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To create mailing lists, you must be listed as the instructor of record. You can submit your request for a Mailman class list through MyUW. Consider communicating to your class using Canvas, so students can find course content and communications in one place.
Note: MyUW supports creation of mailman lists for most joint courses. To request lists for joint secondary sections, complete this brief form.
Class lists on Mailman use the format SECTIONNAME_QQYY. Example: Astronomy 101, section A in Winter Quarter 2023 will have the list name astr101a_wi23 and the corresponding email addresses astr101a_wi23@uw.edu. You will also receive an email with this information.
When your class Mailman list has been set up, you will receive notification via email, which includes the name of the list and the administrative URL for configuring the list. The name of the list will be the email address used to post messages and the administrative URL can be accessed by using the list owner's UW NetID. After the list is created, students, instructors, and TAs in your class/section are added during an overnight process. The subscriber information is updated automatically from the class registration data on a daily basis. You can modify the subscribers while maintaining the automatic updates. This means that if you manually delete a student's address even though the student is still enrolled in the class, that address will remain deleted. Additional addresses, including non-UW addresses, can also be added to the list. Mailman will "remember" which addresses have been manually added or deleted, and will adjust the automatic updates accordingly.
To distribute messages to your class, simply send an email addressed to listname@uw.edu (where you replace listname with the name of your class list), and Mailman will mail the message to each subscriber's address.
Mailman is a powerful system with many options. As an owner you can make changes to how your list operates on your list administration screen. See the Mailman Owner's and Moderator's guides for more information.
Mailman actually does not take into consideration the owner's email address when deciding who to allow to post. Mailman looks at current subscriber moderation settings as well as the Sender Filters settings. The class Mailman lists work with UW NetIDs so your @u.washington.edu address will be the address that is subscribed to the list. If you would like to post from a different email address, log on to the admin pages for the list at https://mailman.u.washington.edu/mailman/admin/listname (where listname is replaced with the name of your list). Then follow the links to Privacy Options > Sender Filters. Add your preferred email address to the "accept these nonmembers" setting and submit your changes. You will then be allowed to post from that address.
The class Mailman lists work with UW NetIDs so your @uw.edu address will be the address that is subscribed to the list.
You can add or remove subscribers from Mailman class lists just as you would on any other Mailman list. Any changes you make will not be overwritten by the nightly updates. Learn how to add additional subscribers to your Mailman list in the new version of Mailman.