Category: Uncategorized

Quick Check: Outlook Time Zone Settings to Avoid Missing Your Advising Meeting

Posted on by Katrina Frank

A Message from the Director of Advising

Hi, Students! This is Lesley Clinard the Director of Advising.

We’ve heard from some students who have missed advising (or other) meetings because Outlook or Bookings was set to the wrong time zone. When this happens, meetings may appear at the wrong time, even if the calendar invite looks correct.

Before scheduling or attending an advising appointment, please do this quick check. This only takes about a minute and can prevent missed meetings.

Lesley Clinard, Director of Advising

Quick Check Steps

Check your Outlook time zone

  1. Open Outlook on the web and click the Settings icon (top right)
  2. Go to General
  3. Select Language and Time
  4. Make sure your time zone is set to Eastern Time
    • If it’s not, select Change, update it and Save
the "Language and Time" screen on Outlook for the web.

If your advisor uses Bookings…

  1. Look for the time zone label/icon on the booking page (for example: “All times shown in Eastern Time”)
  2. Use the time zone dropdown if available
  3. Confirm the meeting time in your Outlook calendar after booking

Note: If your time zone is incorrect, your meeting may appear at different times on your and your advisor’s calendars.

emphasis of the time zone icon in Microsoft Bookings.

Need Help?

For help with Outlook and Bookings settings: Contact the Help Desk at Help.Desk@kzoo.edu

For advising questions: Message me, Lesley Clinard, directly in Teams.

Outage – Microsoft Cloud Services

Posted on by Peter Zillmann
warning icon

Information Services is monitoring an outage in Microsoft’s cloud services. According to Microsoft, “Users may be seeing degraded service functionality or be unable to access multiple Microsoft 365 services.” For updates on this outage please feel free to check Microsoft’s Service Health Status page.

6 for 2026

Posted on by Katrina Frank

This week we are highlighting 6 resources that are aimed at improving collaborative efforts and creating efficiencies.

Comment with an IS resource that you enjoy using.

1. Community Pages

Did you know there’s a quick way to get IS information based on the type of community member you are? Check out our student, faculty, and staff pages to find your resources much sooner.

2. Project Intake Form

Coming soon!

In IS we are working diligently to implement a more structured approach to collaborating with campus offices regarding projects with technology component/impact. Stay tuned for details on the new Project Intake Form.

3. Acquisition Policy

Are you a faculty or staff member looking to implement new software and technology? Before you select that “checkout” option or sign that contract, be sure to follow the College’s acquisition policy to ensure the right technical solution.

4. New Teammates

Soon you will see a handful of new faces in IS! While we’ll do our best to introduce our new colleagues, be sure to check out our IS staff and Library staff directories to see our full IS team.

5. “New” Phone System

Last quarter the College underwent a big migration from handheld phones to Teams Phone. Refresh your memory on how to use Teams Phone through our Phone Services page.

6. Cybersecurity

Stay alert and stay safe by following best practices relating to information security.

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Cybersecurity Tip: Multifactor Authentication

Posted on by Katrina Frank
a graphic representing three trick or treaters holding a shield that spells MFA.

Be Prepared…

Get ready for those harmful hackers looking to get control of your accounts and add an extra layer of security by enabling multi-factor authentication.

Cybersecurity Tip: Password Power!

Posted on by Katrina Frank
an adorably illustrated Kalamazoo College knight serving as the password manager and a large shield representing strong passwords.

Strong Passwords and Password Manager

Don’t get tricked and instead treat the security of all of your accounts equally. No matter how unimportant you think your account may be, hackers find value in everything.

Tips and Tricks

Password Creation

  • Hackers don’t hack in, they log in. Protect your passwords by making them complex and unique to each website.
  • The wilder, the better! A long, complex password is your first line of defense against hackers.

Memorizing and Storing Passwords

  • Do you find yourself clicking “forgot your password” again? Let a password manager remember it for you! By storing your login info in a vault, you’ll never forget it.
  • Give your memory a break and store multiple passwords in one password manager. Doing so is more secure and strengthens your defenses.

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Spooky Season is Upon Us and So Is…

Posted on by Katrina Frank

Cybersecurity Awareness Month

Let’s avoid cybersecurity nightmares and prepare for this spooky season and beyond.

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month where Information Services will share some tips to keep the phishing phantoms, horrid hackers, and the malicious malware away.

Subscribe to get your tips this month!

an adorably illustrated Kalamazoo College knight swatting away a cyber threat with a fly swatter.

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“Calling” All Faculty & Staff

Posted on by Katrina Frank
recycling bin full of old Cisco phones.

Phone Collection Has Begun!

The anticipation is over because Information Services (IS) has begun the process of collecting old handheld phones.

For the next few weeks, IS will be visiting offices and collecting all Cisco handheld phones to dispose of properly. If you missed past announcements regarding this migration to Teams Phone, you can catch up on our Phone Migration page.

If you haven’t dove into using Teams Phone, now is the time! Visit our Phones Services page for a video tour, instructions, and other ways to get used to using Teams Phone.

Questions?

Please contact the Help Desk via email at HelpDesk@kzoo.edu.

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Phone System Reminder to Staff and Faculty

Posted on by Katrina Frank
Microsoft Teams Phone logo

Friendly Reminder:

Over the summer the College migrated over from the handheld telephone system to Microsoft Teams Phone.

To allow for proper documentation and disposal, we have not unplugged or collected your old handheld telephones. Further communications will be sent out to coordinate the handheld telephone pick-ups. In the meantime, check out the following tips to get started using the new system.

Calls

  • Making a Call – Incoming and outgoing calls can be received and made via the Microsoft Teams app on your College issued device such as a desktop or laptop.
  • Avoid – We recommend that you do not use your Cisco IP desk phones to make a call. Although it may be a comfort, you will risk a call or voicemail not going through to the receiver.

Hardware

  • Requesting Hardware – If you find that you need a headset to take your calls. Please note your pain points and reach out to the Help Desk (HelpDesk@kzoo.edu) so we can offer you a headset or find another solution.

Training and Resources

Review the following pages on our website to gain more insight into the project and instruction on how to use the new system.

  • Phone Migration Project – Provides details on the project itself including FAQs and links to instruction.
  • Phone Services – For instructions on how to use Teams Phone visit the Phone Services page.
  • Phone Guides – Check out these instructions to learn the ins-and-outs of Teams Phone.

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Today is the Day! It’s Phone Migration Day!

Posted on by Katrina Frank

Making the Switch

Hello Faculty and Staff!

This morning, after 9 a.m. the College’s aged telephone system will be replaced with Microsoft Teams Phone. With Teams Phone, employees can place calls and receive calls outside of the College. Faculty and Staff can also expect many new services and features like setting unique voicemails, receiving voicemail transcriptions and messages via email, and more.

Note: The best way to seek help if you are having issues with Teams Phone during this migration is to email HelpDesk@kzoo.edu with a description of your issue and our computing team will get back to you as soon as possible. 

Things to Note and Explore

Taking Calls

  • Taking calls via Teams app – Most faculty and staff will not have a traditional desk phone. Instead, you will use Teams Phone which works within the Teams app on your computer or smartphone. 
  • Old Phones – Cisco IP desk phones will no longer be in use after the transition. These phones will be collected by IS staff for proper disposal.
  • Personal Phones – You are not required to use your personal cell phone to answer Teams calls. If you choose to have the Teams app installed on your phone, there are settings for whether and when you want it to ring. Please work with your supervisor to determine the expectations for your availability.

Hardware

  • Hardware during initial set-up – We recognize that with this change some may be in need of a headset or desk phone. Before submitting a request for hardware, we ask that you try to use Teams Phone as is for the initial period of time to evaluate how your set-up is functioning for you.
  • Requesting Hardware – During this time please note your pain points and if you feel that you need additional hardware to make your set up more functional, please reach out to the Help Desk (HelpDesk@kzoo.edu) so we can work with you to find a solution.

Training and Resources

  • Phone Migration Project – Provides details on the project itself including FAQs and links to instruction.
  • Phone Services – For instructions on how to use Teams Phone visit the Phone Services page.
  • Phone Guides – Check out these instructions to learn the ins-and-outs of Teams Phone.

Phone Support

We anticipate supporting a lot of community members today, with that said, we ask if you are having issues with Teams Phone during this migration is to email HelpDesk@kzoo.edu with a description of your issue and our computing team will get back to you as soon as possible. 

Don’t Wait! – Action Items for Campus-wide Phone Migration

Posted on by Katrina Frank

Hello Faculty and Staff!

Beginning 9 a.m. on Wednesday, August 27th the College’s aged telephone system will be replace with Microsoft Teams Phone. The new Teams Phone service will enable our community to keep call features as our old system as well as allow calls to be placed and received outside of the College. Faculty and Staff can also expect many new services and features like setting unique voicemails, receiving voicemail transcriptions and messages via email, and more.

To make this switch as painless as possible, all faculty and staff should take care of the action items listed below.

For questions on this project, please email HelpDesk@kzoo.edu.

Immediate Action Items – Don’t wait!

  • Retrieve any of your voicemails that you want to have from the old system since they will not migrate to Teams Phone. Review Cisco Phone Documentation for instruction to access your voicemails.
    • Want to save your voicemail, but don’t know how to? – Sometimes the simplest tech is the right tech! Simply play your voicemail on your College phone and use personal cell phone recording app to capture and save.
  • Verify and set up your voicemail in Teams. This needs to be done BEFORE the switch date so you can start receiving voicemails in the new system as soon as the switch takes place at 9 a.m. on August 27th.

What to Expect on Switch Day

Date and Time: Wednesday, August 27th – 9:00 a.m.

  • Starting at 9 a.m. off campus calls to your Kalamazoo phone number will now ring on your computer and any other Teams app that you have installed and set up (mobile, laptop, etc.)
  • If you have Teams set up on other devices you can also utilize Teams Phone there in your Call tab. If you need to transfer calls between devices that can also be done easily.
  • Old desk phones should not be used after 9 a.m. Please keep your old phone plugged in so IS can disconnect and collect outdated hardware. It is important that you do not unplug your old phone since it could impact how your office computer works.

Additional Resources