Case Study: Utah State University achieves higher faculty satisfaction and reduced support costs with Canvas LMS

Utah State increases faculty satisfaction and decreases support cost by outsourcing support to Instructure

Utah State University’s move to Canvas drove dramatic increases in faculty use and satisfaction—about 80% of testers found Canvas easier to use—but the surge in activity (over 1,300 faculty users) created a heavy support burden. A team of eight instructional designers found their time consumed by routine LMS questions and password issues, limiting their ability to focus on course design and instructional improvement.

USU outsourced faculty support to Instructure, gaining 24/7 access to a larger support team that resolves roughly 95% of faculty issues. The change immediately freed designers to work on teaching excellence, improved staff morale, and cut support costs to less than one-quarter of the previous model, saving the university the equivalent of more than 2.5 full‑time positions.

Utah State University

John Louviere

Director of the Center for Innovative Design and Instruction