4526
The Board of Education is committed to the optimization of student
learning and teaching. The Board considers computers to be a valuable
tool for education, and encourages the use of computers and computer-related
technology throughout our district classrooms.
The Board encourages computer use as an integral part of the curriculum.
This includes not only the use of computer programs, access to
the Internet, communications with teachers and other students
but also the development and testing of student programs.
Student and staff use of school computers is for school-related
use only. The Internet and other electronic research materials
are available to teachers and other staff solely for the purpose
of supporting our students' educational program and professional
development. Students are encouraged to complete electronic research
for academic purposes. Internet use is a privilege, not a right.
Users must comply with Board of Education Policy and Administrative
Regulations.
The Superintendent shall establish regulations and guidelines
governing student use of technology and networks, including who
shall have access, acceptable uses of the network, proper use
of copyrighted material and sanctions for inappropriate use. This
policy and related guidelines shall be made known to all parents
and students.
Adopted: March 10, 1997
4526-R
General Guidelines
Student and staff* use of school computers is for school-related use only. Foreign or home software is permitted on school computers only with the express permission of the supervising adult. The district retains the right to review the contents of disks and e-mail of any users. Network etiquette, consistent with expected school behavior, should be observed, e.g. no abusive language, inappropriate behavior, or illegal activities.
Students or staff may not misrepresent themselves or the Niskayuna School District through any communication or publication via the Internet. Real time conference uses (e.g. video conferencing, use of "chat rooms," etc.) must be approved in writing and supervised by a building administrator for students and district administrator (Assistant Superintendent for Education Programs and Instruction) for staff. Students should never give out their own or anyone else's personal identifying information such as home addresses, age, telephone number, or physical location in an e-mail message or any online communication without written approval of parent and teacher. (Intradistrict communication is excepted.) Please note that students'full names from district authorized publications (e. g. Warrior, Your Schools, etc.) will appear as listed in these publications because these have been published for public review. Students and staff, when using school equipment, should never arrange face-to-face meeting(s) with an Internet user . Students and staff should never respond to e-mail messages that are threatening or obscene. Students and staff should report to the supervising person if any inappropriate messages are received. Because the anonymity of the net allows some users to cloak themselves in fictional personas, students and staff should remember that online users may or may not be who they say they are. Students may participate in only those Internet exchanges approved by school personnel. Any Internet security problems must be reported to a supervising adult and to no one else. Staff may participate in Internet exchanges related to educational purposes.
*Staff are defined as persons employed by the school district or other adults using the district owned computers and networking facilities, e.g., adult education students.
Use of Electronic Research Activities
All materials over the Internet should be assumed to be copyrighted for citation purposes but the Niskayuna School District has no responsibility for the accuracy or the quality of information obtained through Internet services. E-mail is not confidential and messages related to or in support of inappropriate or illegal activities will be reported to supervisors or legal authorities. Use of another individual's account without written permission from that individual is strictly prohibited. Account numbers are confidential to the student or staff member and should not be revealed to others.
Prohibited Activities
Students and staff are not allowed to promote activities against district policies or local, state or federal laws. Prohibited use of the computers and computer services shall include, but not be limited to:
* Subscriptions to listservs using school accounts without
authorization
* Hosting of usenet groups and listservs without authorization
* Establishing of web sites or web pages by students
* Unauthorized copying of software
* Lending or selling of software copies without express written
permission from the copyright holder with the exception
of shareware or public domain software
* Unauthorized downloading of information or applications onto
district owned storage devices
* Unauthorized attempts to access passwords of others
* Revealing student account numbers to other students
* Unauthorized attempts to access or modify the system's programs
* Any malicious attempt to destroy material of another user or
the school district, including the uploading or creation of
computer viruses
* Harassment of others by e-mail or any other means
* Loading of personal software or disks into the district's computers
and/or network, without permission of the teacher/administrator
or computer coordinator
* Sharing of passwords without written permission from the teacher/administrator
or computer coordinator, as appropriate
* Use of computer to access data from secure areas
* Unauthorized use of e-mail
* Unauthorized use of web sites or web pages
* Unauthorized access to non-curricular related materials or resources
* Unauthorized use of personal accounts
* Plagiarism or infringement of copying laws
* Use of chat rooms
* Receiving or sending materials not appropriate for school communications
or educational purposes
Consequences of Inappropriate Use of District Hardware and/or Software
Failure to comply with any portion of these administrative regulations will result in disciplinary action including, but not limited to:
Students
* Loss of school privileges including computer privileges
* Detention
* Suspension from school
* Monetary restitution for damages caused
* Other school penalties as appropriate
* Where warranted, other civil or criminal proceedings
Staff
* Removal of computer use privileges
* Disciplinary actions, which may include reprimand, suspension
and termination
* Where warranted, other civil or criminal proceedings
Revised: 12/16/99
8/1/00
4526.1
The Board of Education is committed to undertaking efforts
that serve to make safe for children the use of district computer
for access to the Internet and World Wide Web. To this end, although
unable to guarantee that any selected filtering and blocking technology
will work perfectly, the Board directs the Superintendent of Schools
to procure and implement the use of technology protection measures
that block or filter Internet access by:
adults to visual depictions that are obscene or child pornography,
and
minors to visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography,
or harmful to minors as defined in the Children's Internet Protection
Act.
Subject to staff supervision, however, any such measures may be disabled or relaxed for adults conducting bona fide research or other lawful purposes, in accordance with criteria established by the Superintendent or his or her designee.
The Superintendent or his or her designee also shall develop and implement procedures that provide for the safety and security of students using electronic mail, chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications; monitoring the online activities of students using district computers and restricting student access to materials that are harmful to minors.
In addition, the Board prohibits the unauthorized disclosure, use and dissemination of personal information regarding students; unauthorized activities; and access by students to inappropriate matter on the Internet and World Wide Web. The Superintendent or his or her designee shall establish and implement procedures that enforce these restrictions.
The computer network coordinator designated under the district's Computer Network or Acceptable Use Policy, shall monitor and examine all district computer network activities to ensure compliance with this policy and accompanying regulation. He or she also shall be responsible for ensuring that staff and students receive training on their requirements.
All users of the district's computer network, including access to the Internet and World Wide Web, must understand that use is a privilege, not a right, and that any such use entails responsibility. They must comply with the requirements of this policy and accompanying regulation, in addition to generally accepted rules of network etiquette, and the district's Acceptable Use Policy. Failure to comply may result in disciplinary action including, but not limited to, the revocation of computer access privileges.
Ref: Public Law No 106-554
47 USC §254
20 USC §6801
Adoption date: June 17, 2002