General Policies
Faculty & Staff Listservs
- In general, all SOE listservs are governed by Syracuse University listserv policies and procedures.
- This policy applies to all SOE faculty and staff who both receive SOE listserv messages and who may request a message be distributed to listservs (see Procedure for Sending a Listserv Message below).
- Any member of a listserv can send an email to that listserv email address to request it be sent to all recipients.
- As a Moderator, the Executive Assistant to the Dean gives final approval for any message sent to faculty and staff listservs.
- If a listserv email is not approved, the Executive Assistant to the Dean will work with the original sender to correct the email, explain policies, and/or offer an alternative mode of communication.
- Messages should be sent to the most appropriate list on the SOE Listserv Tree.
- Suggestions of message types for each list are offered below.
- If in doubt, ask the Executive Assistant to the Dean or Director of Marketing and Communications which list is appropriate for your message.
- Technical questions about listservs should be directed to soehelp@syr.edu.
- Only internal, official communications are appropriate for SOE listservs:
- School-wide announcements, such as academic and community events
- Personnel notices (hiring, retirement, tenure, promotion)
- Some personal notices, as determined by the Office of the Dean
- Official and administrative notices (School and University policies, business, or transactional reminders)
- Program-to-program communications (course and research opportunities).
- Given the official nature of listserv communications, all SOE faculty and staff are automatically listserv subscribers and are placed within an appropriate list.
- Faculty and staff cannot unsubscribe from a list
- If you believe you have been placed on a wrong or inappropriate list—or if you should be on a listserv but aren’t—contact the Executive Assistant to the Dean.
Student Listservs
- Student undergraduate and graduate listservs are managed by the following: Dean, Dean’s Executive Assistant, Assistant Dean for Student Success (ADSS), ACS Office Coordinator, Director of Marketing and Communications, and Director of Information Technology.
- Under normal circumstances, requests to send to the listservs should be made to the ACS Office Coordinator, cc’ing the ADSS and any other relevant ACS staff.
- In an emergency or out of hours, requests should be made to the Dean and other senior leaders who manage these lists.
- Typical messages for student listservs include School-wide events, academic opportunities (e.g., scholarships, study abroad, etc.), calls for volunteers, or career opportunities.
Alumni Communications
- All alumni communications are managed by the Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations.
- No mass communications can be disseminated to alumni except by coordinating with the Assistant Dean for Advancement and the Development Assistant.
- Because alumni communications must be carefully tracked and logged to provide advancement and development data.
- Because alumni communications policies, including use of data and privacy, are governed by SU Institutional Advancement.
- Therefore, the use of Listservs to contact large groups of alumni is prohibited.
- Faculty and staff may send communications to individual alums and small cohorts, but if in doubt contact the Office of Advancement and Alumni Relation first.
Requesting a New Listserv
- If a faculty or staff member wishes to create a new Listserv, first contact the Technology Support Group and Director of Marketing and Communications.
- This team will ascertain whether a similar list already exists, whether a new list is warranted, or whether an alternative mode of communications is preferred.
- In general, all SOE listservs are governed by Syracuse University listserv policies and procedures.
- The Technology Support Group will determine appropriate Owners, Editors, and Moderators for the new list.
- Members of the Technology Support Group must be added as list Owners.
- Refer to SU policies and procedures for proper use and maintenance of a list.
List Removal
- Lists are targeted for removal if there is no posting activity for two years.
- A list owner may also request that a list be removed by visiting the Delete List Request Form.
- If a list owner's email address is no longer valid, or the list's owner is consistently unreachable or unresponsive, the list is considered "orphaned" and is subject to immediate removal.
- We will make a reasonable effort, time permitting, to determine if the owner simply changed addresses or has left the University.
- If the owner cannot be contacted, the sponsor for the list will be contacted to determine whether the list should be deleted or a new owner designated.
- If the sponsor cannot be located, the list will be removed.
Procedures
Writing and Responding to a Listserv Email
- State concisely and clearly the topic of your email in the subject line.
- If forwarding a message, include only the relevant portions of the original message in your reply. Delete any other information, especially a long email thread and any hyperlinks that are irrelevant or suspect.
- Given the volume of emails our community members receive, messages should be as short and concise as possible.
- Include any relevant information for follow up or action (e.g., an RSVP).
- The original sender's signature block/contact information must accompany the message.
- Do not attach large files to your message (larger than 10mb).
- In this case, upload the file to Microsoft Sharepoint or Google Drive and provide a link to the document.
- Important! Do not “reply all”: Reply only to the signatory of the original message, not to the entire listserv.
- When using an Auto Reply message for when you are out of the office, please be sure to "Create a Rule" (through Microsoft Outlook’s Out of Office Assistant) that prohibits sending the message to a list.
Procedure for Sending a Listserv Message
- Any SOE community member can compose an appropriate listserv message and submit it for approval.
- Using the above policies, determine whether 1) your message is appropriate for a listserv and 2) which listserv best suits the message.
- If in doubt, contact the Executive Assistant to the Dean or Director of Marketing and Communications.
- Copy the listserv email address into the "To" line.
- Compose message taking care to 1) provide a properly descriptive subject line; 2) write a concise message with appropriate links and actions; and 3) provide your contact information.
- Listserv messages to members of the SOE community must follow accessibility guidelines, including:
- Alternative text for images
- No text-dominated images
- Accessible color contrast
- Accessible PDF documents and other attachments
- Nested headings if titles and sub-titles are used
- When you send the email, it will first go to the lists Moderators for approval.
- If approved, you also will receive the message (assuming you are a member of the listserv to which it is sent).
- If not approved, the Executive Assistant to the Dean will help you fix the email, explain why it cannot be sent to a listserv, and/or offer an alternative mode of communication.
Appropriate Messaging
SOE Community
SOE-All@listserv.syr.edu (ALL faculty, staff, and emeriti faculty)
- School-wide Event Announcements (Convocation, Welcome Back Picnic)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean)
- Some Personal News (births, marriages, deaths—as determined by Office of the Dean)
SOE-FacStaff-FT@listserv.syr.edu (Full Time Faculty and Regular Staff)
- Event Announcements (conferences, symposia, lectures)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean administrative offices)
- Personnel News (hiring, tenure, promotion)
- Some Personal News (births, marriages, deaths—as determined by Office of the Dean)
Faculty
SOE-Fac-All@listserv.syr.edu (Full Time and Part Time Faculty)
SOE-Faculty-FT@listserv.syr.edu (Full Time Faculty)
SOE-Faculty-PT@listserv.syr.edu (Part Time Faculty)
SOE-Emeritus@listserv.syr.edu (Emeritus Faculty)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean)
- Administrative Business (Associate Dean for Administration, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Associate Dean for Research)
- Program-to-Program Communications (e.g., course opportunities, calls for collaboration)
- Some Personal News (births, marriages, deaths—as determined by Office of the Dean)
Staff
SOE-Staff-All@listserv.syr.edu (Regular and Temporary Staff)
SOE-Staff-Reg@listserv.syr.edu (Regular Staff)
SOE-Staff-Temp@listserv.syr.edu (Temporary Staff)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean)
- Administrative Business (Associate Dean for Administration)
Students
gradnews@listserv.syr.edu (graduate students)
ugnews@listserv.syr.edu (undergraduate students)
- Administrative Business (Office of the Dean)
- Administrative Business (Associate Dean for Administration)
- Event Announcements (conferences, symposia, lectures)
- Academic Opportunities (i.e., grants or research projects)
- Career or Professional Opportunities (i.e., networking events, on-campus employment)