Faculty (including library faculty) have the option of retaining their current CUNY email address upon retirement. Other instructional staff (e.g., HEOs, CLTs, etc.) have the option at retirement of requesting a new CUNY “retiree” email address (for example, [email protected]).
At the time of retirement, during the “offboarding/exit interview process,” full-time faculty and instructional staff should be given the official CUNY “RETIREE E-MAIL FORM” which clearly explains that retiree access to CUNY email is mandated by the CUNY Board of Trustees.
Background:
Access to CUNY email in retirement was included in the PSC-CUNY contract beginning with the 2007-2010 agreement. Article 27.7 was added:
27.7 Members of the full-time instructional staff who retire shall have access to University electronic mail addresses, subject to compliance with the University’s policies and procedures relating to electronic communications.
There followed a struggle of several years duration involving both the PSC and the University Faculty Senate to define exactly what those University policies and procedures would be. Finally, at their June, 2015 meeting, the Board passed a resolution amending the CUNY Policy on Acceptable Use of Computer Resources:
“RESOLVED, That the Board of Trustees of The City University of New York approve the following Amendment to section IV.2.a. of the CUNY Policy on Acceptable Use of Computer Resources to acknowledge retention of CUNY email addresses by retiring faculty members and librarians”
–Board Meeting Minutes, June 2015, Item no. 5A, p. 17 (of the pdf) https://policy.cuny.edu/policyimport/board_meeting_minutes/2015/06-29/document.pdf
The minutes go on to provide the revised wording of the Acceptable Use Policy and explain why this is desirable for the University. The Minutes also say that HR “off-boarding” procedures would be modified to allow faculty retirees the option of keeping their campus email. Indeed, those procedures were modified and every retiring member of the faculty and professional staff should be given a copy of the Retiree E-Mail Form: https://www1.cuny.edu/sites/onboard/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/page-assets/your-benefits/Retiree-Email-Form_09012015.pdf
Updated February 2026
Published: February 3, 2026
