Table of Contents
What Alumni Will Retain with the Gmail Only License
What Will Be Affected (Features Alumni Will Be Losing)
Action Required: Data Migration
Support and Questions
This article is to inform Baker College alumni of an upcoming change to their Google Workspace for Education account provided by Baker College. This transition is a direct result of upcoming changes from Google regarding their Workspace for Education services, which include new restrictions on storage space and a shift away from previously free unlimited accounts. To better align resources and services, and to ensure active accounts are maintained and data is managed efficiently, Baker College will be transitioning all alumni accounts from the Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals license to a Gmail Only license. This change also allows the college to enforce a lifecycle on accounts to purge old data, ensuring compliance and efficient resource allocation.
This change will take effect on Monday, February 2, 2026. Baker College understands that changes like this can impact the digital experience of alumni and wants to ensure they are fully prepared.
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Gmail: Alumni will continue to have access to their Baker College alumni email address and all existing emails.
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Google Calendar: Alumni will retain access to their Google Calendar for scheduling and events.
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Google Meet: Alumni will still be able to host and join video meetings using their Baker College alumni account.
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Google Contacts: Alumni contacts will remain accessible.
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Google Groups: Alumni will retain access to Google Groups.
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Google Takeout: Alumni will continue to be able to use Google Takeout to export their data.
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The Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals license provided a comprehensive suite of tools. With the transition to the Gmail Only license, alumni will lose access to the following services and their associated data:
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Google Drive: This includes all files and folders stored in My Drive, Shared Drives, and files shared with alum. This encompasses Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Drawings, and other file types.
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Google Photos: Any photos or videos stored in Google Photos under the Baker College alumni account will become inaccessible.
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Google Chat: Access to chat history and new chat functionality will be discontinued.
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Google Sites: Any websites created using Google Sites under the alumni account will become inaccessible.
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Other Core Google Workspace Applications: Access to other applications such as Google Keep and Google Jamboard will also be removed.
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YouTube: Access to an alum's channel and any other content, subscriptions, and history associated with it will be inaccessible.
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It is critical that alumni migrate any important data from these services before Monday, February 2, 2026. After this date, data associated with the discontinued services will no longer be accessible.
We recommend the following methods for data migration:
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Google Takeout: This tool also allows users to export a copy of their data from their Google account, including Google Drive and Google Photos. Visit takeout.google.com to begin the process.
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Manually Download Files: For Google Drive, alumni can manually download individual files or folders to a personal computer. For Google Photos, alumni can download albums or individual photos.
Please ensure all necessary files, photos, and other data have been downloaded or transferred before the deadline.
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Alumni who have questions about this transition may contact the IT Help Desk. For assistance with data migration or any other concerns, please contact the IT Help Desk at ITSC@baker.edu or call 1-800-645-8356.
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