To send email to all applicants from previous programs:
On the left side navigation, go to Applicants >> Reports. Clone the "All Applicants" report, and set the conditions to target just the programs you want to include.
Once that's done, you'll note that unlike all other Reports inside Open Water, there's a "Send Email" choice for these reports. Send the email you want and you should have a targeted email to the people who submitted in the program(s) you chose.
[more to come]