Semiotics, Church & Culture

NOTE: If you encounter any problems with your George Fox issued username and/or password, please contact our IT Service Desk for help: servicedesk@georgefox.edu or 503-554-2569

• Survival Guide - This resource provides an overview of all online platforms that you will use in the program.

• Disability Services - access the Disability Services Office (DSO) website for information about disabilities and to arrange accommodations with the University.

To get set up for participating in the online portion of your Doctor of Ministry in Semiotics, Church & Culture, please work through the tutorials below:

• MyGeorgeFox - Used to register for courses, access your financial information, grades, and manage personal information. 

• webservices.georgefox.edu/class - Access this site to view the official course schedule.

• iGFU - A mobile-based portal with information about course schedules, student contact info, and campus information. 

• Email - Used for official communication from the University to you.

• Library Resources - Used for research while creating your Project Portfolio

  • Project Portfolio

    • libguide for Project Portfolio

    • 45-minute video overview of the Project Portfolio libguide

    •  biblical research libguide

  • Dissertation Sequences

    • libguide for Dissertation sequences

    •  biblical research libguide

• Research sequence platforms: 

  • Dissertation (Cohort 17 and earlier):  Google Classroom is the platform for the dissertation research process. This replaces Classic Google Sites, which will be discontinued Nov. 1, 2021. Each student has a "private student gClassroom" for use in the dissertation phase (DMIN 800, 805 / 900, 905). All materials from the research courses (DMIN 713, 723, 733, 743 / 702, 712, 802, 812) and the individual work with their faculty advisor for their customized courses (DMIN 716, 726, 736, 746 / 701, 711, 801, 811) has been loaded to a Google Drive folder. A link to this folder is included in the new gClassroom individual site. Comments from the Classic Google site may be lost in the conversation process, unfortunately. 

  • Project Portfolio (Cohort 18 and later) - Google Classroom is the platform for all Project Portfolio work (DMIN750-951). The gClassroom is organized as follows: 

    • Access: https://classroom.google.com/

    • Login: George Fox University username and password

    • Organization: 

      • Stream: This functions like a Facebook Wall where you can post comments or files and respond to comments by others. All interaction over the entire time of the program will be housed here in reverse chronological order. Use this space for communication and coordination. 

      • Classwork: Each course that you will be taking until graduation is listed here. The planned date for the next course is included. These can always be adjusted if needed. Just let us know. For each course, all syllabi, assignments, samples, and rubrics are included. At the bottom, we have ONE assignment submission tool per course. Use this to submit all assignments, including multiple drafts for each course. When you submit, your advisor will be notified (via GFU email, or an alternative private gmail if we have added it) that something is ready for review. When they return their feedback to you, you will be notified. The course site also shows if assignments need to be reviewed or have been returned. 

      • People: This lists persons who have access to the gClassroom site and their status. 

      • Tutorial: How to upload an assignment for review and feedback: https://bit.ly/3mAtbcG

• Google Drive:  Note that it also allows students to create google docs, spreadsheets, etc. It also provides a space for students to store files. Google Drive lets users upload files up to 5TB in size. Tutorials for how to use google drive functionalities:

  • • How to add comments  to a MS Word file or gdoc in gdrive

    • How ‘suggest changes’ to a MS Word file or gdoc in gdrive

    • 3 Options for interacting with posted files: 

    • How to retrieve accidentally deleted files

    • Setting up gfolder notifications at the top level (for students and Project Faculty)

• Zoom - Web conferencing tool utilizing audio, video, and text chat. Used as the primary space for your weekly, synchronous chats with your Lead Mentor and your cohort, or monthly small peer group sessions with your Project Faculty (Cohort 18 or later).

  • Program Zoom Account: The program provides a single zoom account for the regular chats with the course instructors and Peer Group sessions with Project Faculty. The ID is located within the course site on FoxTALE. 

  • Student Zoom Account: In response to COVID, the University now provides a 'Pro Account' to all students. To activate your account, go to login.georgefox.edu and sign in using your GFU username and password. Next, click on the Zoom app button and convert (if needed) your account to a Pro Version. This would give you the same type of account that faculty and staff have. This access is available for the foreseeable future. See the guide, Zoom Web Conferencing, for details on Zoom features.

  • Faculty Zoom Account: Like students,  adjunct faculty have access to a Zoom licensed (formerly pro) account. In some instances, faculty working with the department through an external organization may not. To check, using your GFU credentials, go to login.georgefox.edu, It you do not have a Zoom link on their page, then you do not have access to a Zoom account.

• Canvas - The course management system used for asynchronous class engagement/weekly posting. This is where you will find course schedules, assignments, syllabi, and forums for your asynchronous discussion posts. 

• Canvas Plagiarism Check- The Turnitin Similarity Report is a tool available to you in your Canvas site for Project Portfolio Milestones.