Administrative Implemental Procedures:

1.      Services. The school district encourages employees to learn to use computers, networks, Internet, e-mail, and other online services and apply these tools in appropriate ways to the performance of tasks associated with their positions and assignments.

2.      Appropriate Use. Employees shall communicate with telecommunication tools in a professional manner consistent with state laws and district policies governing the behavior of school employees and with federal laws governing copyright. E-mail and telecommunications shall not be improperly utilized to disclose confidential information about district employees or to disclose information from student education records in violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), 20 U.S.C. § 1232g, as amended, and its interpretive regulations, 34 C.F.R. § 99.1, et seq. This shall not apply to the student information system program or other district administrative software that is to be used by authorized employees in a manner that complies with FERPA and its interpretive regulations.  (See P5501 - Privacy of Pupil Records and the district guidelines for FERPA.)

3.      Public Communication. Communication over networks should not be considered to be private. Messages may be diverted accidentally to another destination. The district network administrator(s) from time to time may review directories or messages to ascertain compliance with network guidelines for acceptable use. The network administrator(s) may delete files that are not kept to a manageable storage level or are deemed inappropriate.

4.      Student Access. Regardless of any “technology protection measure” implemented by the District as may be required by the Children’s Internet Protection Act, teachers, administrators, and others who make decisions regarding student access to the Internet shall, in making such decisions, at all times consider the district’s stated educational mission and the student acceptable use policy. To the extent possible, students’ use of the Internet shall be structured in ways that point students to those resources that have been evaluated prior to use. District professional staff shall supervise students utilizing district-provided Internet access. Students shall not be allowed to utilize electronic communications unless a signed consent is on file. A family’s right to decide whether or not to sign the Student Access Contract for their student shall be supported and respected. Permission is not transferable from one student to another and may not be shared.

5.      Violations. Employees who violate this policy will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

6.      Inappropriate Use. The following uses of school-provided access to computers, networks, Internet, e-mail, and other online services are not permitted on the part of district employees:

a.       Accessing, uploading, downloading, or distributing pornographic, obscene, or sexually explicit material;

b.      Transmitting obscene, abusive, sexually explicit, or threatening language;

c.       Violating any local, state, or federal statute;

d.      Accessing another employee's materials, information, or files without permission from the employee or the appropriate network administrator or principal;

e.       Violating copyright or otherwise using the intellectual property of another individual or organization without permission;

f.        Using others’ passwords and allowing students to use staff members’ passwords;

g.       Vandalizing, which is any unauthorized access and/or malicious attempt to damage computer hardware/software or networks or destroying the data of another user, including creating, uploading, or intentionally introducing viruses;

h.       Intentionally wasting limited resources;

i.         Using the network for commercial purposes;

j.        Harassing, insulting, or attacking others;

k.      Using e-mail lists from the district's Internet site, network, or servers to create mailing lists for non-school purposes;

l.         Gaining unauthorized access to resources or entities;

m.     Invading the privacy of individuals;

n.       Improperly altering the setup of computers (e.g., desktops, icons, wallpapers, screensavers, or installed software) as determined by the network administrator;

o.      Failing to follow district policies while using computers or failing to follow any other policies or guidelines established by district administration or the user’s supervisor and failure to follow instructions of supervisors; and

p.      Seeking to gain or gaining unauthorized access to information resources or other computing devices.

7.      Security. Users are responsible for maintaining a safe, secure environment:

a.       Users will keep passwords secure; and

b.      Users will change passwords when directed by the network administrator.

8.      Security Risk. Any user identified as a security risk or having a history of problems with other computer systems may be denied access.

9.      Copyright law shall be respected for all Internet and online services. (See P6400 - Copyrights.)

10.  Disclaimer. The district makes no warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, for the access it is providing, nor will it be responsible for any damages suffered. This includes loss of data resulting from delays, nondeliveries, misdeliveries, or service interruptions caused by its own negligence or user errors or omissions. Use of any information obtained via the Internet is at the user’s risk. The district denies any responsibility for the accuracy or quality of information obtained through its system. The district is not liable for any commercial transactions conducted through its system.

11.  Statements of Personal Belief. Any statement of personal belief found on computers, networks, the Internet, e-mail, other on-line services, or any other telecommunication system shall be implicitly understood to be representative of the author’s individual point of view, and not that of USD 259, its administrators, teachers, staff, or the participating school. No representations to the contrary shall be published without written approval from the designated district-level administrator(s).  Principals, district-level administrators, or their designees may review all content in any Internet or on-line accounts paid for, in whole or in part, by the district or any school, without notice of any kind.

12.  Employee Access Contract and Annual Review.

a)      Prior to use of district computers, networks, the Internet, electronic mail, and other on-line services, the employee desiring to use such services shall submit a signed Employee Access Contract to the Human Resources office for filing. An Employee Access Contract must be on file in order for the employee to have access to the above services, including an Outlook account.

b)      Any employee who declines to sign an Employee Access Contract shall be denied access to the above services. In this event, the employee shall initial the Employee Access Contract to acknowledge awareness of Policy 1231. The initialed Employee Access Contract shall be submitted to the Human Resources office for filing.

c)      Human Resources shall maintain a current list of employees who have signed Employee Access Contracts and make it available to all principals, district office administrators, and their designees.

d)      School and district office administrators are required to meet with staff and review Policy 1231 and any revisions prior to September 15 of each year. Administrators shall submit a signed statement to the Human Resources office verifying the completion of this annual review.

e)      Policy 1231 applies to all employees regardless of whether or not they sign or initial an Employee Access Contract and/or attend annual review meetings related to this policy.

13.  District Technology Plan. The Administrative Implemental Procedures contained in this policy shall be consistent with the District Technology Plan adopted by the Board of Education.

The Board attorney has approved this policy in form and content.

Administrative Responsibility: Human Resources                                                          P1231
Latest Revision Date: June 2006
Previous Revision Date: February 2002