Using Technology Off Campus – Faculty – Information Technology Division

Where to Call for Support?

The University and its IT services teams are available to support students, faculty and staff.
Faculty/Staff in the Feliciano School of Business (SBUS), College of Education and Human Services (CEHS) and the College of Science and Mathematics (CSAM) should contact their local academic technology teams during their scheduled business hours and may contact the IT Service Desk, outside of normally scheduled business hours. All other faculty/staff (in the College of the Arts (CART), College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) and the School of Nursing) and all non-faculty across all Divisions can receive support through the IT Service Desk by calling 973-655-7971, by emailing itservicedesk@montclair.edu, or through our Online Chat.

If I Do Not Have Workstation at Home

If you do not have access to a University laptop or personal workstation/device and must access applications or shared drives remotely, contact the University IT Service Desk. As the University has a limited number of spare laptops available, Dean/VP approval will be required. Email the itservicedesk@montclair.edu with your request, including your Dean/VP’s approval.

No Internet Access at Home

If you do not have internet access, we advise that you contact your cable and cellular telephone service providers to see if there are any free or reduced pricing internet access options being made available.
Many internet service providers (ISP) and cell phone companies are offering Free or Low-Cost internet for K-12, Colleges and Universities that are affected by closures due to the Coronavirus. Please contact your current phone carrier or some of the local companies to see if you are eligible for some of the plans.
We have researched some options and listed them on the Internet Access and Hotspot page.
It is also possible to enable “hot spots” on mobile phones (in effect setting up a local wifi network that rides on top of cell data – so not preferred because it is slower and more expensive than “real” wifi connections). If you do not have better options to obtain wifi access, you can call your carrier to enable “hot spots.”

Hosting/Participating in Audio/Video Conferences

You can use Zoom to conduct audio and video conferences over the Internet, using just a computer, without using a cell phone voice or data plan. All Faculty, Staff and Students have access to Zoom for an unlimited time. You will be able to access Zoom and login with your Montclair Google credentials (lastnamef@montclair.edu, password).

Enable Zoom Passwords

Use a password to keep your Zoom meetings private. Learn how to use your Zoom password to manage meetings.

Enable Zoom Waiting Room

Attendees cannot join a meeting until a host admits them individually from the waiting room. If the Waiting room is enabled, the option for attendees to join the meeting before the host arrives is automatically disabled for all meetings.

Sign in to Zoom and access the Settings tab.
Click on the In Meeting (Advanced) option.
Search or scroll to find the Waiting Room option.
Toggle the button next to the Waiting Room to enable this feature.

Generic Accounts and Zoom

For security purposes, generic accounts should not be used to log into Zoom. All Zoom accounts must be claimed by a current Faculty, Staff, and or student.

You can use zoom in Canvas as well by posting the zoom link in your Canvas course. Faculty are also able and encouraged to use Canvas Conference which is more seamlessly integrated into Canvas. Read more on how to hold virtual sessions with Canvas Conferences. If your computer does not have a camera you can utilize the camera on your smartphone in order to be visible when using Canvas Conferences or Zoom.

Support for Teaching

Instructional Technology & Design Services (ITDS) provides faculty support for teaching and learning. Some resources are highlighted below. Visit the ITDS website to find additional services and information.

ITDS Consultations

Instructional Designers are available to meet with you to discuss your course(s) and provide guidance on designing your course, instructional strategies, instructional technologies and more.
You can set up a one-on-one appointment with one of our Instructional Designers using the ITDS Appointment Scheduler.

The Office of Faculty Advancement (OFA) also provides support for faculty. Visit the OFE website for more information.

Adobe Creative Cloud

The University has received an exception through Adobe to allow us to extend Adobe Creative Cloud to our students through May 31, 2020. For students to gain access, please have them go to https://creativecloud.adobe.com and login. Please review full directions before logging in. Full directions can be found under the Teaching and Learning Technologies tab on the IT website.

Accessing Voicemail from Off-Campus

You can access your voicemail remotely by dialing 973-655-5323 and following the prompts.
You can also email itservicedesk@montclair.edu with a request to forward your voicemail to your email. Include your name, NetID, office extension, and Montclair State email address. We will assist.

Accessing Shared Drives Remotely

If you need to access your “O” or “N” Drive from off-campus, you will need to log into Citrix. Alternatively, before you leave campus, copy any files that you need to your Google Drive.
Please Note: Any files that contain sensitive information (PII or FERPA) should not be copied to your Google Drive.

Accessing Applications Remotely

You can access many applications remotely through your web browser, just as you would from on campus. You can access Canvas, Workday, NEST and the New NetID account management center for changing passwords just as you would on campus. Citrix is needed if you need to remotely access to the below applications:

Share Drive Access (O: and N: drives)
Tableau
Banner (including Document Management)
Course Submission Database
Program Assessment Database
Voicemail Portal
PeopleSoft
Cognos
Blackboard Transact (SDCL)
Titanium (Health Services only)
Contract Assistant (Procurement only)
Tax Navigator (Accounts Payable only)
Accounts Payable checks to network printers (Accounts Payable only)
Galaxy
NJFAMS (Financial Aid Office only)
COD (Financial Aid Office only)
CPS (Financial Aid Office only)

Upon connecting to Citrix, these can all be accessed remotely, as usual via the web browser.

Microsoft Office on Home Computers

All Montclair State University faculty, staff and students can download a free copy by signing up with your Montclair email account at Microsoft Office 365 Education web page.

Installing Software Remotely on my University Issued Laptop

For all computers imaged by IT or a local academic technology department, you can install approved software without administrative rights by going into the software center.

Windows 10: Read Windows Navigation Document for directions (pages 5 – 8).

Mac: Read Mac Self-Service Document (Document under revisement) for directions.

Installing Software not Listed on the Software Center

If the software is not listed and you have a license and download for the software, please contact the IT Service Desk or your College or School’s technology team to help you install it remotely.

Installing Home Printers on my University-owned Laptop

We have preloaded a number of the most commonly used printers into the operating system. Please try to install the printer and if you have an issue, contact the IT Service Desk or your College or School’s technology team.

Browser Updates on Non-MSU-Managed Workstation

We recommend only updating your browser from the vendor and not any 3rd party sites as these sites could prove to be a security risk. Please click on the browser name below to find out how to perform the update.
Google Chrome | Microsoft Edge | Microsoft Internet Explorer | Mozilla Firefox | Safari

Communicating with Students or Coworkers Without Using Personal Cell Phone Number or Billing

If faculty and advisors need to call students from a personal phone and want to block their phone number when making outbound calls, most cellular providers support dialing *67 before dialing the outbound number. This will make your CallerID appear as “No Caller ID.”

Faculty and advisors can also use the Slack instant messaging application to send short communications to other Slack users. Montclair State has created a Slack “Workspace” that can be used by faculty and advisors to communicate with coworkers as well as students. You can join the montclairstate.slack.com Workspace.

Security Tips

With the increased use of remote access during this emergency period, it is important to remain mindful of ways to minimize the risk to University and personal information. Please visit the Security Guidance for Flexible Working page for tips for safer remote computing.