Since GRCC’s migration to the Google platform, both Google Hangouts and Google Chat services have been available to use. Both toolsets offer similar functionality, however due to prior limitations, Google Chat could not be used to communicate with students. Because of this we had recommended that Faculty use Google Hangouts to communicate with their students.
It was recently announced that Google Hangouts is scheduled to be retired from service by Google sometime this year, because of this, we recommend migrating from Google Hangouts to Google Chat.
Because of the pending retirement of Google Hangouts and understanding how the tool is used at our institution, the IT department has enabled chat conversations with users outside of the grcc.edu domain through Google Chat.
What does this mean? You can now use Google Chat to communicate with students. This is a great option for quick communications with your entire class, or to establish an ongoing flow of communication throughout a semester.
Take a look at our instructional video for more information on creating rooms, adding users, and starting a conversation.
Access Google Chat at chat.google.com
