1 — PREAMBLE
While electronic mail is a convenient method for distributing a single message to a large number of persons ("bulk e-mail"), most members of the community want the number of such messages controlled.
2 — PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to provide that control.
3 — POLICY
Computing Services will provide permanent mass e-mail privileges to departmental representatives authorized by a vice-president. These individuals may send bulk e-mail messages to the following target groups: all students, all staff/faculty, or both.
However, a departmental representative normally will not send more than one such message per event and normally will only send a bulk e-mail message if the following conditions are satisfied:
- the message is for departmental business;
- the message is of concern to most members of the target group;
- the event is not one that can be, or would normally be, publicized through the Marketing and Communications Office;
- the subject line reveals the message's content; and
- the message is as brief as possible, with longer messages posted to a web page with a link from the bulk e-mail message.
For the purposes of this policy, University-related organizations, such as the the Mount Allison Students' Union (MASU), may be considered University departments.
Individuals or organizations who wish Computing Services’ assistance to send bulk-email messages to all students, all staff/faculty, or both, for purposes other than departmental business may be permitted to do so as provided in Section 4 below.
Individuals or organizations who create their own bulk e-mail lists must restrict the members of their lists to those members of the community who are interested in receiving their messages.
4 — PROCESS FOR INDIVIDUALS OR ORGANIZATIONS
Any member of the University community (student, faculty, staff, organization) may obtain one-time access to send a mass e-mail to all students, all staff/faculty or both that fits the criteria set out in section 3 (numbers 2, 3, 4 and 5) and that in most cases pertains to Mount Allison.
They may obtain this access by contacting the Marketing and Communications Office with a draft of the message.
The Marketing and Communications Office will review the message and edit it for length, grammar, and content to ensure the message fits with policy guidelines. If the message is approved, Marketing and Communications will authorize its distribution and Computing Services will then contact the sender with instructions for sending the message.
Computing Services and the Marketing and Communications Office try very hard to approve messages on a timely basis but the sender must allow at least two hours during normal University office hours for the account to be set-up and the mass e-mail to be distributed.
Actual messages are monitored against approved messages. Senders are removed from the mass e-mail access once their message is sent.
5 — ENFORCEMENT
Members of the University Community who believe that this policy is being violated can address their concerns to the help desk at Computing Services.