Frequently Asked Questions about Western’s Policy on Official Email to Students

1.   What qualifies as official email to students?

2.   Is email sent to faculty and staff addressed by this policy?

3.   How do I go about sending official email to students?

4.   How can I look up student MyWestern email addresses?

5.   How can I send targeted group email messages so that students cannot see the email addresses of other recipients?

6.   Is there a limit on the number of names that can be placed in the TO: field?

7.   Can I send a notice to ALL students?

8.   What if I’m having trouble using BullsEye?

9.   Can I include an attachment with email messages sent to targeted groups of students?

10.  Is there a template for these messages?

11.  Is there a character limit in the subject line?

12.  When does a new student become responsible for reading official email messages?

13.  Are students responsible for reading e-mail over breaks or intersession?

14.  How do students know about this policy?

15.  Why do students have to activate their Universal Account?

16.  Can a student access Web4U through MyWestern?

17.  Is there a way to confirm that an e-mail account is active?

18.  Is it possible for a student’s MyWestern email inbox to become full, and if it does, what happens?

19.  Does ATUS monitor full mailboxes?

20.  How should our department respond to a student stating, “My mailbox was full and I didn’t get your message”?

21.  Can students forward their email from MyWestern to a different account?

 

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1.   What qualifies as official email to students?

• Each office determines which messages are to be designated as official. These will be identified by the words “WWU Official Notice - < topic>” in the message subject line.
• Messages designated as official should be limited to communications with individual students that have been traditionally sent on university or departmental letterhead.
• Departments are encouraged to limit the number of such official notices.

2.   Is email sent to faculty and staff addressed by this policy?

No; this policy applies only to email sent to students.

3.   How do I go about sending official e-mail to students?

There are three options:

• Send email messages to students via your regular office email system. When sending a group message, enter the addresses in the bcc (blind carbon copy) field to protect the privacy of recipients.
• Individual messages to large numbers of students can be sent via an email merge. For instructions, see Microsoft Word’s online help (enter “distribute merged e-mail” in the Type a question for help box), or view a WWU training video on the subject at www.acadweb.wwu.edu/atus/onlinetraining/Word/EmailMerge/EmailMerge01.html.
• A third option is to use BullsEye, Western’s targeted messaging system, available at http://bullseye.wwu.edu/. This system offers the ability both to send e-mail to students at their assigned MyWestern email address and to post announcements on the MyWestern portal. It is easy to use and is accessible to all faculty and staff. Predefined target groups include students by major and course. Other target groups extracted from Banner can also be used (for information regarding access to Banner, contact Administrative Computing Services, x.4444).

4.   How can I look up student MyWestern email addresses?

Individual MyWestern email addresses can be obtained from Banner form GOAEMAL. Targeted group email addresses can be obtained from the Student Data Warehouse via BI/Query. For information regarding access to these tools, contact Administrative Computing Services, x.4444.

5.   How can I send targeted group email messages so that students cannot see the email addresses of other recipients?

• Individual messages to large numbers of students can be sent via an email merge. For instructions, see Microsoft Word’s online help (enter “distribute merged e-mail” in the Type a question for help box), or view a WWU training video on the subject at www.acadweb.wwu.edu/atus/onlinetraining/Word/EmailMerge/EmailMerge01.html.
• Students cannot see the addresses of other recipients of messages sent via BullsEye.

6.   Is there a limit on the number of names that can be placed in the TO: field?

The limit on the number of addresses that can be placed in the TO: field in Outlook is 320. There is no limit when sending targeted messages from BullsEye.

7.   Can I send a notice to ALL students?

• Any email message sent to the entire Western student body requires prior approval from the office of the Vice President for Student Affairs and Academic Support Services. These messages should address emergency, time sensitive, and safety related topics. Contact the Special Assistant to the Vice President, Sara Wilson, (x.3839) for approval.
• As an alternative to email, departments may use BullsEye to post an announcement pertinent to the entire student body on the MyWestern portal. To post a general announcement on MyWestern (as distinct from a “personal” announcement targeting one or more specified students), you will need to be added as a member to the relevant messaging group; contact ADMCS help at x.4444 for more information. Once your account has the required permission, open the BullsEye messaging wizard at http://bullseye.wwu.edu/ and follow the directions for posting an announcement to all users of MyWestern.

8.   What if I’m having trouble using BullsEye?

Review the online help first (click on the icons). If you are still having trouble, contact the ATUS Help Desk (x.3333 or atus.helpdesk@wwu.edu).

9.   Can I include an attachment with email messages sent to targeted groups of students?

Yes, but avoid sending large attachments or attachments with graphics in targeted group emails. Use of links to web pages that contain pertinent information is encouraged. (Note: Attachments cannot be sent using BullsEye; you must use web links instead.)

10.  Is there a template for these messages?

All official correspondence is to have “WWU Official Notice - < topic>” in the subject line (if you are using the BullsEye messaging wizard, these words will be automatically added to your message when you check the “Official Notice” box). At the end of the message, include contact information (i.e., contact person, office name, address, phone number, etc.)

11.  Is there a character limit in the subject line?

The subject line can be up to 255 characters long, but in practice the maximum readable length is about 40 characters (including 29 characters for “WWU Official Notice - ”).

12.  When does a new student become responsible for reading official email messages?

Students are responsible for reading official email correspondence on or after their first day of classes. However, caution should be used during the first two weeks of the quarter as some new students may not activate their MyWestern accounts immediately. All new freshmen and transfers are informed how to activate their accounts prior to the beginning of classes. (Seventy-five percent of all new fall 2003 students had activated their accounts by September 4, 2003.)

13.  Are students responsible for reading e-mail over breaks or intersession?

Although students are responsible for reading all WWU Official Notices, caution should be used sending messages during intersession or summer break. Some students may not have access to computers during these times and they may not access their accounts again until classes are in session.

14.  How do students know about this policy?

Students are notified of the University’s policy on Official Email when they activate their Universal Account. In addition, University Residences informs all new students who have registered their computer on the residential network. A notice has also been posted on the MyWestern portal.

15.  Why do students have to activate their Universal Account?

Students must indicate that they have read and agreed to the University’s Acceptable Use policy before they are permitted to access university computing resources. They also create their universal password when they activate their account.

16.  Can a student access Web4U through MyWestern?

The Web4U and MyWestern accounts are separate and each requires a different login and password. Students can access Web4U from their MyWestern account, but they need to enter a different password.

17.  Is there a way to confirm that an e-mail account is active?

Students have been informed that they are responsible for the information included in WWU Official Notices, and they are provided with information on how to activate their accounts. In exceptional circumstances, Technical Services can be requested to determine the date a student last logged in to their mail account, but in general it is not practical to do so.

18.  Is it possible for a student’s MyWestern email inbox to become full, and if it does, what happens?

It is possible for a student’s email inbox to fill. In such cases, any further emails that are received will bounce back to the sender’s “reply-to” address. Departments are responsible for determining if further action is appropriate to inform an affected student of information included in a WWU Official Notice.

19.  Does ATUS monitor full mailboxes?

ATUS does not monitor full mailboxes. There is an indicator on the student’s MyWestern page which shows when a student is filling up their quota.

20.  How should our department respond to a student stating, “My mailbox was full and I didn’t get your message”?

Email will bounce back to the “reply-to” address if a student’s mailbox is full. Each department can determine whether to accept or reject the ‘mailbox is full’ explanation.

21.  Can students forward their email from MyWestern to a different account?

Students may have email that is sent to their official MyWestern email address electronically redirected to a different account (e.g., @aol.com, @hotmail.com, or an address on a departmental server), but they do so at their own risk. These risks can include lost mail or lost attachments due to: being over quota at the remote site; loss of remote service for business reasons; or delayed delivery. The University will not be responsible for the handling of email by outside vendors or by departmental servers. Having email redirected does not absolve a student from the responsibilities associated with communications sent to his or her official MyWestern email address.

Read the Official Policy Statement and Guidelines