7540.03 - RESPONSIBLE USE/INTERNET SAFETY POLICY - TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES (STUDENTS)

Greater Clark County School Corporation

Bylaws & Policies

7540.03 - RESPONSIBLE USE/INTERNET SAFETY POLICY - TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES (STUDENTS)

The Greater Clark County School (GCCS) Corporation believes that information available through the Internet and other telecommunications services will provide valuable resources for our faculty and staff, resources that are simply not available through more traditional means of obtaining information. By offering this service, the goal is to promote learning through curriculum-based projects that take advantage of the unique resources available through Internet and other services.

The unprecedented access to computers and people from around the world provided through the Internet means that total control of student access to resources is not possible. While every effort will be made to restrict student access to inappropriate materials, a user intent on locating such materials may find them. Students will have access to telecommunications services only upon receipt of a Telecommunications Network Use Agreement, signed by the student and parent or guardian. Teachers will instruct their students in responsible use of telecommunications and the Internet, and in proper network etiquette.

The use of a school-sponsored account to any telecommunications network requires responsible, ethical, and legal use of the network resources. If a user of a school-sponsored account violates any of these guidelines, his/her access to an account will be terminated and future access denied. Additional penalties may be incurred as well, commensurate with the seriousness of the violation. Employees must sign a Telecommunications Network Use Agreement before receiving a user name and password and accessing Internet and email accounts. The signatures on the Telecommunications Network Use Agreement are legally binding and indicate that the signatories have read the terms and conditions carefully and understand their significance.

RULES
INTERNET USE: TERMS AND CONDITIONS

	A.	RESPONSIBLE USE

		Internet network resources are provided for a limited educational purpose, which is to allow students to conduct research and to facilitate intra-corporation communication. The use of a GCCS Internet account must be in support of curriculum-related activities and consistent with the educational objectives of Greater Clark County Schools. Transmission of any material in violation of any U.S., state, and/or local regulation is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to: copyrighted, threatening, obscene, and/or trade-protected materials.

		This education account may not be used for commercial activities. Any use for product advertisement or political lobbying is also prohibited.

	B.	PRIVILEGES

		The use of GCCS telecommunications services is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate use will result in a cancellation of all Internet privileges for a specified period of time. Greater Clark administrators and the network administrators will deem what is inappropriate use and their decision is final. Faculty or staff may request that further account privileges be denied, revoked, or suspended for any violation of this agreement. Although Internet privileges may be suspended, students may be able to access their accounts to complete academic assignments and/or remediation activities which do not require Internet access. Parents may request that alternative assignments replace activities requiring Internet access.


C.	NETWORK RULES

	All users of telecommunications on GCCS-sponsored accounts are expected to abide by these rules. These rules include, but are not limited to, the following:

	1.	Be polite. Do not be abusive in your messages to others. Students have no expectation of privacy in the use of school-owned equipment.

	2.	Use appropriate language. Do not swear, use vulgarities, or any inappropriate language. Illegal activities are strictly forbidden.

	3.	No person using GCCS technology will utilize this equipment to engage in bullying of another. Bullying is defined as overt, repeated acts or gestures, including verbal or written communications transmitted; physical act committed; or any other behaviors committed by student or group of students against another student with the intent to harass, ridicule, humiliate, intimidate, or harm the other student. This rule applies when a student is on school grounds immediately before or during school hours, immediately after school hours or at any other time when the school is being used by a school group; off school grounds at a school activity, function or event; traveling to or from school or a school activity, function or event; or using property or equipment provided by the school.

	4.	Do not reveal your personal address or phone number, or those of other students or colleagues.

	5.	Do not use the network to solicit face-to-face meetings with other users, and do not respond to such solicitations.

	6.	Electronic mail is not guaranteed to be private.


	7.	Do not use the network in a way that would disrupt the use of the network by other users. Excessive log-on time and large-scale postings shall be considered as disruptions. The administration of the network reserves the right to determine what constitutes excessive mailings and excessive time on-line.

	8.	All communications and information accessible via the network should be assumed to be the private property of Greater Clark County Schools. All copyrights and intellectual property rights should be observed.

	9.	Accessing, uploading, downloading, and/or distributing pornographic, obscene or sexually explicit materials is prohibited.

	10.	Students may not use the school’s resources to access the Internet without the permission and supervision of a faculty member.

	11.	Schools may be permitted to establish a Web page that presents information about the school and its activities. Students may be permitted to assist in the development of those pages under the direct supervision of a GCCS staff member. Web pages with inappropriate content will be removed from the Web server immediately upon discovery, and those individuals responsible for the placement of the inappropriate content will be subject to disciplinary action. No extracurricular organization may establish a Web page on the GCCS network or with a GCCS account without permission from the school’s principal.

	12.	Any person using GCCS technology or equipment recognizes that any transaction conducted on or via GCCS hardware, software and/or network is subject to random monitoring by GCCS Technology Department.


D.	INTERNET SAFETY

	1.	General Warning - Individual Responsibility of Parents and Users. All users and their parents/guardians are advised that access to the electronic network may include the potential for access to materials inappropriate for school-aged pupils. Every user must take responsibility for his/her use of the computer network and Internet and stay away from these sites. Parents of minors are the best guides to materials to shun. If a student finds that other users are visiting offensive or harmful sites, s/he should report such use to the teacher or supervisor in charge.

	2.	Personal Safety – In using the computer network and Internet, students should not reveal personal information such as home address or telephone number. Students should not use their last name or any other information which might allow a person to locate the student without first obtaining the permission of a supervising teacher. Students should not arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone met on the computer network or Internet without parent’s permission. Regardless of the student’s age, no meetings should be arranged with someone with whom they have only communicated on the Internet.

	3.	"Hacking" and Other Illegal Activities – It is a violation of this Policy to use the school’s computer network or the Internet to gain unauthorized access to computers or computer systems, or to attempt to gain such unauthorized access. Any use which violates state or federal law relating to copyright, trade secrets, the distribution of obscene or pornographic materials, or which violates any other applicable law or municipal ordinance, is strictly prohibited.


4.	Confidentiality of Student Information – Personally identifiable information concerning students may not be disclosed or used in any way on the Internet without the permission of a parent or guardian, or if the student is 18 or over, the permission of the student himself/herself. Users should never give out private or confidential information about themselves or others on the Internet, particularly credit card numbers and Social Security numbers. A supervising teacher or administrator may authorize the release of directory information, as defined by Indiana law, for internal administrative purposes or approved educational projects and activities.

5.	Active Restriction Measures – The school corporation will utilize filtering software or other technologies to prevent students from accessing visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors. The school corporation will also monitor the online activities of students, through direct observation and/or technological means, to ensure that students are not accessing such depictions or any other material that is inappropriate for minors.

	Internet filtering software or other technology-based protection systems may be disabled by a supervising teacher or school administrator, as necessary, for purposes of bona fide research or other educational projects being conducted by students age 17 and older.

	The term "harmful to minors" is defined by the Communications Act of 1934 (47 USC Section 254 (h)(7), as meaning any picture, image, graphic image file, or other visual depiction that:

	a.	taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion;

	b.	depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals;


		c.	taken as a whole, lacks serious literacy, artistic, political, or scientific value as to minors.

E.	WARRANTIES

	GCCS makes no warranties of any kind, whether expressed or implied, for the service it is providing. GCCS will attempt to provide error-free, dependable access to the computing resources associated with Internet use. However, this school corporation is not responsible for any damages suffered due to loss of data resulting from delays, non-delivery, misdeliveries, or service interruptions. Use of any information obtained via telecommunications is at the user’s own risk. GCCS specifically denies any responsibility for the accuracy or quality of information obtained through these or any network services.

	GCCS is not responsible for unauthorized financial obligations resulting from use of school corporation resources and accounts to access the Internet or other telecommunications services. GCCS assumes no responsibility for the content of information stored on school corporation diskettes, hard drives, or servers.

	Each GCCS building with Internet access will keep on file a copy of the school corporation’s Internet policies and procedures. These will be available for all parents, guardians, staff members, and members of the community to review.

F.	SECURITY

	Any user identified as a security risk or having a history of security breaches on this system or other computer systems will be denied access to this network. Security software will be installed on all computers that are both connected to the network and installed in areas where student access is possible. An act of intentionally circumventing the security software may be viewed as grounds for disciplinary action.


		Users are expected to make all reasonable efforts to prevent others from using their accounts. Under no condition should a user provide his/her password to another person. Attempts to log onto the network as a system administrator will result in cancellation of user privileges. Any user who has located or believes he/she can identify a security problem on the network must notify a teacher or system administrator immediately.

	G.	VANDALISM

		Vandalism is defined as any malicious attempt to harm or destroy data of another user or on other networks connected to this network system. This includes, but is not limited to, the uploading, creation, or distribution of computer viruses. Using accounts, modifying passwords, or accessing or modifying data belonging to other users without their express written permission will be considered vandalism. "Hacking," or attempting illegally to gain entry into computer systems, within or outside the GCCS network, will be considered vandalism. Vandalism will result in cancellation of privileges.

P.L. 106-554 (2000), Children's Internet Protection Act of 2000
47 U.S.C. 254(h), (1), Communications Act of 1934, as amended (2003)
18 U.S.C. 1460
18 U.S.C. 2246
18 U.S.C. 2256
20 U.S.C. 6801 et seq., Part F, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (2003)
20 U.S.C. 6777, 9134 (2003)
47 C.F.R. 54.500 - 54.523