Meredith email groups are an easy and convenient way to share relevant campus information with a large population of students, faculty and staff. Students can subscribe to different email lists themselves or be added to the group by the administrator. Meredith has a few campus-wide email lists, such as ‘undergrad_all’, and sends important emails throughout the year. This summer, Meredith has sent a few important emails concerning the Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade as well as a bomb threat on campus on June 30. However, not all students have received those emails.
After The Herald published an article about a bomb threat on campus, some students commented that they had not received emails all summer. Kaitlyn Zhoroff, ’24, commented on The Herald’s Instagram post that she did not receive the email with the bomb threat or other emails The Herald published about. Zhoroff stated, “Not getting the threat email was extremely frustrating because there was no way I would have known if I hadn’t read the post from The Herald, which could have been a threat to my own personal safety.” Zhoroff stopped getting emails towards the beginning of summer, and The Herald has been her main form of communication with the college.
The Herald asked News Director Melyssa Allen why some Meredith students are not receiving emails from the college. Allen stated that “it has been Meredith College practice for the [undergrad_all] list to only include students enrolled in summer classes who received those messages.”
Less news is shared during the summer months. However, this year has been different. In response to this summer’s increase in news, Allen said, “the Executive Leadership Team worked with Technology Services to establish a new email list, [stu_all], to include students from their date of enrollment until they graduate from Meredith, including during the summer months.”
While email communication will improve with this new email list, students are wondering why they were not alerted of the bomb threat through MC Alert. MC Alert is Meredith’s primary way to communicate emergencies on campus or campus closures. Students can sign up for MC Alert by going to the Self Service website, clicking the ‘miscellaneous’ drop-down menu and clicking MC Alert. If an emergency occurs, all students signed up should receive a notification regardless of whether the situation happens during a break period. However, MC Alert did not notify students of the bomb threat that occurred on June 30.
Olivia Mason, ‘23, has taken a few classes at North Carolina State and told The Herald that “in contrast [to MC Alert], NC State sends an email alert to the entire student body when any potential threat to student safety occurs.” In addition to a campus-wide email alert, Mason said, “I would receive up to several alerts a day. Each [alert] contained a description of the threat or crime that occurred, the location, any information about suspects, what the campus and police had done in response, as well as tips and reminders for staying safe in Raleigh and on campus.” Meredith’s email about the bomb threat did not include these details.
Improvements to the alert system are currently underway. All students will receive emails from the new email domain throughout their time at Meredith from the new email group stu_all. However, improvements to MC Alert continue to be discussed. When asked what they would like to see in regards to students not receiving alerts, Mason stated that “if the college is going to promote MC Alert, then it should be utilized according to how it is advertised.”
If you have not received emails from the college, go to ‘Google Groups’ to see what email lists you are subscribed to. If [undergrad_all] is not listed, email Technology Services at techsupport@meredith.edu to be added.
By Charlie Hatch, Contributing Writer