[BHS Etree] E-TREE: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) - Tips on How to Use

Thu Sep 11 13:50:41 PDT 2014

PLEASE do not reply to this email, contact BHS E-tree Moderators at
bhs-owner at lmi.net

*BHS E-TREE Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) *

*As the third week of the school year draws to a close, we are running this
information again for the benefit of our new subscribers. We are still on
the lookout for 1-2 more co-moderators (see below) - feel free to contact
us to learn more about the position.*

The E-tree, as you know, is a valuable source of information for notices
about important school events and activities. You may not know that the
E-tree is funded by the Berkeley High Parent Teacher Student Association
(PTSA) and operated by parent volunteer moderators.

Please read, use, and pass on these tips about the BHS E-tree...

1. RESPONDING:

If you wish to respond to an E-tree posting, please *do not hit reply* but
direct your message to the contact person who is listed at the top of the
postings. This goes for Lisa Sibony's calls for volunteers as well.

2. FORWARDING:

Please *be careful* when you intend to forward an E-tree message to your
child or someone else -- oftentimes, our subscribers use REPLY instead of
FORWARD, and we must write back to say that the message has not reached
their intended recipient. (Note:  Sometimes we also receive personal
messages that subscribers did not intend to share with us.)

3. POSTING ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The E-tree is *moderated*, so when you send your announcements for posting
to bhs at lmi.net the E-tree moderators will check for accuracy and
appropriateness. The E-tree is used for announcing club meetings, school
events, administrative notifications, and similar BHS- and BUSD-sponsored
activities. *It is not a discussion board or opinion forum.*

You can email bhs-owner at lmi.net to ask questions of the moderators prior to
posting notices, but you don’t need to do so if you simply want to submit
an announcement for posting.

Please read these additional important guidelines on postings:

    -- Use a *descriptive subject line* for your message (*you don’t need
to say “please post”*). It should clearly state what the message is about.
The line may be edited by the moderators for brevity, and we will add a
"tag" (SPORTS, CLUBS, etc.).

    -- Always include *contact information* at the top of every message
(e.g., Contact: Lisa Sibony at lisasibony at berkeley.net).

    -- Please check your message for *accuracy* and *details *(dates,
times, names, spelling, room numbers, etc.) before sending.

    -- *Send your message early!* Please note that it can take the
moderators *24-48 hours* to complete the final posting, so please allow
enough time for getting your notice out. We are parent volunteers who
juggle our full-time jobs with our E-tree work; we post items as soon as we
are able, but cannot guarantee an immediate response. We also need to allow
time to contact you if there are any necessary clarifications to your
announcement.

    -- Due to the high volume of information we are requested to post, we
post most items only *once*. For more frequent distribution, you can send
your announcement to Elizabeth James in the BHS Main Office (
ElizabethJames at berkeley.net), who will include it in the Student Daily
Bulletin, if appropriate.

    -- For *student clubs*, we normally post *one* announcement at the
beginning of the school year but then ask them to post their announcements
in the Student Daily Bulletin

    -- The moderators do their best to limit postings to *BHS- and
BUSD-sponsored events* and notices. If you have information that you
believe would be of interest to the parent/student community at BHS, but it
is not specifically a BHS item, we will suggest you submit your information
to the Parents of Teens newsletter, which can be found at:

          Website: http://parents.berkeley.edu

          Post a message: http://parents.berkeley.edu/post_teens.html

4. MANAGING THE HIGH VOLUME OF MESSAGES:

On a normal school day the E-tree sends up to five or six postings. At the
beginning and end of the year it can be double that. We have several
suggestions for managing the high volume of email:

    a. *Delete aggressively*. The content of each posting is clearly stated
in the subject line. If the item is not of interest to you, delete.

    b. Set up a *separate folder* for E-tree messages. Opening the folder
on a daily basis, you can quickly scan the postings and decide which ones
you want to open and read.

    c. Finally, a *digest version* is available. The digest collects all
E-tree postings and sends them out in batches, usually twice a day. This
sounds better than it is. The digest messages are strung together in one
long posting. To read the day's information it is necessary to scroll down
through everything. Attachments are not included in the digest. Often, the
messages are a day late. However, if you are still intrigued by the digest
and if you did not check the digest option when you subscribed to the
E-tree, let us know at bhs-owner at lmi.net and we will switch you over.

5. SUBSCRIBING:

It is easy to *subscribe* to the E-tree. Directions are included at the
bottom of each posting. However, every now and then a subscription does not
"take." If this happens to someone you know, have them email us at
bhs-owner at lmi.net and we will help. (The same goes for unsubscribing.)

6. ARCHIVES:

All E-tree postings are archived. To find an *old post*, go to the E-tree
archives at http://lists.lmi.net/pipermail/bhs/. This address can be found
in the footer of each E-tree posting. Also included in the footer is the
BHS website: http://bhs.berkeleyschools.net/. The E-tree postings are
usually available on the BHS website.

7. OTHER E-TREES

We believe that everyone at Berkeley High should subscribe to the BHS
E-tree. In addition to the BHS E-tree, most of the small learning
communities operate supplementary E-trees featuring information of specific
interest to their constituents.

Below are websites where you can find more information:

    Berkeley High School (BHS) PTSA: http://www.bhs.berkeleypta.org

    Academic Choice (AC): http://ac.berkeleyschools.net/

    Academy of Medicine and Public Service (AMPS):
http://bhs.berkeleyschools.net/communities/academy-of-medicine-and-public-serivce/

    Arts and Humanities Academy (AHA): http://aha.bhs.berkeleypta.org/

    Berkeley International High School (BIHS):
http://bihs.berkeleyschools.net/

    Communication Arts and Sciences (CAS):  http://cas.bhs.berkeleypta.org

    Berkeley High School (BHS): http://bhs.berkeleyschools.net/

8. WHO ARE WE?

Finally, we would like to introduce ourselves. The BHS E-tree is a
parent-run operation. Volunteering for the E-tree can be immensely
satisfying but also demanding. We do our best—often late at night. We are
currently recruiting for 1-2 more volunteers – please contact us at
bhs-owner at lmi.net if you are a frequent computer user interested in serving
BHS in this crucial role.

Marguerite Fa-Kaji, in her seventh year as an E-tree moderator, has a
college graduate, two daughters in college, one daughter at Berkeley High
(a BIHS sophomore), and one daughter at King Middle School.  Catherine
Ference, in her second year as an E-tree moderator, has a son at Berkeley
High (an AC sophomore) and also served as the moderator of the Willard Middle
School E-tree.

We welcome your postings and your thoughts and comments on the E-tree, as
well as your support as we strive to keep communications flowing between
the different parts of the BHS community.  Have a great year at Berkeley
High!

__________________________________

Marguerite Fa-Kaji and Catherine Ference are the parent-volunteer
facilitators of the etree; please direct any questions to them at
bhs-owner at lmi.net.  To post a message, send to: bhs at lmi.net; BHS etree
archives: http://lists.lmi.net/pipermail/bhs/; BHS website:
http://bhs.berkeleyschools.net/

To *unsubscribe* from the etree, send an email to bhs-request at lmi.net with
one word only in the subject line: *unsubscribe*

To *subscribe* to the etree, send an email to bhs-request at lmi.net with one
word only in the subject line: *subscribe*
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