Yorktown Central School District
Acceptable Use Policy
for Technology and Internet
Yorktown Employees
The following Policy and
Consent form must be read and signed by the employee before access will be
provided to Yorktown
Central School
District computers and internet facilities.
Introduction
The Yorktown
Central School
District furnishes computers and provides access
to the internet in order to support learning and enhance instruction. By
providing access to the Internet, the Yorktown Central
School District intends
to promote educational excellence and to prepare students for an increasingly
technological world. This use should facilitate resource sharing, research,
innovation and communication.
However,
the Yorktown Central School District
also recognizes that with this access comes the availability of material that
is unrelated to scholarship, and which in many instances is inappropriate for
places of learning.
For
this reason, computers, network and internet facilities are to be used
primarily for district/ educational related purposes. Incidental personal use
of district computers must not interfere with the employee’s job performance,
must not violate any of the rules contained in this policy and must not damage district
hardware, software or computer communications systems.
Much
of the responsibility for appropriate use of the internet must rest on
employees themselves. Therefore, the Yorktown
Central School
District requires that employees act responsibly
by reading and following the policies outlined below. Furthermore, employee use
is contingent upon the execution of a signed Consent and Waiver Agreement as
annexed hereto.
Access
to district computers and Internet facilities is a revocable privilege, and not
a right. Use of the system can and will be monitored by the district and there
is no expectation of privacy in employee use.
Applicability and General
Principles
These policies apply to all employees who gain
access to the Internet via computer equipment and/or access lines located
within the district buildings. This includes any remote access which employees
may gain from off-site, but which involves the use of district sites, servers,
Intranet facilities, e-mail accounts or software.
The primary
access to and use of the Internet must be for purposes of work, teaching or
scholarship consistent with the educational goals of the Yorktown Central
School District. Employees must make
efficient, ethical and legal utilization of network resources. Employees must be aware that material created, stored on, or
transmitted from or via the system is not guaranteed to be private. In addition
to the fact that the Internet is inherently insecure, the district network administrators
may review the system at any time to ensure that the system is working properly.
Access
will be provided to authorized users by the assignment of unique log-in
identification codes (“usernames” and passwords) and where appropriate, with
limited hard disk space on district hardware, for their own individual use.
Authorized users will be personally responsible for maintaining the integrity
of the District’s computers and network, and may not permit other persons to
use their usernames, passwords, accounts or disk space, or disclose their
usernames, passwords or account information to any third party.
Usernames
and passwords will be furnished only to persons who have signed and returned a
copy of the Consent and Waiver Agreement attached to this policy,
and such updates or modifications as may hereafter be promulgated. The user’s
signature certifies that he/she has read this policy, understands it, and agrees
to be bound by its terms.
Users
must respect the integrity and security of the district systems and network,
and the access privileges, privacy and reasonable preferences of other users. The
Yorktown Central School District
reserves the right to limit access time and disk space in order to optimize an
equitable allocation of resources among users.
The
Yorktown Central School District
makes no warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, for service it is
providing. It is not responsible for any damages, including loss of data
resulting from delays, non-deliveries, mis-deliveries, or service interruptions,
whether caused by the district’s negligence, or by a user’s errors or
omissions. Information obtained from the Internet is issued at the user’s own
risk, and the District specifically disclaims any responsibility for the
accuracy or quality of information obtained by employees via access provided or
through the district.
The
following rules are intentionally broad in scope and, therefore, may include
references to resources, technology and uses not yet available.
Rules of Conduct and Compliance
Employees who violate this Acceptable Use Policy
may have their access privileges suspended or revoked by the network
administrator. In addition, disciplinary action may be taken as permitted by
applicable law and the terms of any applicable collective bargaining agreement.
Except
as otherwise indicated below, all policies and prohibitions regarding users of
the network also apply to users of individual district computers.
1.
Users may not add any software or applications to the district network
or computers, or add to or modify any existing software or applications. Only members
of the Technology Department are authorized to install software. Any software
that is installed must be properly licensed from the copyright owner thereof,
and any modifications must comply with the terms of the applicable license(s).
2.
The network may not be used for commercial purposes, solicitation of
funds or for personal gain.
3.
The network may not be used for advertising, political campaigning, or political
lobbying.
4.
The network may not be used for any activity, or to transmit any material,
that violates United States,
New York State or local laws. This includes, but is
not limited to, fraudulent acts, violations of copyright laws, and any threat
or act of intimidation or harassment against another person.
5.
The Yorktown
Central School
District is a place of tolerance and good
manners. Use of the network or any district computer facilities for hate mail,
defamatory statements, statements intended to injure or humiliate others by
disclosure of personal information (whether true or false), personal attacks on
others, and statements expressing animus toward any person or group by reason
of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation,
disability or other discriminatory classification is prohibited.
6.
Network users may not use vulgar, derogatory or obscene language.
7.
Network users may not post anonymous messages or forge e-mail or other
messages.
8.
Network users may not post on to someone else’s account, attempt to
access another user’s files, or permit anyone else to log on to their own
accounts. Users may not try to gain unauthorized access (“hacking”) to the
files or computer systems of any other person or organization. However, employees
must be aware that any information stored on or communicated through the Yorktown
Central School District network may be susceptible to “hacking” by a third
party.
9.
Network users may not access Web Sites, newsgroups, or chat areas that contain material that is obscene or that
promote illegal acts. Likewise, using the network to access or process
pornographic material (whether visual or written), or material which contains
dangerous recipes, formulas or instructions, is prohibited.
10.
Users may not engage in “spamming” or participate in chain letters.
11.
Users who maliciously access, alter, delete, damage or
destroy any computer system, computer network, computer program, or data will
be subject to criminal prosecution as well as to disciplinary action by the Yorktown Central School District.
This includes, but is not limited to, changing or deleting another user’s
account; changing the password of another user; using an unauthorized account;
damaging any files; altering the system; using the system to make money
illegally; destroying, modifying, vandalizing, defacing or abusing hardware,
software, furniture or any district property.
12.
Users may not intentionally disrupt information network traffic or crash
the network and connected systems; they must not degrade or disrupt equipment
or system performance. They must not download or save excessively large files
without the express approval of the network administrator.
13.
Users must comply with the “fair use” provisions of the United States
Copyright Act of 1976, as amended. “Fair use” in this context means that the
copyrighted materials of others may be used only for scholarly purposes, and that
the use must be limited to brief excerpts. The Yorktown District Media Specialists
can assist employees with fair use issues.
14.
Users may not copy any copyrighted or licensed software from the
internet, from the network or from another user without the express permission
of the copyright holder: Software must be purchased or licensed before it can
be legally used.
15.
Users may not take data, equipment, software or supplies (paper, toner cartridges,
disks, etc.) for their own personal use. Such taking will be treated
as theft.
16.
Only equipment owned by the District may be attached to District
networks. Staff may use their own
equipment in the classroom, but may not attach it to the network. The District is not responsible for the
maintenance, repair or software installation on any staff-owned equipment. The District is not responsible for lost,
damaged or stolen personal equipment.
Personal Flash drives are permitted.
Violations and Consequences
Consequences of violations include but are not limited
to:
·
Suspension or revocation of information network access;
·
Suspension or revocation of network privileges;
·
Suspension or revocation of computer access;
·
Disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
·
Criminal or civil action.
In
addition, the Yorktown
Central School
District will seek monetary compensation for
damages in appropriate cases.
Repeated
or severe violations will result in more serious penalties than one-time or
minor infractions.
This
Acceptable Use Policy is subject to change. The Yorktown Central
School District reserves
the right to restrict or terminate information network access at any time for
any reason. The district further reserves the right to monitor network activity
as it sees fit in order to maintain the integrity of the network and to monitor
acceptable use. School and District-wide administrators will make the final
determination as to what constitutes unacceptable use.
Disciplinary
penalties involving adverse employment action will be determined in accordance
with applicable state law and the terms of applicable collective bargaining
agreements. However, by signing the Consent attached to this Acceptable Use
Policy, employees agree that suspension or revocation of access privileges will
be determined by the network administrator, acting in consultation with School
and District-wide administrators.
The
Consent and Waiver Agreement, which appears on the following page, must be
signed and returned by the employee as a condition of access to the Yorktown Central School District
computer and Internet facilities.
Yorktown Central
School District
Acceptable Use Policy
Consent and Waiver for Employees
CONSENT AND WAIVER
AGREEMENT
By
signing this Acceptable Use Policy Consent and Waiver agreement, I agree that I
will abide by the terms of the District Acceptable Us Policy for Technology and
the Internet, and I have read it and understand it. I further understand that
this form will be kept on file for future reference.
Employee
Name: ___________________________________
(Please
Print Legibly)
Signature:
_________________________________________
Date:
_____________________________________________
Adoption
Date: