"There was a quiz yesterday?! I didn't know that....how can I make it up?"

"I was sick and didn't know how to contact you-what's your e-mail address?"

"I left a message with the office-didn't you get it?"

It's a safe bet that virtually all MCC faculty have heard those phrases, or at least variants of them. Communicating announcements and other info to students is a challenge, especially when they aren't captives in a classroom (and even when they are). Students often have a similarly tough time communicating with their instructors. Voice mail, leaving messages with a department office, slipping a note under the office door, and the old hang-around-outside-in-the-hallway-and-wait-for-him-or-her-to-(hopefully)-show-up routine are frequently frustrating and often ineffective.

The MyMCC Portal Makes E-Mail Easier

E-mail has made it much easier for students and instructors to communicate, and the MyMCC Portal builds upon its advantages. As long as an instructor and student have access to a computer--any computer--with an internet connection, there is very little excuse for either party to not be able to communicate. The MyMCC Portal gives you INSTANT e-mail access to any student who enrolls in one of your courses, and he or she has INSTANT access to you and the other students in that section-provided that all parties have set up their FREE (as in no charge) MCC e-mail accounts.

Just Log On Using Your Internet Browser

Instructors and students simply have to log on to the MyMCC Portal using their Internet Browser (links to the portal are located at numerous locations throughout the MCC website). After entering your user id and password (which you generated when creating your MCC e-mail account), click on the "MYCLASSES" link. You'll then see a listing of all the courses you're teaching. Next to each course listing is a "View Course Tools" link. Click on that and you'll see an array of tools available for that particular course. If you've never done this before you might get intimidated and confused. Don't be. All you're worried about for now is the "Class Roster," so click on that link. The next page you'll see includes your e-mail address, the e-mail addresses (and other contact information) for every student in that course (provided they have set up their MCC e-mail account), and perhaps most important of all, a link that allows you to send an e-mail message (such as a reminder that the quiz is tomorrow or that class is cancelled because you'll be attending the upcoming "D-Backs ARE World Series Champs" victory parade) to every student in the course. If a student is having trouble and you want to help, but you don't want to wait until the next class meeting, or you simply want to avoid the awkward situation of discussing a problem with one student while other students are milling around waiting to talk with you, the "Class Roster" provides you with instant e-mail access to that student. As for students, they no longer have an excuse for not contacting you-they can no longer say, "I forgot your e-mail address," because it's sitting right there in the MyMCC Portal.

If you haven't already done so, take the MyMCC Portal for a drive. You'll enjoy the trip: MyMCC Portal