MASS EMAIL POLICY
1. PURPOSE: This policy provides guidelines on the sending of mass emails to the university community and who
has access and rights to do so.
2. SCOPE: The purpose of this policy is to articulate the University of Portland's position involving mass email
(sometimes called “bulk email”) to distribute official and commercial messages to members of the University
community. Mass email is any unsolicited electronic mailing sent to the entire University com- munity or to
subgroups. The University has seen a significant increase in the use of mass email to distribute messages to
members of the University community. Coinciding with this is a significant increase in complaints to Information
Services about unsolicited email messages. This policy strikes a balance between the speed and ease of use (for the
sender) of mass email, the desire to reduce reliance on paper mail (where appropriate) and the impact on the
University community receiving unwanted and unrequested email messages daily. It applies to any individual,
group, or organization (internal or external to the University) that sends mass email on behalf of the University.
3. POLICY: A federal law known as the “Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and
Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act of 2003” provides some relief from the ever-increasing amount of spam
email that we all receive. The law requires different policies and procedures for official and commercial
messages.
a. Official Messages: Official messages alert the University community to substantial changes in
governance, policy, or practice; to immediate threats to health, safety, property, or research; to
computer or telecommunications issues; to shared interests; etc. Shared interest messages do not
include messages of commercial interest (see Commercial Messages for further explanation).
Official messages may include an official survey. Since official messages relate to an employment or
transactional relationship and are non-commercial in nature, they are exempt from the decline (opt
out) provision in the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. The University has the right to expect that official
communications will be received and read in a timely fashion. To facilitate official communications,
Information Services will maintain the following mass email address groups:
Address Group
Approval Authority
all_studen[email protected]
Vice President for Student Services
Provost
Vice President for Financial Affairs
b. Mass emails to these address groups are restricted to official communications: Individuals, groups, or
organizations who need to send official mass emails to an address group must obtain the approval of the
respective approval authority or their designated representative(s). Upon approval, the approval authority
will send the message to the address group for processing by Information Services. Except in emergencies,
three working days' notice is required for mass email processing. In any case, several hours may be required
to set up such a mailing, and the message is sent in batches over another several hours so as not to
compromise normal email delivery.
4. GUIDANCE: The following guidelines will ensure that mass email groups remain a reliable means to
disseminate official communications for the University and still respect the consensus that unnecessary
email is unwelcome. Using best judgment and following these guidelines will ensure that the email
system and network can be used effectively and efficiently to their capacity.
a. The message must be regarding University business and material in the email must conform to
the University’s Acceptable Use Policy: Examples of unacceptable messages include personal
messages, items for sale, jokes, chain letters, pyramid schemes or make money fast schemes,
unsolicited commercial email, information of interest to only a small segment of the University
community, political issues, etc.
b. The information conveyed should contain significant news value: News that impacts a large
number of people and will have a significant impact on the University community may be
appropriate for mass distribution. Announcements of regularly scheduled meetings and activities do
not generally warrant University-wide distribution via email.
c. The message must be targeted: Avoid automatically sending to everyone on the University network
and plan ahead in order to limit requests for mass email distribution.
d. The message must be properly formatted:
■
Include the word “Official” in the subject line of the email to denote that the mass email is
exempt from the decline (opt out) provision in the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003. For example, “Official
— Network Outage, September 16, 2004”
■
Include contact information for the individual, group, or organization in the message of the email.
For example, “For more information, please contact…”
■
Messages should be clear and concise and be no more than one page. Make additional
information available via a web link in the text of the email.
■
The inclusion of attachments in mass emails is not allowed because of the possibility of spreading
a virus and the incompatibility with some email readers.
■
The message should be in plain text as some email readers cannot handle special characters, fonts,
or html.
■
The message must have a web link to the Mass Email Policy of the University of Portland.
e.
Commercial Messages:
Commercial messages that offer or promote products and service are specifically
covered by the CAN- SPAM Act of 2003. The Act requires the sender to provide recipients with a clear and
conspicuous opportunity to decline (opt-out) to receive further commercial messages. Examples of
commercial messages include events (e.g., play, movie, or athletic event) where there is a charge for
admittance, email sent to prospective students, offers to sell just about anything, promotions for commercial
products, etc.
Individuals, groups, or organizations who need to send commercial mass emails must coordinate
with Information Services. There are two methods of communication for commercial emails.
• ListServe: A listserv is an Internet communication tool that offers its members the
opportunity to exchange ideas, make suggestions, or ask questions to a large number of
people at the same time. When you send an email to a listserv, your submission is
distributed to all of the other people on that list. Each listserv targets pre-determined
groups, topics, and discussions. To create an appropriate list serve (listserv) or use a
department/group website as a medium to communicate/broadcast information please
contact the Help Desk at help@up.edu or (503) 943-7000
• External email service: Any use of an external mass email service—such as Exact Target, Constant
Contact, Vertical Response, HubSpot, MyEmma or MailChimp—must fully comply with this policy and
must provide recipients with a legitimate option to unsubscribe from future mailings. Units choosing
to make use of such services should be aware that the University's anti-spam filters will prevent
delivery of these messages to up.edu email addresses unless the Email Security Guidelines are
followed.
Not all listserv messages are commercial in nature; however, for those that are, the following
guidelines must be followed in accordance with the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003:
• Provide recipients with a clear and conspicuous opportunity to decline (opt-out) to receive further
commercial messages. Include the following verbiage at the bottom of the message: This message is
considered a commercial message. You have the option of opting out of receiving commercial
messages from the University of Portland. If you elect to do so, simply respond to this email and the
sender will remove your email address from their master list and maintain your name on a “do not
send” list. University of Portland, 5000 N Willamette Blvd, Portland, OR 97203, 503-943-8000.
• Include a fully functional and clearly displayed return email address or other Internet-based
mechanism to comply with the opt-out option described above.
• If the email message is unsolicited (exchange not initiated by the recipient) you must clearly
indicate that it is an advertisement or solicitation. Include the word “Advertisement” or
“Solicitation” in the subject line as appropriate.
• Subject lines and headers must be accurate. This applies to all email.
• The “from” line must be accurate. No anonymous, fictitious, or misleading addresses are permitted.
f. Opt-Out: It is important to remember that if an individual has opted out from receiving unsolicited
commercial messages from the University and is sent another email message covered by this law, then the
University can be fined up to $750 per unlawful message. To reduce the possibility of this occurring, it is
incumbent upon all faculty and staff list serve sponsors to closely follow this policy (to include the creation and
maintenance of “do not send” lists).
5. EXCEPTIONS: Individuals exempt from the requirement to obtain approval to use the mass email account groups
to disseminate official communications include the Officers of the University (President and Vice Presidents),
Director of Public Relations, Director of Public Safety, and the Associate Vice President of the Physical Plant acting
in their official capacities.
6. SANCTIONS: Accounts and network access may be administratively suspended by the University with or
without notice when, in the University’s judgment, continued use of the University’s resources may interfere
with the work of others, place the University or others at risk, or violate University policy. Any violation of this
policy by a student may lead to disciplinary charges under the appropriate student disciplinary policy, which
may include expulsion or suspension of student status. Faculty and staff violations will be addressed by their
respective disciplinary policies and procedures. All known and/or suspected violations will be reported to the
Vice President for Finance and University Operations. Users of University of Portland computing facilities are
subject to University Policies as well as applicable local, state and federal laws.
Last Revised: August 2024
