Preamble

The resources of EagleNet, Juniata's computer network, are provided to the Juniata College community to further the goals of the College as set forth in the College mission statement.

Effective use of e-mail requires the cooperation of all members of the community.  It is important that each member of the community be aware of individual obligations and what constitutes proper use.

This document is to be considered a part of the code of behavior of each student and employee of Juniata and as such is to be an implicit part of any student or employee handbook.  The policy is subject to change. All members of the Juniata community are expected to remain familiar with all current policies.

Guidelines for Mass E-mail

An array of methods to communicate with campus constituencies is available to members of the Juniata community, including:

  • E-mail,
  • The Arch and Daily Announcements,
  • Traditional paper-based mail distributed through the campus mail system,
  • Institutional social media sites,
  • The Calendar of Events,
  • P drives and web space on the college’s central servers, and
  • Moodle, our course management system.

In general, e-mail should be directed at individuals and specific groups of individuals when there is information to share that is relevant to all individuals included. E-mail sent to campus wide distribution lists should contain information relevant to the majority of the members of that list and should be relevant to College business. Announcements, events, meeting notices, solicitations, items for sale, statements of opinion, and discussions are not generally considered to fit these criteria. The following guidelines are intended to provide clarity:

  • Solicitations for contributions, charities, and/or participation in personal activities not related to Juniata’s mission or not sponsored by the College are not appropriate.
  • E-mail directed to all members of the Juniata community, or to all members of a major sub group (faculty, administration, and students), is appropriate when an emergency or urgent need exists. Examples include security matters, information about campus-wide closings and/or delays, and official administrative notifications of relevant information as determined by the President, the Vice Presidents, and/or the Director of Human Resources.
  • General announcements and non-emergency information that does not affect the entire campus should be distributed through the Daily Announcements process or on appropriate web and/or social media sites.
  • An individual’s failure to plan does not constitute an emergency or state of urgency, and last minute announcements are generally not allowed.
  • Information about events connected to or supported by Juniata should be posted on the Campus Calendar.

Rules for Mass E-mail

  1. Never send a mass e-mail by choosing everyone in the Global Address List.  Always use a combination of the four major distribution lists (Administration, Faculty, HR-NonCollegeEmployees, and Students).
  2. Never use the reply-all command to respond to an announcement broadcast through a distribution list.  If you want to comment on an announcement, reply directly to the sender.
  3. Never send more than two mass e-mails regarding the same subject.  Mass e-mail is a powerful tool.  Using it ensures that your e-mail is going to reach everyone on campus. 
  4. Do not place a mass e-mail at the ‘high importance’ level using the exclamation point unless it REQUIRES ALL individuals on campus to aware of the contents.
  5. Never use mass e-mail for personal announcements and opinions. 
  6. Do not allow anyone to have access to your e-mail account for any reason.  It is each user’s responsibility to protect his/her account.
  7. Never use mass e-mail for personal business or commercial purposes.
  8. Make sure all information within the e-mail is accurate before sending it out to eliminate the need for re-sending corrections.
  9. Always include an applicable subject field.  The subject should reflect directly on the contents of the e-mail.
  10. Avoid the use of extremely large fonts and using all capital letters.

Compliance

Members of the campus community are expected to use good judgment when contemplating the use of mass e-mail, so approval by a College officer is not required. We do strongly encourage those anticipating the need to communicate with the entire campus, or with an entire subgroup, to contact their area VP prior to sending the e-mail to obtain support and guidance.

ITLS will provide feedback when the above guidelines or rules are disregarded:

  • 1st time – notification with copy to the appropriate VP.
  • 2nd time– notification with appropriate VP.
  • 3rd time – Access to lists removed.

The use of distribution lists by faculty and staff may be approved by the President, the Vice Presidents, the Director of Campus Security, or the Director of Human Resources prior to use. Student use may be approved by the Provost or the Dean of Students.  An e-mail posted to a distribution list that includes language indicating that an appropriate official approved the note in advance will not be questioned; however, the above guidelines and rules should be observed.

Revised:  6/19/17