LMS IT Systems Administrator (Program Administrator IV)

State of Maryland; Baltimore (MD); Hybrid; USD 95,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

Leave accrual

Hybrid work model

Job summary

Maryland State Department of Education is seeking an experienced IT professional to serve as the in-house technical platform owner for the agency’s LMS, a SaaS solution. The role focuses on identity management, API integrations, security, and vendor relations to support professional learning and compliance programs for 133,000 school employees and board members across 24 LEAs.

The position is hybrid eligible and reports to the Director of IT Operations.

Qualifications

• Five or more years of IT administration experience.
• Experience administering an enterprise SaaS LMS (Canvas preferred).
• Experience governance, vendor management, and security/compliance.

Responsibilities

• Identity and access management for ~133,000 users across 24 LEA systems and MSDE identity infra.
• Design and maintain LMS integrations via REST API, LTI 1.3/Advantage, and automated scripts.
• Platform administration, configuration, governance, and policy evaluation.
• Monitor platform health, security compliance, and integration pipelines; respond to anomalies.
• Manage vendor relationships and SLA compliance; escalate issues as needed.
• Coordinate with program offices to deliver technical platform infrastructure for MSDE programs.

Skills

IAM administration

API integration

SaaS LMS administration

Vendor management

Governance & compliance

SSO / identity federation

Technical documentation

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT/CS

Tools

Canvas LMS

SSO providers

Job description

Introduction

The Maryland State Department of Education is dedicated to supporting a world-class educational system that prepares all students for college and career success in the 21st century. With excellent stewardship from our divisions, we oversee State and federal programs that support the needs of a diverse population – students, teachers, principals, and other educators throughout Maryland.

GRADE

22

LOCATION OF POSITION

Nancy S. Grasmick Building
200 West Baltimore Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201

(Hybrid eligible; on-call availability required for production deployments and critical incidents; Global Protect VPN required for all MSDE system access)

Main Purpose of Job

This contractual position serves as MSDE\'s in-house technical platform owner and primary administrator for the agency\'s enterprise Learning Management System (LMS), currently deployed as a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) instance. The position is organized under the IT Branch (the IT Branch) and reports to the Director of IT Operations.

This is a new position being established in the IT Branch. It is distinct from an existing LMS administrator role within the Chief Academic Officer\'s organization, which carries curricular and programmatic responsibilities. This position carries no curricular responsibilities. Its scope is exclusively the technical platform: the infrastructure at the application layer, the identity and access management systems, the integrations, the security and compliance posture, and the vendor relationship. The two roles are complementary and are designed to work alongside one another.

MSDE\'s LMS is the technical infrastructure platform on which the Chief Academic Officer\'s program offices deliver professional learning, educator development, and compliance-related programs to approximately 133,000 school employees and board members across Maryland\'s 24 local education agencies (LEAs). This position is responsible for maintaining a well-governed, reliable, secure, and technically excellent platform on which those programs can be delivered. The incumbent works alongside Canvas-knowledgeable non-IT program staff in the Chief Academic Officer\'s organization as the IT technical primary and platform authority.

Core responsibilities

• Identity and access management (IAM) for a user population of approximately 133,000 school employees and board members residing across 24 separate LEA-managed identity systems as well as MSDE\'s own identity infrastructure; integration and API administration; platform administration, configuration, and governance; operational monitoring, reporting infrastructure, and security compliance; day-to-day vendor relationship and contract monitoring; platform readiness and technical onboarding; and Tier 2/3 internal support escalation. This position does not hold server administration or infrastructure ownership responsibilities -- infrastructure and hosting below the LMS application layer are the responsibility of the LMS vendor (SaaS host), DoIT, and MSDE\'s Infrastructure Branch. The incumbent may work in server-side environments as required by integration and automation duties, in coordination with those parties. This position is a critical enabler of MSDE\'s obligations under Education Article Sections 7-2201 through 7-2204, Annotated Code of Maryland (Chapter 634, Acts of 2026 -- the Artificial Intelligence Ready Schools Act), COMAR Title 13A, and other applicable reporting requirements.

• Integration administration and API management – Design, implement, and maintain all technical integrations between the LMS and MSDE enterprise systems including SIS data pipelines, HR identity feeds, educator certification systems, and third-party instructional tools, using LMS REST API, LTI 1.3/Advantage, SIS import/export, and scripted automation (PowerShell, Python).

• Platform administration, configuration and governance - Maintain LMS application configuration at the platform level: manage global settings, feature flags, authentication providers, sub-account hierarchy, notification templates, and platform-wide policies. Evaluate LMS feature releases and quarterly updates; assess impact on existing configurations, integrations, and active programs

• Platform monitoring, reporting and security compliance - Maintain continuous operational monitoring of LMS platform health, availability, API performance, SIS sync status, and integration pipeline integrity; establish alerting thresholds and respond proactively to anomalies before they affect program delivery

• Vendor relationship and contract monitoring - Serve as the primary day-to-day technical liaison to the LMS vendor for all operational and support matters; manage support ticket lifecycle; escalate stalled or critical issues to the Director of IT Operations and vendor account management

• Platform readiness, LEA technical support, escalation and documentation - Coordinate with the Chief Academic Officer\'s program offices and Canvas-knowledgeable program staff to deliver technical platform infrastructure for new or expanding MSDE programs

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Experience:

• Five (5) or more years of direct professional IT administration experience, including three (3) or more years administering an enterprise or multi-tenant SaaS LMS (Canvas strongly preferred), with governance and vendor-management responsibilities
• Experience establishing platform governance (access, roles, provisioning) and building reporting and analytics on usage, compliance, and performance for program and executive stakeholders
• Experience managing vendor relationships and contract/SLA compliance for a SaaS product, including SSO/identity federation in a multi-organization environment
• Strong written and verbal communication supporting both executive-level and working-level stakeholders across multiple organizations
• Demonstrated ability to adapt to shifting priorities and changing organizational needs

DESIRED OR PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

Preference will be given to applicants who possess the following preferred qualification(s). Please include clear and specific information on your application regarding your qualifications.

• Instructure Certified Canvas Administrator (ICCA) credential or equivalent
• Experience in a K-12 state education agency, higher education institution, or similar large multi-organization environment
• Knowledge of WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards as applied to LMS environments
• Experience with Canvas Data / Canvas Data 2 or integrating LMS data with a BI/reporting platform

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Applicants must consent to State and FBI (CJIS) background check as a routine procedure for all employees.

BENEFITS

Contractual employees who work for an agency covered under the State Employee and Retiree Health and Welfare Benefits Program, have a current employment contract and work 30 or more hours a week (or on average 130 hours per month) may be eligible for subsidized health benefits coverage for themselves and their dependents. As a contractual employee, you will be responsible for paying 25% of the premiums for your medical and prescription coverage, including any eligible dependents you have enrolled. The State of Maryland will subsidize the remaining 75% of the cost for these benefits. You can also elect to enroll in dental coverage, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, and life insurance, but will be responsible to pay the full premium for these benefits.

Leave may be granted to a contractual employee at a rate of one hour for every 30 hours worked, not to exceed 40 hours per calendar year.

NOTES

FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS

It is preferred that applicants complete the MD State Government online application for employment. The application must clearly demonstrate that the applicant meets the minimum qualifications for the position. If you are unable to apply online, paper applications can be obtained from the link below and be faxed to 410-554-9397 or mailed to MSDE Human Resources Branch, 200 W. Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. If there is a supplemental questionnaire, this must be completed and sent in with your paper application, if you are unable to apply online.

All application materials must be received in our office by the closing date. Postmarks will not be accepted. Applications must be complete to be considered including all related job duties, even if those are also listed on an attached resume. Additional required materials may be uploaded with the online application, submitted to the fax number, or mailed to the Human Resources address listed above.

Inquiries can be made to 410-767-0012, TDD 410-333-3045. Appropriate accommodations can be made for individuals with disabilities.

If you have difficulty with your user account or have general questions about this online application system, please contact the MD Department of Budget and Management, Recruitment and Examination Division at 410-767-4850. TTY Users: Call via Maryland Relay.

Proof of eligibility to work is required in compliance with the Immigration Reform and Control Act. Any misrepresentation of academic or experience requirements for this position may result in non-selection or termination of employment.

As an equal opportunity employer, Maryland is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting employees who are reflective of the State’s diversity. People with disabilities and bilingual candidates are encouraged to apply.

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