CODE G11
(Mandatory)

ACCEPTABLE USE OF ELECTRONIC RESOURCES & THE INTERNET



Policy
It is the policy of the ____________________School District to use electronic resources including the Internet to support and enrich the curriculum. The Board believes that the benefit to students from access to electronic information resources and opportunities for collaboration far exceed the disadvantages.

General Information
The Board supports access to rich information resources by students and staff as well as the development of staff instructional skills to analyze, evaluate and incorporate electronic resources within the curriculum. This policy complies with the statutory requirements of the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) and promotes the safe, ethical, responsible, and legal use of District electronic resources including the Internet to support the effective use of these resources for educational purposes. CIPA requires the installation and use of filtering software or services on all computers with access to the Internet to prevent access to visual depictions of obscenity, child pornography or other materials harmful to minors.

Access to District electronic resources including the Internet will be available to students and staff who agree to act in a considerate and responsible manner and abide by the requirements of this policy.

Violation of this policy and the procedures developed in accordance with this policy may result in disciplinary action or referral to local, state or federal law enforcement officials.

Administrative Responsibilities
The Superintendent or designee will coordinate and oversee the use of District electronic resources including the Internet. The Principal or designee will serve as the building-level coordinator for use of the electronic resources including the Internet and will develop building-level procedures necessary to implement this policy. The procedures will include provision for educators to receive proper training, guidelines for the supervision of students using the system, monitoring the use of the system, and overseeing management of the “acceptable use procedures” agreement process.

The District will stipulate in any agreement or contract that Internet service providers will not collect, analyze, and/or sell individual or anonymous student use data for the purpose of commercial advertising and marketing research activities. The collection and analysis of student use data strictly for the purpose of educational evaluation is acceptable, provided that student confidentiality standards are maintained.

The Principal or designee will conduct an annual analysis of the effectiveness of the selected filtering product or service and make recommendations to the Superintendent and Board regarding current and future use of the product or service.

Staff Responsibilities
School staff members are responsible for assuring that students are instructed and supervised in a manner that is appropriate to the age of the students and circumstances regarding the safe, ethical, legal, and responsible use of electronic resources including the Internet. The Principal or designee will develop and disseminate staff supervision guidelines for their respective schools.

Student electronic records are confidential and should be treated like all other student records.

User Responsibilities
During school hours, users may access electronic resources including the Internet for educational purposes only. The term "educational purpose" includes use of the system for classroom activities, which may involve e-mail communication, career development, and curriculum driven research.

The District (may/will not) provide e-mail access for students and staff. Students and staff (may/will not) use real-time electronic communication, such as chat or instant messaging (only for specifically organized educational activities).

Students will not post personal contact information about themselves or other people and agree to follow communication safety requirements outlined in administrative procedures when using electronic communications including the Internet.

(OPTIONAL ADDITION)
Students and staff may access the District’s electronic resources for limited personal use. Limited personal use of the District’s electronic resources including the Internet shall be allowed if permission is granted in advance, and the use:

Users will respect the rights of copyright owners and will not plagiarize works they find on the District electronic network including the Internet by presenting them as their own.

Users should not expect that any files and records of their online activity created on the District’s system are private. Users will be fully and regularly informed about the District’s supervision and monitoring activities and the limitations on their privacy.

Students and staff may not access materials for any purpose that the District deems to be potentially harmful, inappropriate, illegal, and non-educational. This includes materials that are obscene or child pornography.

Parental Notification and Responsibility
Each school will provide written (annually) notice to parents/guardians about student use of District electronic resources including the Internet, the policies and procedures governing their use, and the limitation of liability of the District. Parents/guardians must sign an agreement to allow their child(ren) (all students18 years of age or older must sign their own agreement) to access District electronic resources including the Internet and return this agreement to the school before access will be granted.

Limitation/Disclaimer of Liability
The District is not liable for unacceptable use or violations of copyright restrictions or other laws, user mistakes or negligence, and costs incurred by users. The District is not responsible for ensuring the accuracy, age appropriateness, or usability of any information found on the District’s electronic resources network including the Internet.

The District is not responsible for any damage experienced, including, but not limited to, loss of data or interruptions of service. The District is not responsible for the accuracy or quality of information obtained through or stored on the electronic resources system including the Internet, or for financial obligations arising through their unauthorized use.

Due Process
In the event there is an allegation that a user has violated this policy, a student will be provided with notice and opportunity to be heard in the manner set forth in the student disciplinary policy. Staff member infractions will be dealt with in accordance with contractual agreements.

Notice of violations of this policy shall be forwarded to the Principal to evaluate compliance with this policy and the appropriate implementation procedures.

The District will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials in any investigation concerning or relating to illegal activities conducted through the use of the District’s electronic resources including the Internet.







Date Warned:
Date Adopted:
Legal Reference(s): 15 U.S.C. §6501 (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act)
17 U.S.C. §§101-120 (Federal Copyright Act of 1976 as amended)
18 U.S.C. §2510 (Electronic Communications Privacy Act)
18 U.S.C. §2251 (Federal Child Pornography Law)
47 U.S.C. §230 (Computer Decency Act)
13 V.S.A. §§2802 et seq. (Obscenity, minors)
Cross Reference: Student Conduct and Discipline (F1)
Copyrights (G2)
Selection of Instructional Materials (G5)
Complaints About Instructional Materials (G6)

FORM: G11-1
(Mandatory)

- S A M P L E F O R M -
Student Acceptable Use Procedures Agreement

General Procedures
Students in the ____________ School District have access to the school’s electronic resources for the purpose of enhancing learning. To gain access to these resources, all students under the age of 18 must obtain parental permission and must sign and return this form to the person designated. Students 18 and over may sign their own forms.

Students may access the school’s electronic resources for educational purposes only. Acceptable use includes classroom activities, career development, curriculum driven research and may involve electronic communication, as designated by the school. The school’s electronic resources shall not be used for commercial or entertainment purposes, as a public access service or a public forum, unless permission is allowed by the school. Students are expected to follow the rules of personal conduct outlined in the student handbook, as well as abide by state and federal laws in the use of the school’s electronic resources.

Parents/guardians are warned that some material accessible via the Internet, through the school’s electronic resources, may contain items that are illegal, defamatory, inaccurate or potentially offensive to some people. While it is the school’s intent to provide appropriate electronic resources to enhance the curriculum, students may find ways to access other materials as well. The District believes the benefits to students from access to electronic resources and the Internet for information gathering, research and to provide opportunities for collaboration, exceed the potential disadvantages. Ultimately, parents/guardians of minors are responsible for setting and conveying the standards that their children should follow when using electronic resources. To that end, we support and respect each family's right to decide whether or not to apply for access.

Individual User Responsibilities
System users shall:

  1. understand that electronic mail transmissions and other use of the electronic communication system is not confidential and may be monitored at any time by designated staff to ensure appropriate use;
  2. not distribute personally identifiable information about themselves or others by means of the school’s electronic communication system;
  3. be responsible at all times for the proper use of their account by taking all reasonable precautions to prevent others from gaining access to their system account and password;
  4. not use another person's system account or password, or present themselves another person, without written permission from the system administrator or school coordinator;
  5. not purposefully access or send materials, which include pictures, video or audio files, that are rude, disrespectful, abusive, obscene, sexually oriented, threatening, harassing, damaging to another's reputation, or illegal;
  6. purge electronic mail in accordance with established school e-mail retention guidelines;
  7. not use the school’s electronic resources and Internet connection for commercial or illegal purposes, or for any other activity prohibited by school policy; not redistribute copyrighted programs or data except with the written permission of the copyright holder or designee. Such permission must be specified in the document or must be obtained directly from the copyright holder or designee in accordance with applicable copyright laws, school policy, and administrative regulations;
  8. not plagiarize work using the school’s electronic resources (plagiarism is taking the ideas or writings of others and presenting them as one’s own);
  9. not use the school’s electronic mail, or other personal email accounts, in any way that causes recipients or other readers to assume the email message represents the opinion of educators or other school officials, or anyone else without their explicit permission;
  10. not waste school resources related to the electronic communication system, or damage or attempt to damage computers, computer systems, computer networks or software;
  11. not abuse the school’s electronic communication system by downloading large files or sending annoying or unnecessary messages to a large number of people;
  12. not gain or attempt to gain unauthorized access to the school’s electronic resources, network or restricted information;
  13. not upload, download or redistribute public domain programs to the system for their own use without advance permission;
  14. be responsible for determining whether a program is in the public domain and follow the school virus protection procedures in downloading software.

Disciplinary Actions
The school’s electronic resources system is a limited forum, similar to the school newspaper, and therefore the school may restrict individual user’s speech for valid educational reasons. The District school will not restrict speech on the basis disagreement with the opinions expressed. Users should not expect privacy in the contents of their personal files or record of web research activities. Routine maintenance and monitoring of system resources may lead to discovery of violations of District policy, disciplinary code, or state and federal law. An individual search may also be conducted by the system administrator if there is reasonable suspicion that a user has violated this Acceptable Use Procedures agreement. If there is evidence that a violation has occurred the school Principal shall be notified and will determine appropriate consequences.

Due Process
If any of the conditions of this Acceptable Use Procedures agreement are breached, parents/guardians will be notified (if student is under 18 years of age) and may be given an opportunity to review the contents of their child’s electronic files. The school will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials in any investigation related to illegal activities conducted through the school’s electronic system or the Internet. In the event there is a claim that an individual user has violated school policy, procedures or disciplinary code, the user will be provided with written notice and the opportunity to be heard in the manner set forth by the school disciplinary policy.

Limitation of Liability
The school makes no guarantee that the functions or the services provided by or through the school’s electronic system will be error-free or without defect. The school will not be responsible for any damage individual users may suffer, including but not limited to, loss of data or interruptions of service. Other than for student records, the school is not responsible for the accuracy or quality of the information obtained through or stored on the system. The school will not be responsible for financial obligations arising through the unauthorized student use of the system. Parents/guardians of the individual user may be held financially responsible for any harm to the system as a result of carelessness or intentional misuse.

Parent/Guardian Permission

As the parent/guardian of this student, I have read the “Student Acceptable Use Procedures Agreement.” I understand that school access is designed for educational purposes only. The school has taken precautions in an attempt to eliminate student access to controversial materials. However, I also recognize it is impossible for the school to restrict access to all controversial materials. Thus, I will not hold teachers, staff, administrators or the school board responsible for materials acquired on the school system. Further, I accept full responsibility for supervision if and when my child's electronic resources use is not in the school setting. I hereby give permission for the school to issue an account for my child and certify that I have read the Student Acceptable Use Procedures agreement and have signed below giving my son/daughter permission to access the school’s electronic resources.

Student Name (please print): _______________________________________

Parent/Guardian Name (please print):__________________________________________

Address: _________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________

Phone #: ___________________________________

E-mail Address: ___________________________________

Date: _________________________

Parent/Guardian Signature: _________________________________________________

Student Permission

I have read, understand and agree to abide by the “Student Acceptable Use Procedures Agreement.” I further understand that any violation of the Procedures may enact school disciplinary action or constitute a criminal offense. Should I commit any violation, my access privileges may be revoked, school disciplinary actions may be taken, and/or appropriate legal action may be initiated.

Student's Name (please print):________________________________________

Student Signature: _________________________________________________

Date: ______________

FORM: G11-2
(Mandatory)

- S A M P L E F O R M -
Student Acceptable Use Procedures Agreement

Staff Agreement on Use of Technology
I have been given the privilege of using technology owned by the School District in the form of access to telecommunications and computer hardware and software. I understand that this is a privilege and not a right of my employment and that I must employ this technology in a manner that complies with the District’s policies.

I understand that the District extends no rights of privacy or ownership to work completed by me on District-owned technology.

I understand that it is prohibited for me to:

  1. Use the District’s technology for my personal gain or profit or for any commercial use not sanctioned by the School District;
  2. Use any software or technology in a manner inconsistent with the District’s/school’s licensing agreements;
  3. Distribute any information about any student’s records or files to persons outside the school system, unless such distribution is authorized by law or there is written permission from the parent/guardian or student to do so;
  4. Use offensive, obscene or racially demeaning language in any communications;
  5. Download software protected by copyrights; and
  6. Store personal software on any computer owned by the District.
  7. I understand that the School Board may revoke these privileges at any time and that any illegal activity will be reported to the appropriate authorities.

My signature on this document indicates that I have received and understand the School District’s policy and regulations and that I agree to abide by their terms.

Name (Printed)_____________________________

Signature _________________________________

Date _____________________________________

cc: central personnel file, school personnel file