We are recommending that parishes set up their domain for email hosting with either Google Workspace for Nonprofits or Microsoft Office 365 for Nonprofits, both of which are available for FREE after registering with an organization named TechSoup. Please follow these steps:
1) Register as a Nonprofit with TechSoup
Register for an account with TechSoup to get started.
TechSoup is an industry standard for nonprofit technology services. They are the official authorizing agent for many technology companies to verify that an organization is a registered nonprofit, and it is the first step for you to take in the migration.
a) For GOA Parishes ONLY
GOA parishes may use a special sign-up form to register quickly and easily with TechSoup. Please email us at [email protected] and we will send you the link to the form.
b) For Non-GOA Parishes and Other Nonprofits
All non-GOA parishes and other nonprofits should register directly with TechSoup directly on their website:
https://www.techsoup.org/joining-techsoup/registration
You will need your organization's EIN to continue. If you are a parish of another jurisdiction, you must have a unique EIN for your parish, not the shared EIN of your jurisdiction.
Account approval may take up to 10 days.
2) Register as a Nonprofit with Google or Microsoft or Both!
After your TechSoup account is confirmed, register for a nonprofit account with either Google or Microsoft:
a. Google for Nonprofits: https://www.google.com/nonprofits
b. Microsoft for Nonprofits: https://nonprofit.microsoft.com
As part of the set up process for Google for Nonprofits, you will be asked to enter the TechSoup Validation token, which can be found here: https://www.techsoup.org/support/validation-tokens
You can learn more about TechSoup’s other free and discounted products at: https://www.techsoup.org/services
To register with Google for Nonprofits:
A) Get your Validation Token from TechSoup
- Log into your new TechSoup account
- Go to the Validation Tokens page (https://www.techsoup.org/support/validation-tokens)
- Click on "Google for Nonprofits" link
- Choose "United States" from the first pulldown menu and then click "Enter"
- Click "Log in with Techsoup.org" and log in again (this is a different site than step 1)
- Click on your Parish name. If you don't see your Parish listed, click on "I don't see my organization" and follow the steps to add it
- Click "I agree" and "Continue"
- Click the "Copy" button to copy your validation token to your computer's clipboard
B) Register with Google for Nonprofits
- Visit https://www.google.com/nonprofits/ and click Sign In. Use any Google account to sign in.
- The system will then walk you through the steps to request access. One of the steps will ask if your organization has a TechSoup account. After saying Yes, the next step will be to enter the Validation Token from part A above.
After completing this process, you will then have to wait a few more days for Google to approve your account. Following approval, the final step will be to connect your Google for Nonprofits account with your Google Workspace account. You'll log back into Google for Nonprofits and follow the steps within the "Activate Products" link.
To register with Microsoft for Nonprofits:
To register with Microsoft for Nonprofits, visit https://nonprofit.microsoft.com/ and click "Register Now". Follow the steps to complete the registration. Once approved, you will hear back from the Microsoft Nonprofits team
3. Sign up for Google or Microsoft's Email Service
Once the Nonprofit account with either Google or Microsoft is verified, you'll then need to register your domain for using Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 email hosting. Continue reading the following articles .
Next Steps: Google Workspace
Next Steps: Microsoft 365