Blackbaud FAQs

Event Setup

Why are some of my time slots yellow?

Yellow time slots indicate that the scheduled time has already passed.

These slots:

If the slots were created on the wrong date, you can delete them or move them to the correct date.

Future time slots appear in blue and remain available for booking and blocking.

Quick Reference

Issue

Solution

SKY Importer missing

Enable “Use SKY API, Importer”

No events available

Create a PTA Event

User has no access

Verify Blackbaud roles

Parents not reaching event

Verify SSO configuration

Blackbaud user not found

Verify matching User IDs

Daily sync emails

Disable Sync Notifications

Yellow time slots

Slots are in the past

Getting Started

Do I have to connect to the SKY API?

Yes. pickAtime now requires the Blackbaud SKY API for all Blackbaud integrations — legacy (non-SKY) integrations are no longer supported.

To use Blackbaud SSO and data imports, you must:

  1. Install the pickAtime application from the Blackbaud Marketplace.
  2. Connect your account to the SKY API.
  3. Configure your SSO settings.
Why is there an SSO Login URL?

The SSO Login URL — found under Global Setup / Business / Show Advanced Options / Single Sign On Options / Blackbaud — is used when an administrator's session expires.

Rather than requiring admins to re-initiate SSO from scratch, pickAtime redirects them to this login page so they can quickly regain access.

I'm ready to test my event. Why can't I or our test parent access pickAtime from the Resource Tile?

This is usually an SSO configuration issue. Check the following:

Import Errors & Troubleshooting

Error: "User has no access."

This error means the Blackbaud account doesn't have the required permissions.

Confirm the user has:

⚠️ After updating permissions, you must log out of Blackbaud and log back in for the changes to take effect.

Error: "Error during obtaining Year/Term list from Blackbaud SKY API. Response Code: Unauthorized."

This is the same underlying issue as above — your account doesn't have access to the required SKY API products. Follow the same steps: confirm the user has a valid BBID, the appropriate admin role, and the SKY API Data Sync role. Contact your Blackbaud administrator if permissions need to be updated.

⚠️ After any role change, log out and log back in.

Error: "Error during obtaining 'selected term' list... Response Code: NotFound. Details: One PodLookup Service returned a 404."

This indicates a problem with the production environment and the SKY API — it's not a pickAtime configuration issue.

Fix: Contact Blackbaud directly to resolve this.

Error: "Error during obtaining OfferingType list from Blackbaud SKY API. Response: Forbidden." (with server error pop-up)

Blackbaud has added a scopes check to their API. This error means the pickAtime application either has insufficient scope permissions, or a Blackbaud Environment Admin hasn't yet approved the app's updated access configuration.

For more information, see Blackbaud's documentation: https://developer.blackbaud.com/skyapi/docs/applications/scopes

Fix: Have your Blackbaud Environment Admin review and approve the application's scope configuration.

I completed an import, but no data appears.

The most common causes are:

Fix: Verify your event type, school year, and term selection, then run the import again.

Managing Imported Data

How do I add a teacher without running another import?

  1. Go to Events Management / Class Editor.
  2. Click Add Teacher/Team → Add Teacher.
  3. Locate or create the teacher in the dialog.

The teacher can then be assigned classes manually.

How do I add a class without running another import?

  1. Go to Class Editor and select the teacher.
  2. Click Add Class and enter the class information.

The class saves automatically and is immediately available for scheduling.

To manually add students to the class:

  1. In Class Editor, select the class.
  2. Click inside the student entry field, begin typing the student's name, and select them when found.
  3. Press Enter.

Repeat for each student. For large rosters, you can alternatively disable the Blackbaud Importer and import tab-delimited .txt files instead.

See also: Modifying Enrollment Data, Modifying Teacher or Room Data

Can I switch from the Blackbaud Importer to file imports?

Yes — you can disable the Blackbaud Importer and use tab-delimited import files instead. This can be useful when manually maintaining data or troubleshooting import issues.

Resource Board

Parents can access the Resource Tile, but teachers can't (or vice versa).

Work through the following checks in order:

  1. Go to Core / Security / Authentication Settings / SSO Settings and review the pickAtime SSO settings.
  2. Go to Core / Content / Additional Content Types / Links and check the Category Settings for the pickAtime SSO link.
    • If the category is set to Secure, confirm the correct roles are added. If not, add them and test.
  3. Click the category name to see all links in it.
  4. Click Edit Link and confirm:
    • The Publish date is earlier than today's date.
    • Copy the Destination URL for use in the next steps.
  5. Go to Core / Content / Resource Boards, click Edit Post, and confirm the Category and Category Link match those from step 4. Send the direct SSO link to the affected parents/teachers to test it directly.
  6. Go to Core / Users, find the affected user, and open their Contact Card / Access tab. Review their Personas and Roles.
  7. Click Employment → Edit and confirm they have the correct roles assigned.

Parents

Parents receive "We do not have that email in our database."

When the Blackbaud integration is active, parents can only access pickAtime through the Blackbaud Resource Board — not by logging in directly at pickatime.com. Direct them to use the Resource Board or SSO link instead.

Can parents log in directly through pickatime.com?

No. When using the Blackbaud integration, parents must access pickAtime through the Blackbaud Resource Board or SSO link.

Setting Up the SKY API Importer

I connected pickAtime through the Blackbaud Marketplace, but I don't see the SKY Importer.

The SKY Importer must be enabled manually:

  1. Go to Global Setup / Business / Show Advanced Options / Single Sign On Options / Blackbaud.
  2. Check "Use SKY API Importer."

The importer will now appear in the Importer section.

I added an event, but no events are available to import.

Blackbaud imports only work with PTA Events. If your event was created as a Normal or Simple PTA event, it won't appear in the importer.

Fix: Create a new event using the PTA Event type and run the import again.

What Blackbaud roles are required to use the SKY Importer?

The account running the import must have:

⚠️ If you recently received a new role, log out of Blackbaud and log back in before attempting the import.

Single Sign-On (SSO)

Single Sign-On (SSO)

What's the difference between the SSO URL and the Redirect URL?

  SSO URL Redirect URL
Purpose Where users are sent after signing out or when their session expires — must include login info Used by Blackbaud during the authentication process
Use for Resource Tile? ✅ Yes — always use this ❌ No

Your SSO URL looks something like: https://11451.myschooldemo.com/app/sso/auth/pickatime

It's located under Core / Content / Additional Content Types / Links. To construct it, combine the first portion of your Blackbaud URL with the second portion from your SSO link (see step 5 of SSO Settings).

What should my SSO key look like?

The SSO Key is exactly 88 characters. A common issue occurs when extra characters are accidentally added after the trailing ==.

The key should end at == with nothing after it, and must be no longer than 88 characters total.

 

SSO Error Messages

"The integration with pickAtime is not set up correctly"

Your vendor ID has been appended to the end of the Secret Key (Global Setup / Business / Show Advanced Options / Single Sign On Options / Blackbaud).

Fix: Remove any characters after the == — the key should be exactly 88 characters with nothing following ==.

"Failed to get Blackbaud Account Information"

Your SSO URL may be incorrect. Confirm you're using the SSO URL, not the Redirect URL.

Your SSO URL should look like: https://11451.myschooldemo.com/app/sso/auth/pickatime

(Found under Core / Content / Additional Content Types / Links — combine your Blackbaud base URL with the path from your SSO link.)

If the URL is correct, also confirm your SSO Key is exactly 88 characters.

"Failed to get Blackbaud user"

pickAtime can't communicate with Blackbaud for this user.

Fix: Confirm the user exists in both systems, and that their User ID matches in both.

"Blackbaud user not found"

pickAtime couldn't find a matching user record.

Fix: Verify that:

"pickAtime user not found by Blackbaud userID"

The Blackbaud User ID couldn't be matched to a Parent ID or Teacher ID in pickAtime.

Fix: Confirm the same User ID exists in both systems.

Sync & Notifications

Will I receive daily sync emails?

No — pickAtime only sends a notification if a sync error is detected.

How do I change who receives sync notifications?

  1. Go to Global Setup / Business / Integration Options.
  2. Locate Notification Contact(s).
  3. Check the name(s) of the admin(s) who should receive notifications.

How do I disable automatic Blackbaud synchronization?

Click the blue button in the upper-right corner of the Importer page to log out of the Blackbaud Importer connection. Once disconnected, automatic synchronization and related notifications will stop.

Teachers

Why is a teacher being directed to the parent side instead of the Admin UI?

Teachers who are also parents are initially directed to the parent/event booking side. They can switch to the Admin UI using the Admin button on the left side of the page.

If the Admin button isn't visible: Verify that the user's Blackbaud User ID has been entered in both the Parent ID and Teacher ID fields within their pickAtime contact record.