Email

The Email tool allows you to send email to other people in your course from within Blackboard Learn without launching an external email client, such as Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoo. Emails can be sent to individual users or to groups of users. A copy of this email is sent to the sender by default.

IMPORTANT! Blackboard Learn keeps no record of sent or received emails. When you receive or send an email, the email will appear in the Inbox of your external email client. Keep a copy of important messages in case you need them at a later date.

Note: Recipients of each email will not see the email addresses of other recipients.

Before You Begin

Blackboard Learn only recognizes email addresses and file names with standard characters (a-z, A-Z, 0-9, @ and period (.)). The system cannot recognize files or email addresses with spaces or special characters, such as ?, !, #, &, %, or $.
Blackboard Learn requires some text content in the subject line to send email successfully. Leaving the subject line blank can prevent the message from being delivered.

Accessing Email

You can access the Send Email tool from the Tools link on the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Course Menu <end definition>. and from the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Control Panel <end definition>.. You may also add a customized link to the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Course Menu <end definition>.. To learn more, see How to Add an Email Link to the Course Menu.

Two Default Options

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Item corresponding to the image above Access the Email tool using the default Tools link on the Course Menu. On the Tools page, select Send Email.

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Item corresponding to the image above Alternatively, in the Control Panel, expand the Course Tools section and select Send Email.

How to Send an Email

On the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Course Menu <end definition>., click the Tools link. On the Tools page, select Send Email.

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On the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Control Panel <end definition>., expand the Course Tools section, and select Send Email.

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On the Send Email page, click one of the options listed to send the email, for example, Single/Select Users.

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For the Single/Select Users or Single/Select Groups, select the recipients in the Available to Select box and click the right-pointing arrow to move them into the Selected box. A back arrow is available to move a user out of the recipient list. Click Invert Selection and selected users are no longer highlighted and those users that are not selected will be highlighted.
Tip: For Windows, to select multiple users in a list, press the SHIFT key and click the first and last users. To select users out of sequence, press the CTRL key and click each user needed. For Mac systems, press the COMMAND key instead of the CTRL key. You can also use the Select All function to send an email to all users.
Type your Subject.
Type a Message.

Note: To email a link to a file you are including in a content item, you must first submit the content item so the file can be assigned a permanent URL. In the Content Collection or Course Files, click the file's Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Action Link <end definition>. and select 360 View. Copy the Permanent URL address and paste it in an email.
Optionally, select the Return Receipt box to send a copy of the message to the sender.
Click Attach a file to browse for file from Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> your computer <end definition>.. You can attach multiple files. After you add one file, the option to attach another file appears.
Click Submit.

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Result

A receipt page appears after the message is sent listing all recipients. The receipt page does not confirm that users received the message. It only confirms that the message was sent.

How to Add an Email Link to the Course Menu

If you want students to access their email often, you can add a link to the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Course Menu <end definition>. for one-click access to the tool. You can customize the name of the link to fit your needs.

Ensure Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Edit Mode <end definition>. is ON and point to the plus sign above the Course Menu. The Add Menu Item drop-down list appears.
Select Tool Link.
Type a Name for the link.
From the Type drop-down list, select Email.
Select the Available to Users check box.
Click Submit.
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Result

The new tool link appears last in the Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Course Menu <end definition>. list. Press and drag the arrows icon to move the link into a new position. Click the link's Click to toggle glossary term definition: <begin definition> Action Link <end definition>. ( Action Link icon ) to access the contextual menu. You can rename, delete, or hide the link from students.

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Troubleshooting

Your email address is not visible unless you choose to make it visible to course members. You can find this setting in the page header above the tabs at: My Places > Personal Information > Set Privacy Options. On this page, you can choose the information you want course members to see.
You can change your external email address used in your course. Change your email address by going to My Places > Personal Information > Edit Personal Information. Type your preferred email address and click Submit.
Email clients, such as Gmail, Hotmail, or Yahoo, may identify email from Blackboard Learn as junk mail and either automatically delete the email or move it to a junk mail folder. If you have problems, check your user preferences or options for settings regarding the handling of junk email. You can also change your email address.

Next Steps

To learn more about the various tools available for building, managing, and using courses, see: