Columbia University Student Email Policy

Subject: Student Email Communication Policy
Date: Tue, 4 May 2004 16:16:10 -0400
From: Alan Brinkley and Robert Kasdin <studentservices@columbia.edu>
Reply-To:

student-svcsb@columbia.edu

To:

STUD-GENERAL@cuvmc.ais.columbia.edu

Dear Student,

For some time, Columbia has been considering how to best communicate with our students. It now seems clear to us that the principal way in which members of the University communicate with one another is through e-mail, and we feel that the time has come for Columbia to make e-mail an official vehicle of communication. This will, we hope, improve both the timeliness and reliability of our efforts to inform students of matters of importance to them. It will also expand the range of services we will be able to offer in the future and permit many more University transactions to be conducted through e-mail and the Internet.

You will find below the new "Columbia University Student E-mail Communication Policy," which outlines the University's plans for using e-mail and the responsibilities we expect students to assume in response to this change.

The effective date of this policy is July 1, 2004. If you have any questions about it, please write to studentservices.columbia.edu.

Thank you.

Alan Brinkley Provost

Robert Kasdin Senior Executive Vice President

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY STUDENT EMAIL COMMUNICATION POLICY

Columbia University, recognizing the increasing need for electronic communication with students, has established email as an official means of communication with students.

An official Columbia University email address is required for all students. The University has the right to send official communications to the University email address, which is based upon the University Network ID (UNI) assigned to the student.

The University expects that every student will receive email at his or her Columbia University email address and will read email on a frequent and consistent basis. A student's failure to receive and read University communications in a timely manner does not absolve that student from knowing and complying with the content of such communications.

Students may elect to redirect (auto-forward) email sent to their University email address. Students who redirect email from their official University email address to another address do so at their own risk. If email is lost as a result of forwarding, it does not absolve the student from the responsibilities associated with communications sent to their official University email address.

All use of email will be consistent with other Columbia University policies including the Acceptable Use Policy (http://www.columbia.edu/cu/policy).