There are two types of "roles" within Canvas: account-level roles, and course-level roles. This KnowledgeBase article addresses account-level roles. For further information on course-level roles, see Canvas - Course Roles and Permissions [UW-Madison]

Account-Level Roles

The UW-Madison instance of Canvas is divided into several hundred sub-accounts. They are arranged in a "root" format: Each node on that root structure is called a sub-account, and each sub-account can be further divided into additional sub-accounts.

Those sub-accounts can be managed and accessed by individuals who have been assigned one of UW-Madison's six account-level roles. Each role has varying levels of permissions regarding several administrative functions. The table below summarizes the distinctions between the roles by focusing on three key functions:

• the ability to view and edit content
• the ability to add and remove people
• the ability to view and enter/edit grades

Below the table, we provide descriptions of and sample use cases for each role.

Sub-account Administrator

This is the highest-level of sub-account access hosted at UW-Madison. The sub-account administrator is typically departmental IT staff who provide Canvas consulting and support for instructors, as well as maintain account-level activity and settings for their school or department. The Sub-account Administrator is the only sub-account role that has access to Canvas Analytics. 

Sub-account Instructor Associate

A sub-account instructor associate has a lot of power within a sub-account, and (as the name would imply) could be someone whose responsibilities included supporting instructors as they develop Canvas courses.

Sub-account Support

The sub-account support role can help develop content and manage people within the Canvas courses, but is not involved with or have access to grades. 

Sub-account Designer

Canvas courses often need instructional technologists to develop professional content: pages, quizzes, assignments, discussions, etc. The sub-account designer applies skills and insights to develop more engaging and efficient learning experiences in the sub-account's courses.

Sub-account Grade-Viewer

The sub-account grade-viewer will often serve as an academic advisor, to check-in on student progress and consider whether some support intervention is warranted. However, they are not involved in the development of course content.

Sub-account Observer

As the name implies, the sub-account observer is a very hands-off role. Such an individual may perform quality assurance checks or departmental accreditation evaluation of course content. They only need to see content in the course, and nothing more: no editing permissions, no interest in or adjustments to enrollments, and no interest in seeing grades.

Required Training

Learn@UW-Madison requires training for most of these roles. The amount and nature of training depends on the nature of the permissions granted. The training comes in two forms:

1. FERPA training, as sponsored by the UW-Madison Office of the Registrar.
2. Canvas Sub-Account Admin training, as sponsored by Learn@UW-Madison

The first two roles -- Sub-Account Administrator and Sub-Account Instructor Associate -- requires the completion of both training courses.

The next three roles -- Sub-Account Support, Sub-Account Designer, and Sub-Account Grade Viewer -- require the completion of only the FERPA course.

The last role -- Sub-Account Observer -- does not require any training.

Access to both training courses will be provided upon completion and submission of the Canvas Sub-Account Access Request Form, below.

Other Account Roles

For high-level administration purposes, the UW-Madison Canvas administrator also supports four account-level roles. These roles are fairly uncommon, and apply to very specific support needs.

• API/Service: Account role used to integrate with SIS.
• DoIT AT Support Staff: Role used by DoIT Academic Technology staff to support faculty, students, and staff.
• DoIT Help Desk 1: Role used by DoIT Help Desk Level One staff and Help Desk Level Two student employees.
• DoIT Help Desk 2: Role used by DoIT Help Desk Level Two staff.

Requesting Canvas Sub-Account Permissions

To apply for any of these Canvas sub-account roles, fill out the Canvas Sub-Account Access Request Form. Requests must be approved by a departmental authority and may take several business days to process. For more information, or to followup on a request, contact learnuwsupport@wisc.edu.