TECHNOLOGY & COMPUTING RESOURCE
ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
Published: May 16, 2006
Document Version: 2.1
Author: Sharmila Bristol
Approvers:
Executive Directory (Gary Patrick)
LHU Board (Director: Alexis Schauss)
Technology Group (Chair: Sharmila Bristol)
Date Approved: May 16, 2006
Sterling Montessori Academy & Charter School
202 Treybooke Drive, Morrisville, NC 27560
(919) 462-8889
919) 462-8890 (fax)
SMACS provides technology resources including computing and internet access for students, teachers and staff for the purposes of authorized academic, instructional, research, and administrative purposes. This access is provided on campus including, but not limited to, classrooms, special purpose rooms, and administrative rooms. In addition the school maintains a website on the Internet, a global network made up of many smaller contributing networks from around the world, which is accessible from outside the school.
Technology Resource Usage
The SMACS computing resources are maintained for the use of the entire school community of students, faculty, and staff. SMACS owns the information assets (computers and servers) and the information that users might store on them, and has the right to gain access, for security and academic reasons, to any of those assets at any time. Students, parents, faculty, and staff should not expect privacy with respect to any information contained therein.
Email and internet access is restricted to those who have active accounts issued by the SMACS Technology Group and have the right to be revoked at any time for improper use. To ensure reasonable, efficient, and safe use, the SMACS Technology Group periodically monitors the installed systems and the accounts used by students, faculty, and staff.
User Responsibilities
The guidelines below exemplify the types of activities that are allowed and not allowed on SMACS technology resources, giving some reasons where appropriate. It is not to be considered an exhaustive list as such a list could not possibly be all inclusive. For questions regarding whether an anticipated use of the technology resource is acceptable, please contact the SMACS Administration or the SMACS Technology Group. Please note that these responsibilities are also applicable if a “personal” technology resource is utilized for SMACS purposes.
1. Security on a computer system that involves many users is a high priority. To protect users from unwanted contact or harassment, Sterling Montessori students, faculty, and staff are instructed not to give out any personal information pertaining to themselves or others, to anyone. Computer account passwords are confidential; providing your user name and password to anyone, allowing them to access the Sterling Montessori computers, is prohibited. Use of another person’s identity, account, user name or password or otherwise gaining unauthorized access to computing resources is also prohibited.
2. Impersonation and anonymity are not permitted. Users must take responsibility for their actions and words. Impersonation of an adult by a student in any setting, including online, is not permitted.
3. The SMACS email service is a free and open forum for expression. Considerate and respectful disagreement is welcome. Harassing, insulting or attacking of others is not allowed. Offensive speech is disrespectful of the rights of others; be polite in your messages.
4. The SMACS email distribution lists are for school use only, and should never be utilized for commercial or personal purposes or for solicitations unrelated to the school.
5. In providing internet service to the Sterling Montessori students, faculty, and staff, the school is aware that there are some areas on the Internet that have objectionable material. Accessing or downloading this material is prohibited. Transferring of defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, profane, sexually explicit, threatening, racially offensive, or illegal material on the network is also prohibited. Material used should have educational value and promote educational excellence.
6. Use of SMACS computing resources for commercial purposes is not allowed. Also as a federally tax-exempt nonprofit organization, SMACS computing resources may not be utilized to participate in political campaign activity or for any lobbying activities including linking to such sites on the internet.
7. Programs which have not been selected and installed by the Sterling Technology Group can potentially cause a variety of problems. Furthermore, the licensing terms of such programs may not permit their use on the school computers and can consume large amounts of limited disk space. For these reasons the installation, storage, or running of programs, applications, and utilities not explicitly authorized by the Sterling Technology Group is generally prohibited. The only exception to this is programs created in fulfillment of computer programming class assignments.
8. Hard drive space for storage of personal files is limited; you are encouraged to delete any inactive files that you might have stored on the school computers. To ensure deletion of inactive files, the SMACS Technology Support Staff will periodically conduct disk clean activities providing advance notice where possible.
9. The technological resources are valuable and are provided to promote educational excellence. Downloading or playing music files, sending or forwarding chain letters, and engaging in instant messaging are not permitted. Use of educational computer games are only permitted under explicit direction of the teacher. These activities increase the risk of uncensored information and the risk of viruses.
10. Running a computer or network program or making configuration changes that damage, interfere with, or place excessive load on the computer system or network is not permitted. This includes but is not limited to, programs known as computer viruses, “Trojan Horses”, and “Worms”. Deliberately spreading computer viruses is harmful to the school and is considered vandalism, as is any physical misuse of the technology equipment.
Intellectual Property Rights
SMACS faculty, staff and students are expected to adhere to United States Intellectual Property laws, regulations, polices, and specific provisions of the grants relating to, but not limited to, inventions (ideas, concepts, methods, materials, processes), discoveries, copyrights, and patents.
SMACS has ownership rights in all inventions or discoveries of SMACS faculty, staff and students that are conceived or first actually reduced to practice as a part of or as a result of activities within the scope of the inventor's employment or attendance at SMACS, or that involve the use of SMACS time, facilities, staff, materials or funds administered by SMACS. Faculty, staff, and students, whose inventions are made on their own time and without the use of SMACS facilities, materials, or resources, therefore considered exclusive property as specified by the Patents and Copyrights Policies, may request a waiver of SMACS rights of ownership of the inventions or discoveries under terms to be agreed between the inventor and the SMAC.
For more information regarding Intellectual Property laws, regulations, polices please refer to the United States Patent and Trademark Office at http://www.uspto.gov/
Notification and Sanctions
All users of SMACS Technology
Resources shall be notified of this policy. This policy is provided to make the
SMACS students, faculty, and staff aware of the responsibilities of using
school technology resources which are provided to promote educational
excellence by resource sharing, innovation, and communication. Violation of any
of the above mentioned could result in immediate account termination and future
access denial and where required further disciplinary action, up to and
including suspension or dismissal from the school.
Acceptance
I acknowledge I have read and understand the terms and conditions in the Technology and Computing Resource Acceptable Use Policy. This constitutes the entire agreement between both myself and Sterling Montessori Academy and Charter School and supersedes all other communication, written or oral, related to the subject matter of this Agreement.
_____________________________________________________________________
Name & Title (please print)
______________________________________________________________________
Signature
______________________________________________________________________
Date