  Higher educational institutions continuously look for ways to improve the
quality of their eLearning services and adapt learning solutions to suit the
needs of the institution. During the 2016 Fall Semester, a university located
in the Southern part of United States decided to transition from the Blackboard
learning management system (LMS) to the Moodle learning management system.
Typically such a transition presents a huge challenge for the University staff,
faculty, and students. Additionally, on August 2016, what CNN themedthe worst
natural disaster, to strike the United States since Hurricane Sandy, occurred
in Louisiana during the transition. This led to massive disruptions in
activities throughout the state. This paper examines the perceptions of both
faculty and student on the transition from one LMS to another and also what
impact, if any, the natural disaster had on the process. Faculty and students
were surveyed to gain understanding of how they perceived the transitioning
process, their perception of both systems, their preferences, and why.
Furthermore, we identified issues peculiar to transitioning during a natural
disaster. The results of this study can be used to anticipate issues that may
be associated with transitioning from one LMS to the other and issues peculiar
to transitioning amidst a natural disaster. It can also be used to identify
areas for improvement.
