Hi @DebraPierce ...
Are you working within the Canvas FFT (Free For Teacher) version of Canvas, or does your school have a paid Canvas environment? If you are working in a FFT version, it would have the URL:
https://canvas.instructure.com/
But, if you have a paid environment, it will look similar to:
https://SchoolName.instructure.com/
...where SchoolName is the name of your school.
In paid Canvas environments, many schools have their Canvas admins set up their users outside of courses. Many times, Canvas admins will work with the school's IT department so that student names/e-mail addresses can be passed from their SIS (Student Information System) to Canvas. Then, once the users are created outside of courses, then those users are enrolled in Canvas courses with roles of Students, Teachers, TAs, etc.
If you can help us identify if you are using FFT or a paid Canvas environment, that would help for context. Looking forward to hearing from you soon...
