How long do current selection lists last?

When you make a current selection and then send that information to make a list to message the parents, students or staff that list is created as a temporary list. This means that after some time that list will automatically delete itself unless actions are taken to prevent the cleanup from happening.

What does a current selection list look like?

When you make a list from a current selection in PowerSchool the list will start with a name in the pattern of
PowerSchool Selection [date] [time]

This is a good start to finding the other current selection lists you may have. However you can change that list name to something else so there may be other lists that started from a current selection. Changing the list name will change the list from temporary to a normal list that will no longer be subject to the temporary list cleanup rules.

What stops a list from being temporary?

A current selection list starts as a temporary list as indicated by a hidden field in our database. As soon as you change even 1 character in the name that list changes from a temporary list to a non-temporary list and the temporary cleanup rules will not happen.

Many people think the list name pattern is what is being evaluated, however it's actually the hidden field. The reason changing the name stops it is that when you do that the hidden field changes value automatically and since it's hidden you can't change it back. This means changing the list name while you are using it then changing it back will NOT make it auto-delete. Even changing the AM to PM will instantly make the list non-temporary.

Another thing that stops the cleanup rules would be if you mark the list with some sort of protection such as the delete protection or message protection. In these cases the rules no longer apply as you've indicated you want to preserve this for one reason or another.

When do temporary lists go away?

As long as the list is still a temporary list the following rules will apply:

1. The list will automatically delete after a message is sent. The message has to be completely finished, no redials or anything. Since the list was meant as a 1 time use list and it's been used it's no longer needed and is removed so that your My Lists page is that much smaller.
2. If a list is temporary and has not had a message started it will be cleaned up after 24 hours. You can tell that a message hasn't been started as the "Message Changed" column will say None. If it has a date then a message was at least started. In the screenshot you can see the first list has a message and the 2nd does not. The second list will be subject to the 24 hour rule and will clean up as long as a message isn't started within 24 hours. The first list with an unsent message is subject to the next rule.
3. If a temporary list has a message but isn't sent and isn't scheduled to be sent then it will be kept for about 30 days. After that it is assumed the user forgot about it and it's cleaned up.
4. If a temporary list has a message but isn't sent but IS scheduled then it will be preserved until the message is sent and then deleted after.

What do I do if I already changed the list name?

Changing the list name only means it won't be considered a temporary / 1 time use list. You can still delete it normally and if you have old list purging set up on your account it'll be cleaned up when that time has expired (generally 400 days but up to you) if you make no other changes.