91ÉçÇø

Introduction and Purpose

91ÉçÇø's World Wide Web presence promotes the University, its activities and opportunities by providing timely and effective interactive communication and services to diverse audiences with the goal of building and advancing broad-based support for the University's strategic plan.

The decentralized nature of the World Wide Web and the diverse purposes and constituencies served by University websites require that as much freedom as possible be granted to those creating and maintaining websites. However, content of all webpages under University jurisdiction (i.e., provided or transmitted by University servers, by other servers funded by University budgets, and transmitted via University network infrastructure) must comply with local, state and federal laws and with 91ÉçÇø's policies, rules and regulations. Further, the reputation and image of 91ÉçÇø is determined, in part, not only by the quality of information published electronically by its students, faculty, staff and affiliates, but also by the degree to which our constituents have excellent interactions with the University via its web presence.

Therefore, the purpose of 91ÉçÇø's World Wide Web Policy is to ensure accuracy, consistency, integrity, quality of interactive experience, and protection of the identity and image of the University by providing a set of minimum standards and guidelines for the websites of 91ÉçÇø's departments, schools, facilities, organizations and affiliates.

General oversight of the University's websites and webpages, and policies governing the use of these resources, is the responsibility of the Division of Communications and Marketing through its web director.

Related Policy and Guideline Sources

91ÉçÇø Policies

• Computer and Network Policy
• Student Handbook
• Privacy Policy
• Copyright
• Faculty/Staff Handbook

External Policies and Guidelines

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Personal Webpages

Personal webpages are individual webpages sponsored and maintained solely by students or by University faculty or staff. These webpages are not directly connected with the University's mission, and 91ÉçÇø is not responsible for personal pages. The University reserves the right, however, to remove from any 91ÉçÇø web server any page or link in violation of the law or University policies. The following disclaimer must appear on all personal webpages:

The views and opinions expressed in these pages are strictly those of [the page author]. The content of these pages has not been reviewed or approved by 91ÉçÇø.

Instructional Webpages

Web resources are available for faculty, staff and students for legitimate University business and scholarly activity. For information on computing resources for webpages, see the Information Technology Services website for information concerning instructional and personal webpages. These pages are governed by related policies and guidelines.

Official Webpages

Official webpages include both academic and administrative pages; these pages are produced and edited using the University's content management system (CMS). Special cases or needs should be brought to the attention of the University web director.

Department chairs and unit administrators are responsible for the content of departmental pages. Departmental pages should not attempt to duplicate official information, functions or services (such as Bulletin information, descriptions of the University, directions, maps, etc.) and should link to the correct pages for official information.

The page administrator of official pages must be a departmental employee who has received training in the use of the CMS. While students may edit department pages, they cannot serve as administrators of official pages. Pages should be reviewed regularly for accuracy.

All official pages should follow the University's editorial style guide to maintain consistency in the use of punctuation, capitalization, titles and more. Questions should be addressed to the Office of Communications and Marketing.

Communications and Marketing staff may edit webpages displaying information that is inaccurate, out-of-date or otherwise noncompliant with these guidelines or state or federal requirements. This editing may be done without prior notice to page administrators.

Accessibility

91ÉçÇø strives to make its pages compliant with New York State Accessibility Guidelines and federal laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act. Several sites offer guidelines and insights regarding page flexibility and layout considerations to ensure accessibility. The following sites offer helpful information:

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Advertising

91ÉçÇø webpages may not contain advertising for, or link to, commercial sites without advance written approval by the Web director. Approval will be considered only if:

• the purpose of the advertising or link is consistent with the University mission,
• the advertising or link is essential to the purpose of the site, and
• the advertising or link does not imply University endorsement of the product or service.

Fundraising

Non-University-related fundraising may not be conducted on any webpage operated and administered by the University or hosted on the University's network. This includes University-mission-related and personal pages. For information on fundraising, contact the 91ÉçÇø Foundation.

Copyright

91ÉçÇø retains the copyright on all video, animation, text, photos and graphical images used on its official website and on its third-party sites (e.g., Facebook), whether contributed by end-users or the University, unless otherwise noted. These are considered assets of the University and may not be used by others for any purpose without the prior express written permission of 91ÉçÇø.

The name 91ÉçÇø and its trademarks, symbols and logos are trademarked and owned by the University and should not be used without the prior express written permission of 91ÉçÇø University.

Note that 91ÉçÇø has no control over personal pages or off-campus websites and internet resources linked to our servers, and 91ÉçÇø is not responsible for their accuracy or content.

Provision of 91ÉçÇø's web services is a joint project of the University's Communications and Marketing Office and the Office of Information Technology Services.

A copyright statement looks like this: "©[current year] 91ÉçÇø"

Web Servers

Any department or individual with a computer connected to the campus network is able to install web server software independent of University central server resources. However, any need to duplicate University-provided and supported WWW infrastructure should be supported with specific justification and in consultation with the web director and ITS staff.

Web servers not maintained by ITS may request a virtual hostname (your_server.binghamton.edu). However, the University provides host name services at its sole discretion. All web service providers are responsible for the currency, legitimacy, legality and appearance of their pages.

Web service providers must adhere to 91ÉçÇø's web policies and are responsible not only for the content and appearance of their pages, but also for those linked personal pages that branch from their pages. Web service providers should be able to guarantee a stable, responsive system that is always available and be sure that the server has it own domain name service (DNS).

Privacy

91ÉçÇø is committed to protecting your privacy and making it easier and more efficient for individuals and organizations to interact with us. Please refer to our privacy policy for more information.

Approved by Greg Delviscio, AVP University Office of Communications & Marketing, 05/03/2017.