Faculty Technology Resources

MxCC provides technology resources to keep faculty connected to the college and offers online support in various capacities. Faculty use NetID and password to log on to campus computers as well as access campus secured wireless network, MyCommNet, Faculty Self-Service, Blackboard Learn, library databases, Office 365 (College Email, MS Teams, OneDrive), and WebEx. If you encounter a problem using NetID and password, you may visit this page for troubleshooting or contact MxCC IT help desk at (860) – 343 -5711.

Download our Faculty Technology Resources for in-depth information, including how to log on to myCommNet, navigate myCommNet, Faculty Self-service, and library databases. Visit the About MyCommNet page for more information on your NetID and password.

MxCC EMail

While on a teaching contract with MxCC, you are issued a college email account. Your email address is as follows:
First initial of your first name followed by your last name @mxcc.commnet.edu. For example, if your name is Jane Smith, your email address would be jsmith@mxcc.comment.edu. It is expected that you check this account regularly to ensure you receive important college communications. There are three ways to check your email:
(1) Open a web browser such as Google Chrome, go to https://portal.office.com. Enter your NetID and 8+ character password. When first time logging on, you may be asked to choose a time zone.
(2) Log on to a campus computer with your NetID and password. Open Microsoft Outlook.
(3) Log on to myCommNet, click on email icon Launch Outlook Web Access link.

MyCommNet

MyCommNet is an entry point to access Faculty/Student Self-Service, Blackboard, Library Databases, and college Email. MyCommNet gives you access to:
* view teaching schedule, class rosters, and student information,
* send email to all students in your courses,
* check your college email,
* use Blackboard for courses,
* view course evaluation result,
* access library databases from off-campus and more!
To log on to myCommNet, go to my.commnet.edu and enter your NetID and password.View Video Instruction on How to Log On to MyCommNet.

Faculty Self-Service via MyCommNet

Located on the Faculty tab within myCommnet, Faculty Self-service enables faculty to access rosters, class information, and enter grades. Sign into myCommNet to access Faculty Self-service. Click on the Faculty tab and click Faculty Self-service. Click on Middlesex Community College link. This will bring you to a menu of items available in Self-service. Click any link to view records.For instructions, click the desired links:
View/Update Email in Blackboard
View/Print Rosters and Email to Students
View and Print Faculty Schedules
Enter Final Grades
View Course Evaluation Result

Library Databases via MyCommNet

Located within myCommnet, faculty, staff and students can access library holdings, ebooks, perform searches through inter-library loan and access the library’s scholarly journals. Sign into myCommNet to access the Library. Click on the My Library Info tab and choose Middlesex Community College Library. Click on the tab of Find Books & Videos to look for books and videos. Click on the tab of Find Articles to find all databases categorized by subject. Click on Find Websites to look for web pages. More information about library databases can be found at the MxCC Library site.

Blackboard via MyCommNet (Alternative address to Blackboard – https://ctccs.blackboard.com)

Each credit and non-credit course has a “course shell” in Blackboard, MxCC’s online learning management system. Blackboard is used for fully online, hybrid, and on-ground courses with features of syllabus, lecture notes, announcements, messages, gradebook, and tests. You will access your Blackboard shell by signing in to myCommNet and clicking on the Blackboard in the middle-center of the page. Then you will see the Blackboard Institution Page. Click on Courses. Within seven days of courses starting, you will see the courses listed. To view more courses, select a semester at upper left or click on the pull down arrow next to Current Courses, select a semester. Click on a course name to enter the course. Faculty can use Blackboard Collaborate Ultra to deliver a live/remote online class (LRON) or do virtual office hours. The Blackboard Collaborate Ultra tool can be accessed by clicking on the Virtual Classroom link on the Course Menu in a Blackboard course shell.

Blackboard training is available by clicking on Institution Page – scroll down, under Faculty Resources. Training workshops in Blackboard are offered throughout the year. For schedule, visit Technology Training page or Technology Boot Camp page. Video instructions on how to work in Blackboard are available here. All faculty have access to Course_Design_and_Delivery_Competencies course on the Blackboard. Click on Courses at Blackboard Institution Page and you will see this course. This course has instructions and tutorials on how to use various features of Blackboard. Blackboard Mobile Learn provides you information on how to use Blackboard using mobile devices.

Office 365 Advantage Program

Office 365, a suite of online services are available to all faculty.

Office 365 Email: Email account with 25 GB (gigabytes) of storage, calendar, contact info, to-do lists, etc.
Office 365 ProPlus: The Office suite including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote which you can install on up to 5 devices including Macs, PCs, and tablets with Android, Windows, and even iPads and iPhones.
MS Teams: Instant messaging, online audio and video calls and meetings, screen sharing, and integration with Office apps such as Outlook, Word, and PowerPoint. If faculty uses MS Teams to offer class meetings, a class team needs to be created by faculty first. More information about how to use MS Teams can be fond at MS Teams FAQs.
OneDrive for Business: Store, sync, and share your files online. As part of Office 365, OneDrive for Business provides 1TB of online storage, lets you update and share your files from anywhere, and work collaboratively on Office documents with others at the same time. There is an MX- Employee’s Team for all MxCC employees that you will access various academic and administrative information.

You can access Office 365 in two different ways:

Login directly on the Microsoft Online Portal.
Access from within my.commnet.edu. View a tutorial on how to access from within my.commnet.edu

WebEx Conferencing System

WebEx is a video/audio conferencing platform that allows faculty to host an online meeting for a class or virtual office. You will log on to WebEx at ctedu.webex.com using your NetID and Password. To host your online meeting, we recommend you use a trusted brand of headsets – Plantronics or Logitech with USB connection. For video feed, your computer needs to have a build-in camera or an attached webcam.

To learn how to use WebEx to host a meeting, here are the tutorials:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmAFsK4a4rSZ9-MhREY4zJ80nDuEjtk-o

Technology Workshops and some college events hosted at MxCC are done via WebEx. The following instructions guide you through how to prepare for joining workshops or meetings using your desktop or laptop computer.

You may download a WebEx app to your mobile device and join the meeting using the app.

Library Research Help on Blackboard

Every MxCC student and instructor is enrolled in the Blackboard course MxCC – Library – Research Help. Here you can find:- How to access the library resources from home
– Information about library services for distance learners
– Online research tutorials
– How to contact the library for help.
– Here’s how to access:- Login at my.commnet.edu with NetID and password.
– Click on the Blackboard icon. Popup blockers need to be disabled. Click on Courses.
– Click on MxCC – Library – Research Help.

Campus Computer Labs & Secured Wireless Access

Computer labs are available on the Middletown campus and Platt High School Media Center. Computer lab hours are determined on a semester basis. Open hours are posted in labs. Computers can be used by any faculty member who has an active NetID and password.

Middletown
Wheaton 305- Open Computer Lab with PCs and Macs
Chapman 610 and 612 – Open Mac Lab
Chapman Learning Commons– Open Lab with PCs and Macs. Open Access Area with PC’s and Macs, and Classroom as posted

All buildings in Middletown campus have a secured wireless network that requires you to log on with your NetID and password. You may use your laptops or mobile devices in any buildings.

Pegasus Green – Learning Space in College Library

Located in the college library, Pegasus Green is a learning space with six rooms supported by Connecticut Board of Regents’ 21st Century Classroom Funds. Its purpose is to provide physical and virtual learning environments for faculty, students, and staff to encourage collaborations, explore emerging technologies, and inspire academic excellence. Equipped with modern technologies, the rooms maybe used by groups or individuals in developing and rehearsing presentations, video recording and production, virtual orientations, training and tutoring, web conferencing, and overall green initiatives.

To book a room, contact a library staff at the library front desk, email to mx-library@mxcc.edu, or call 860-343-5830. For detailed room features, please go to Pegasus Green site.