started the multi-year project to modernize identity and access management (IAM) at UConn.  This project involves three major changes: evolution of identity data, implementation of SailPoint for access management, and a transition to Microsoft Entra for authentication.  When completed, the University will have a more robust, secure IAM system that will improve performance and reliability for application owners and end users. Continue reading →

New Block Editor and Theme in Aurora

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ITS is announcing recent advances to Aurora, the University’s WordPress-powered web content management system. The Web Development team has introduced a new block editor and in conjunction with it, theme for new accounts.
The block editor gives site administrators, editors, and contributors a “drag and drop” interface that lets them build and design their web sites using a modular system of blocks. A block can be a wide range of elements, such as a paragraph, video, image, or button, and can be individually styled and configured (e.g., color, font size, padding, alignment).  You can also create “patterns,” reusable elements or pages, that can be added to designs. The block editor has various accessibility enhancements built into it, including color contrast, alternative text, and selectable header levels.
The theme provided with the block editor is called Cynder.  It has a light palette similar to our classic editor-based theme Beecher Stowe. With Cynder, you can choose font pairings and accent colors to customize the look and feel of your site. The theme adheres to UConn brand standards and incorporates some elements of UConn’s new branding campaign.
Additional information about the new editor and theme is available at aurora.uconn.edu. You can also attend Brian Dunnigan’s presentation, “A more efficient website building experience with Cynder and the new block editor” at this year’s Technology Day on June 3rd. If you are not attending in person, you can stream the session live; this link is available at: https://its.uconn.edu/technology-day-2025/