Hi Kristin L,
The solution of having Canvas inbox messages forwarded to one’s institutional email, and then creating an out of office reply in that institutional email, does not work. I am grateful for the idea, but regrettably, students do not receive the automatic reply. We do not know this unless we poll students. This is a significant problem that Canvas should recognize as a high priority.
Instructors often do not work in a twelve month contract, yet do regularly receive emails from students during the winter and summer breaks. For myself, these emails often come when I am in the field and unreachable by email, and when a simple auto reply can redirect students to resources that they need to get their questions answered. Students are sometimes trying to set up disability accommodations for the upcoming semester, at times eight weeks before the semester begins. It is our institutional policy to have something that replies to them- this is necessary for the operation of our institutions, for our student’s wellbeing, and also for the mental health of instructors. It is absolutely essential.
This desperately needs to be fixed, and every six months or so I log in to this site to try to follow all of the myriad posts etc. only to find that Canvas has closed the issue, again and again, and I have to conclude that it will never be fixed. Some of the requests for a solution are time stamped to seven years prior. I am not a programmer; I am an anthropologist. I have no idea what fix a computer will need to solve this, and I cannot follow the issue, complicated releases, or make suggestions as to what to do in the programming of the system to amend it. However I do know that it is a vital service that desperately needs to be fixed.
Canvas received the contract to be the only CMS for all schools of the California Community College system- an enormous contract. I feel that it is absolutely the responsibility of the company to solve this issue, as it is of immense importance to the operation of the very institutions who rely upon it. This should matter to Canvas.
With all due respect, there are some issues that simply cannot be relegated to a voting system that is only maintained by folks who already have other jobs to do. The issue does not suffer from lack of interest. Rather, instructors are unable to constantly follow it, as there are already too many things to handle. The vast majority of instructors that I interact with do not interact with the voting and campaigning system at all, simply because there is no time to do so. It is also unclear how we would campaign for more votes for an issue anyway- I humbly suggest that the votes and suggestions posted here are from folks who are desperate enough for a solution that they log on and jump through all of the hoops, but then need to go on to other things-and quickly. The votes on here are not an accurate count of the severity of the issue. Rather, they reflect the amount of times that a person has found the issue dire enough to call for help.
This issue simply needs to be recognized as a necessity, and addressed.
I wish to add my voice to the list here asking for this issue to be fixed. I also request that this message be forwarded to community leaders or other organizational team leaders within Canvas who will recognize the importance of this issue, and ensure that it remains on a list of high priority items. I look forward to the day when it will be solved.