Course Email: New Features & Updates
This article documents new features, fixes for issues, and updates in the Course Email tool.
The most recent changes and updates will be displayed at the top, with previous updates in collapsed sections below. You can open a section for an older date to find the information posted on that date.
May 21, 2024 - New Features
"Message Not Delivered" Warning
If someone tries to send a message to a Course Email list from an email address that is not included in the list, their message will not be delivered. Previously, there was no way to notify a sender if their email failed for this reason. This caused issues for instructors who tried to send messages from email addresses that were not included in their email lists.
Now, if someone tries to send a message to a Course Email list from an unauthorized email address, they will receive an automatic reply warning them that their message did not go through. The warning email includes instructions for the sender to resend the message from their UVA ([email protected]) email address or follow the steps to add their preferred sending address to their UVACanvas account.
Delete Unused Email Lists
If an instructor created an email list they will not use, for example an extraneous section email list, they can now delete the list.
Note: The Delete link is only available for lists that have not received any emails.
Send and Receive Emails from an Alias or Non-UVA Email Address
Course participants can now send and receive course emails using any of the email addresses included in their Canvas account. This provides support for those who prefer to use a UVA email alias or non-UVA email address.
For steps to add email addresses to your Canvas account, see How do I add an additional email address as a contact method in Canvas as an instructor? (opens new window). (The steps are the same for students.)
Note: It may take up to 2 hours after adding an email address in Canvas for it to be added to a course email list. Instructors can check if an address has been added by selecting the number of participants on an email list, and reviewing the email addresses that are included.
Add Additional Subscribers
A new Additional Subscribers option is available in Preferences for instructors to add individual email addresses to their course email list as subscribers. This feature allows instructors to add alternative addresses for sending and receiving course emails, without adding those addresses to their Canvas account.
Instructors can also add participants who do not need access to the Canvas course site to their email list. For example, a non-UVA guest lecturer's email address could be added so they can send and receive messages associated with the course.
The Course Email tool allows instructors and TAs to create email lists to contact participants in their courses from their preferred email application, such as Outlook. For steps, see How do I create an email address for a course or section?
Course Email List
Instructors can create an email address that can be used by participants in their course site to send messages to everyone in the site.
Section Email List
Instructors can create an email address that can be used by participants in a specific course section to send messages to all members of the section.
Edit Preferences
Instructors can modify the Preferences of each email list they have created as follows:
- Update the email address. Note: Each email address includes a unique numeric identifier that cannot be removed to ensure that if the address is changed after messages have been sent, the archive of previously-sent messages remains available.
- Choose whether only members of the course/section for which the list was created can send messages to it, or if anyone with the email address can send messages to it (publicly available).
- Set the reply to address for the list to the course/section (all members of the email list) or the original sender of the message. By default, replies go to the Original sender.
- Choose whether the email archive is displayed to students. By default, students can access the archive.
View Participants
For each email list, instructors can select a link with the number of participants to view who will receive messages sent to the list.
View Email Archive
By default, all participants on an email list can view the Archive of emails previously sent to the list. Instructors can hide the archive from students, if desired, by editing the Preferences.
Delete Archived Email
An instructor can delete a message from the email archive by accessing the archived message, then selecting to Delete it.