Our Class Listservs Turn One
A little over a year ago, the Yale Alumni Association pulled the plug on the class listserv it had hosted for decades. Rather than go silent, we built our own. We launched three lists in June 2025. A year in, they have become the closest thing our class has to a shared common room.
Here is a quick review of some of the good discussions from the last year, and a refresher on how best to join in.
The three lists, in brief
Everyone@Yale1969.org is our town square for announcements. Class news, personal milestones, remembrances, obituaries, event notices. It is broadcast, not debate. No politicking, proselytizing, or fundraising, please. Nearly the whole class is on it, about 672 of us at last count.
Discussions@Yale1969.org is for conversation about Yale, our class, our lives … anything we want other than politics or religion. Roughly 145 of us are in the room.
Unrestricted@Yale1969.org is the wide-open space. Politics, religion, society, culture, moral philosophy, whatever is on your mind. About 98 classmates have joined so far.
For the full rundown, including a handy diagram of who goes where, see yale1969.org/listserv-summary.
A year worth celebrating
The lists have already given us some memorable conversations.
Last summer, a thread about the Vietnam War became something truly truly remarkable. We traded stories about how the war shaped the choices we faced as we left Yale. The draft. Medical deferments. Enlisting. Conscientious objection. Deferrable work. Nearly a hundred classmates weighed in, each with a story to tell. Those accounts are now being gathered into a compendium we can look at and decide what, if anything, to do with it. More on that project soon, so stay tuned.
Right now, over on Discussions, we are wrestling with a live and serious question. How should Yale respond to the Trump administration’s pressure on universities, the threats to institutional independence, to federal funding, to the autonomy that defines a great university? It is exactly the sort of hard conversation these lists were built to carry.
That thread has a backstory. When the lists went live in June 2025, the shock was fresh. The assault from the new Administration on science, universities, the press, law firms, museums, and even our shared history. The conversation ran hot, and we put real effort into learning how to talk about charged subjects constructively. In time, the frankly political threads found their proper home on Unrestricted. If you hold a charged, partisan view, and many people do, that is where it belongs. Every perspective is welcome, and the more the better.
How to join, and how to jump in
Joining is easy. One form covers all three lists: sign up here.
Everyone is opt-out, so you are almost certainly on it already. Quick tip: search your inbox for “[Everyone]” and confirm those messages are not being shunted to spam or a secondary tab. You do not want to miss the relevant announcements. Discussions and Unrestricted are opt-in; you have to sign-up for them.
Sending a message is just email. Write to everyone@, discussions@, or unrestricted@Yale1969.org, and your message will go to the group.
Replying is just as simple. Hit Reply to answer the sender privately. Hit Reply All to reach the whole list. Before you send, take one glance at the To and Cc fields so your note lands where you meant it to. That glance saves the occasional blush.
One courtesy. When you compose a new message or reply, please follow the content guidelines. They are short, sensible, and they keep the rooms welcoming.
That is the whole trick. Open your email program, pick a list, say your piece. A year in, these lists work because classmates keep showing up. Let me know if you need any help.