With the semester around the corner, I want to take this opportunity to update you on Bates Today, the single daily email with a digest of information for students. It resumes on Tuesday, September 8.

During the pilot period over Short Term 2015, we had a chance to test out Bates Today, which was developed with active student involvement and support. The pilot helped us learn more from you about the most effective ways to deliver news and events to you each day, and we’ve used the summer to make further improvements based on your input.

As during the pilot, beginning next Tuesday you will receive a Bates Today email each weekday morning, as well as one on Saturday (for weekend events). For those of you who need to share information with all students via Bates Today, we have an improved process in place.

The new submission form allows you to submit general announcements (such as “Apply to be a DJ at WRBC!”) or promote events (such as “Happening this Friday: Humans vs. Zombies”). It works with the Event Management System (EMS), and even allows you to create events for off-campus or non-reservable spaces, which you can then promote.

I know new processes can be challenging, and we want to make this as easy as possible. In addition to a video tutorial and guidelines on the web, we are also hosting a series of drop-in workshops to walk through the submission form. These workshops will be taking place on:

• Thursday, September 10, 1:00-2:30 p.m. in Pettengill Hall 227
• Monday, September 14, 1:00-2:30 p.m. in Libbey Forum 1
• Thursday, September 17, 10:00-11:30 a.m. in Pettengill Hall 227

These sessions will be informal. Please drop in at any time with any questions you might have. You can even come prepared to submit an actual announcement or set up an event you want to publicize. We hope that you will take advantage of this opportunity to get ahead of the curve. Additional workshops will be offered as needed.

I am really looking forward to getting to know you all. Please feel free to reach out with any Campus Life questions you may have. If you have specific questions about Bates Today, you can send those to us at askbatestoday@bates.edu.

Best wishes for a great fall 2015 semester!

With kind regards,

Kim