ACES - Home page
On the ACES homepage, you will find many helpful links and resources. Let's take a look from left to right.
Alamo GPS
You will be accessing Alamo GPS when you advise students. This link contains degree plan info and information to help students navigate through their programs and degree plans.
Alamo Colleges Emergency Notification System
Take a moment to click this box in the middle and learn how to update your emergency contacts, email addresses, and phone numbers so you will receive notices such as school closures and other emergency info. The actual place where you will update the info is in the Employee tab, Web Services.
Canvas Student Resources
This box, in the right column, is labeled "Student" resources, but there is a lot of helpful info here for faculty, too.
- The Quick Guide is a short training course to introduce students to Canvas and its frequently-used tools.
- Technical Resources is a VERY helpful page with information about browsers and pop-up blockers. Send students here first when they tell you that they "click on my course but nothing happens."
- College Resources is a link to all student-related college services such as Advising, Financial Aid, the Library, the Access Office, etc.
- User Guides will link you directly to all the great Canvas user guides and videos--a "must-visit" resource anytime you need help using Canvas.
The Upper Right Corner
Icons! You've seen 'em, but have you ever clicked 'em? You may or may not see all of these:
The most important one is your Alamo email (E-mail).
The Alamo email is the account that you should use for all correspondence with students and other NVC employees. Why?
- Your Alamo email is the official account that can be accessed to provide a record of communication between faculty and students.
- All official notices such as reminders of grading due dates, hiring and pay information, on-campus events, notices from your chair or discipline coordinator, etc., will come through your Alamo email.
- ** Email from other accounts (for ex., Yahoo, gmail, Hotmail, Roadrunner, ATT, and other work accounts) often gets caught by the spam filter or sent to the Junk folder. So you may not receive correspondence from students, and your own correspondence may not be received when you use email accounts other than Alamo email. **
The next most important icon is Logout. Please remember to always log out of ACES, especially when you are using a shared computer such as those in classrooms and labs.
Finally, notice the Help button in the upper right corner. This is a good place to get help using ACES.