Lesley University ELECTRONIC ENVIRNOMENT POLICY (E-POLICY)
The Lesley University Electronic Environment Policy (e-Policy) applies to all users who access the university-owned technology both on and off campus.
Introduction
Access
Proper Use Policy
Electronic Mail ("Email")
Computer Files
Internet Use
Copyright
Enforcement
Revisions
Questions
Lesley University Electronic Environment Policy - July, 2005
Introduction
Lesley University values freedom of expression and an open exchange of ideas and information. Lesley provides members of its community with access to a wide range of information and electronic services. Lesley's electronic environment includes the use of computers, computer networks, the Internet, online services of the University, and electronic communication (i.e., electronic mail, telephone, voice mail and faxes). These services are essential for research, instruction, and administration.
Lesley acknowledges that there is a delicate balance between freedom of expression and respect for the rights of fellow members of the Lesley community. Essentially, Lesley's Electronic Environment Policy requires all users to maintain reasonable standards of professional and personal respect and courtesy. Members of the Lesley community are provided with broad access to the University's electronic environment. The electronic environment, by its very nature, allows users to engage in the system with near anonymity. These characteristics of the Lesley electronic environment demand responsible use by all of the Lesley's users.
Despite the unique attributes of the electronic environment, all Lesley policies which apply elsewhere in the Lesley community, including the terms of all handbooks and catalogues, apply in full force to use of the electronic environment. Specifically, all Lesley harassment and discrimination policies, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, and the Lesley Community Standards of Conduct are applicable to all forms of contact within the electronic environment.
The purpose of the Lesley Electronic Environment Policy is to address those aspects of the electronic environment which are specific to computer use, electronic communication, and computer networks. The Electronic Environment Policy applies equally to users who access the system on and off campus.
Access to Lesley's Electronic Environment
Eligibility:
Access to the services, accounts, and facilities that comprise the Electronic Environment is granted to users as outlined below:
Contracted Faculty: Eligible upon acceptance of a contract.
Adjunct Faculty: Eligible upon acceptance of a contract.
Students: Eligible upon admittance to a degree program.
Administrators & Staff: Eligible upon hiring.
Termination of Access and Accounts:
All Lesley accounts will expire and access will end with the termination of a user's relationship with the University. Systems administrators may, without prior notice, delete computer accounts and files after the termination of a person's qualifying Lesley affiliation.
Proper Use Policy
The proper use policy applies to all aspects of the electronic environment at Lesley. Responsible, ethical and legal conduct is required of all individuals who use the Lesley University electronic environment.
Lesley University Community, Defined:
All authorized users of the Lesley electronic environment will be considered members of the Lesley University Community for the purposes of this Electronic Environment Policy. All members of the Lesley University Community must abide by the terms of the Electronic Environment Policy and all other Lesley policies which are incorporated in principle or by reference.
Electronic Environment, Defined:
The Lesley University electronic environment encompasses all use of computers and computer networks accessed through Lesley University and all forms of access to the Lesley electronic environment which involves Lesley material. "Material" includes such items as computers, computer hardware, software, and the campus-wide computer network, communication devices and lines, the University voice-mail system, fax machines, etc. "Uses" include all forms of communication, computation, storage and retrieval of information, printing, etc., conducted with Lesley material. The electronic environment extends to all materials and uses, whether accessed on- or off-campus.
Responsible Use:
Users are responsible for their use of the electronic environment, including computer hardware, accounts and user IDs. Users must take all reasonable precautions, including password maintenance and file protection measures, to prevent use of accounts by unauthorized persons or use of accounts in an unauthorized manner.
The primary purpose of the Lesley electronic environment is to provide authorized users with resources which facilitate the user's academic, instructional, research, and administrative roles at the University. Personal use of the Lesley electronic environment is permissible, provided such use is limited to incidental use which does not interfere with the reasonable and legitimate use of the electronic environment by other members of the Lesley community. The electronic environment may not be used for private monetary gain unless the user has been specifically authorized to perform such use.
Priorities:
Since Lesley University is primarily an academic institution, academics and university business will always take precedence over other uses of the electronic environment. Lesley University and its authorized personnel reserve the right to set priorities on the use of the University electronic environment. For example, academic work may be prioritized over non-academic email or computer games.
Ethical Use:
All users are responsible for conducting themselves in the electronic environment in an ethical manner. Users must respect all copyrighted, personal, or proprietary information belonging to others.
Additionally, users shall refrain from unethical activities, such as:
Improper Access: Gaining, or attempting to gain, improper access to the Lesley electronic environment, the files or accounts of another.
Destructive Behavior: Any action that might be harmful to the University electronic environment, the network, or the data stored on or transported by them or other computers connected to them.
Offensive Behavior/Harassment: Any behavior which is harmful to members of the Lesley community or the University's property may be offensive behavior.
Improper Attribution: When creating and sending messages through the Lesley electronic environment, users shall not give the impression that they are representing, giving opinions, or otherwise making statements on behalf of the University unless appropriately authorized to do so.
Legal Use:
Users should be aware that Lesley prohibits the use of University facilities to commit criminal activities. Lesley will cooperate with appropriate authorities to enforce this rule. Moreover, although an activity may arguably be legal, Lesley's Electronic Environment Policy may be more rigorous than the legal standard.
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Electronic Mail ("Email")
General Use:
The primary purpose of Lesley University email accounts is to facilitate each user's specific business at the University, (i.e., student, faculty or staff). Email must be used in accordance with the responsible use provision contained in this policy.
Privacy and Email:
Both the nature of email and the character of the University environment make email less private than users may anticipate. The privacy of email messages may be compromised by the fact they must routinely pass through numerous computers and are sometimes seen by system administrators in the course of maintaining these systems, redirecting lost mail, or by assistants routinely screening colleagues' mail.
Email Monitoring and Disclosure:
The University does not routinely monitor or inspect email. Nonetheless, email is subject to a number of laws, policies, and practices that apply to the disclosure and protection of University records. Examples include, but are not limited to the Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act; University personnel policies; disclosure pursuant to litigation; and other provisions of the Lesley University Electronic Environment Policy. The University may access email accounts to satisfy a legal obligation or to insure proper operation of the electronic mail facilities. The University reserves the right to take appropriate investigatory and/or disciplinary action. See the Enforcement section of this policy.
Computer Files
A user's programs and data are to be treated by other users as private property (subject, however, to Lesley University's rights and obligations under law and as set forth in this Electronic Environment Policy). Users must not browse, access, copy, or change private files without authorization, or change public files without authorization. Unauthorized access to restricted databases is not permitted.
Storage and Privacy of Files:
The University's desire to assure privacy conflicts with the goal of assuring reliable storage of and access to files. Lesley employs reasonable means to maintain the privacy of those files that are stored within the Lesley University computer system.
Lesley University reserves the right to access user's data, files, and programs for appropriate management purposes, such as making backup copies and to ensure system integrity. When files are copied to the backup media, using a program run by our operations staff, every file will be backed up irrespective of any file protection mechanisms that have been set. When a file is deleted, there is no assurance that every copy of the file will be deleted. Copies may be retained on backup media.
Because Lesley's ability to maintain the privacy of files is limited, users should be wary of using these systems (or any shared-access computer system) for the storage of highly sensitive information or information that is not intended for anyone else to access. Users of these facilities are cautioned that absolute privacy cannot be assured.
Misconduct:
Additionally, when an allegation of misconduct is made, Lesley reserves the right to inspect any files stored on Lesley computers and to record any communications that pass through these computers. The University may report evidence of misconduct to the appropriate authorities. See the Enforcement section of this policy.
Internet Use
Lesley University's electronic environment includes access to the Internet, an international computer network. The actions of members of the Lesley University community on the Internet reflect back not only on the individual user, but upon Lesley as well. Therefore, all use of the Internet which involves the Lesley electronic environment must be responsible, ethical and legal.
Legal Use:
Some Internet sites may contain material which is illegal under state or federal law, e.g., laws governing child pornography or sexual harassment statutes governing hostile environment. Users must take care to act within the confines of the law. See the Enforcement and Questions sections of this policy for further discussion.
Copyright
Copyright, Defined:
"Copyright is the ownership and control of intellectual property in original works of authorship. A copyright owner has five specific rights: to reproduce (copy) the work, to prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted work, distributing copies of the work to the public, publicly performing the work, and publicly displaying the work." ("Licensing of Instructional/Informational Technology," Adrian Arima, Gary Cary Ware & Freidenrich, March 1, 1996) Works published after March 1, 1989 may maintain a valid copyright even if they are not specifically labeled with a copyright symbol or other notification.
Copyright Infringement:
Any action which violates the rights of a copyright owner may constitute copyright infringement. The electronic environment includes a number of mediums which are subject to copyright laws, including the Internet, email, and computer software.
The Internet: Copyright infringement via the Internet may occur in a variety of ways, including making unauthorized copies of any copyrighted material and publishing another's copyrighted materials over computer networks.
Email: Like the Internet, email may be used to publish, manipulate, or otherwise attribute original works of authorship. Such action may constitute copyright infringement.
Software Copyright Infringement: Software Copyright Infringement includes receiving and/or using unauthorized copies of software, making unauthorized copies of software for oneself or others, or attempting to modify the computer systems in any unauthorized manner.
Software License Agreements. Lesley University has purchased licenses which permit members of the University community to access and use many software packages and files that are protected and regulated by copyright law. Software license agreements are contracts in which the seller agrees to provide the program, provided that the buyer agrees to abide by the rules of the license. Most of the software used at Lesley is licensed to the University through independent software companies.
Ethical and Legal Use of Software. Copyrighted software must only be used in accordance with the license and purchase agreement between the University and independent vendors. Users do not have the right to make copies of licensed software, modify, and/or distribute such copies to anyone. Only authorized copying of files or programs or program utilization is ethical and legal.
Fair Use Doctrine:
To determine whether particular uses of a copyrighted work are permissible, the courts have looked to the fair use doctrine, described in U.S.C. Title 17, section 107. The fair use doctrine considers:
The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
The nature of the copyrighted work;
The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
The effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. Lesley University's policy is to adhere strictly to the letter and spirit of copyright laws and regulations. Copyright infringement may be subject to disciplinary and/or legal action. For additional discussion, see the Enforcement and Questions sections of this policy.
Enforcement
The use of Lesley's electronic environment is a privilege. Any user who violates the Lesley University electronic environment or related University policies may have his or her access privileges terminated. Additionally, such misconduct may subject the violator to disciplinary action under standard University disciplinary rules, personnel processes and, in some cases, criminal prosecution.
Copyright:
Any use of the Lesley University electronic environment which violates applicable copyright laws is subject to appropriate disciplinary action as well as those civil remedies and criminal penalties provided by federal law.
Applicability of Other Policies:
Lesley's sexual harassment policy and other policies regarding appropriate conduct are applicable to all uses of the electronic environment. This includes communications sent off campus via Lesley access to email and the Internet.
Investigation:
Alleged violations of the Electronic Environment Policy are subject to investigation. In the event of an investigation, the University reserves the right to access private information, including the contents of files and mailboxes while making every effort to keep such investigations confidential. The University may access email accounts to satisfy a legal obligation. Any administrator who believes such actions are necessary must first obtain the approval of an appropriate administrative authority.
Reporting Violations:
Violations of the Electronic Environment Policy will be handled by the department appropriate to the nature of the complaint and/or violation. For example, violations of the Lesley Community Standards of Conduct or violations by students may be directed to the Dean of Students; violations of the University harassment or discrimination policies may be directed to Human Resources or the Special Assistant to the President for Affirmative Action as is appropriate. Violations unique to the Electronic Environment Policy should be directed to the Director of University Technology.
Lesley Liability / Warranty
Lesley University is unable to warrant that its electronic environment is virus-free; that users with Lesley email accounts will not receive unsolicited email; or that all hardware and/or software used to access the electronic environment will be compatible with the Lesley system. Use and/or access to Lesley's electronic environment does not entitle the user to seek indirect, consequential, special, punitive, peremptory, or like damages from Lesley University in connection with such use and access.
Revisions to the Electronic Environment Policy
This policy is subject to change without advance notice. All users are responsible for keeping abreast of any changes made to this policy. Any updates will be available on the Internet.
Questions
If you have questions about Lesley's Electronic Environment Policy, please contact Information Technology at 617.349.8770 or it@lesley.edu.