Cullman City Schools
Technology Usage Policy

MISSION:

The mission of the Cullman City School System is to provide an education using the best teaching techniques resulting in the use of basic, life, technological, and other necessary skills. These skills will enrich the total individual and instill a respect for the freedoms provided by our society, ultimately preparing each student to successfully meet the challenges of our rapidly changing world.

To ensure that students receive a quality education and that employees are able to work in a professional and intellectually stimulating environment, it is the policy of the Cullman City Schools to provide all students and employees with access to a variety of technology resources.

The creation of a large and varied technology environment demands that technology usage be conducted in legally and ethically appropriate ways, consistent with the Mission Statement and instructional goals of the Cullman City Schools.

Thus, it is the intention of the Cullman City Schools that all technology resources will be used in accordance with any and all school system policies and procedures as well as local, state, and federal laws and/or guidelines governing the usage of technology and its component parts. Additionally, it is implied that all students and employees of the Cullman City Schools will use the provided technology resources so as not to waste them, abuse them, interfere with or cause harm to other individuals, institutions, or companies.

• The administrators of each school will be responsible for establishing specific practices to enforce this policy at individual schools and to create a local policy for his/her school’s unique situations.

• Parents and Guardians of students are responsible for giving written permission for students to use the Internet and for the system to publish the student’s name, picture, or schoolwork on the Internet. They are expected to discuss this policy with their children and to place upon the student a "parental expectation" of correct behavior when using technology resources.

• Teachers and any employee responsible for supervising students will provide general supervision of students while students are using technology resources in the employee’s area of responsibility. When any employee leaves his/her area of responsibility, technology resources will be secured to the maximum extent possible to prevent unauthorized use. Students may not use technology resources unsupervised.

• This policy will be prominently displayed in all rooms throughout the system that contain one or more computers.

• This policy applies to all users which includes K-12 students, employees, guests, community education teachers and community education students.
• All Cullman City Schools technology resources, regardless of purchase date, location, or fund, are subject to this policy. Computers and other technology resources purchased by individuals are subject to this policy if the computer or resource is used in any District facility or is connected to the District network.

• Any questions about this policy, its interpretation, or specific circumstances shall be directed to the District Technology Coordinator before proceeding.

• Violations of this policy-

• For users who are not K-12 students, violations of this policy will be handled in a manner consistent with comparable situations in which Board policy has been violated requiring disciplinary and/or legal action.
• For K-12 students, violations of this policy constitute a Class III offense. In addition to the punishments listed under Class III, the student may lose their Internet privileges or authorization to use any and all technology resources.
• Willful damage to a technology resource by any user will result in the user being responsible for all repair costs.

• The Cullman City School District hereby disclaims any responsibility for costs created by unauthorized use of a technology resource.

The primary goal of the technology environment is to support the educational and instructional endeavors of students and employees of the Cullman City Schools. Resources are provided for non-commercial uses only. Use of any and all technology resources by any user is a privilege and not a right.

• An individual may use only accounts, files, software, and technology resources that are assigned to him/her.
• Individuals may not attempt to log in to the network by using another person's account and/or password or allow someone to use his/her password to access the network, e-mail, or the Internet.
• Individuals must take all reasonable precautions to prevent unauthorized access to accounts and data and any other unauthorized usage within and outside the Cullman City Schools.
• The use of all Cullman City Schools technology resources is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate or suspected inappropriate use will result in a cancellation of those privileges pending investigation.
• The District Technology Coordinators and/or school administrators will determine when inappropriate use has occurred and they have the right to deny, revoke, or suspend specific user accounts.
• Any user identified as a security risk may be denied access.

• Any use of technology resources that reduces the efficiency of use for others will be considered a violation of this policy.
• Users must not attempt to disrupt any computer services or data by spreading viruses, spamming or by any other means.
• Users must not attempt to modify technology resources, utilities, and configurations, or change the restrictions associated with his/her account(s), or attempt to breach any technology resources security system, either with or without malicious intent.

• To maintain network integrity and to insure that the network is being used responsibly, the District Technology Coordinator is responsible for reviewing files and network activity. Equipment and software will be used to monitor how resources are being used and what sites on the Internet are being accessed. Due to this requirement users will have a diminished expectation of privacy when using the Cullman City Schools' network or other resources.
• Because communications on the Internet are, often, public in nature, all users should be careful to maintain appropriate and responsible communications.
• The Cullman City Schools cannot guarantee the privacy, security, or confidentiality of any information sent or received via the Internet.
• Users should be aware that the technology staff routinely monitors and performs maintenance on fileservers, e-mail, workstations, the Internet, user accounts, telephones, and telephone systems. During these procedures, it may be necessary to review e-mail and/or files stored on the network.
• Users are encouraged to avoid storing personal and/or private information on the District and/or school’s technology resources.

• Student administrative records, media center collections, application software that maintains student records (i.e. Accelerated Reader) and accounting information must be backed up on a timely basis to disk, tape, or CD-ROM by the person primarily responsible for the information.
• The system-wide technology staff will perform backups to certain servers and other software; however this is not the primary back up and all users are responsible for backing up personal files.

• Duplication of any copyrighted software is prohibited unless specifically allowed for in the license agreement and then, should occur only under the supervision and direction of the Technology Coordinator.

• A backup copy of all purchased software programs should be made and, thus, become the working copy.
• All original copies of software programs, including those purchased with departmental funds, and hardware will be stored in a secure place.

• If a single copy of a given software package is purchased, it may only be used in one computer at a time. Multiple loading or "loading the contents of one disk onto multiple computers," is NOT allowed.

• If more than one copy of a software package is needed, a site license, lab pack, or network version must be purchased. The District Technology Coordinator with the person requesting the software will be responsible for determining how many copies should be purchased.
• The District Technology Coordinator is authorized to sign license agreements for a school within the system. Copies of any system-wide license agreements must be signed by the District Technology Coordinator and/or Superintendent and distributed to all schools that will use the software.

• The District Technology Coordinator must install all software in use on the local/wide area networks and/or individual workstations within the Cullman City Schools. The District Technology Coordinator will grant exceptions to this requirement, in writing, on a case-by-case basis.
• Users are not authorized to install software and should not purchase software without consulting the technology staff.
• Users are not authorized to make copies of any software or data without the knowledge and permission of the District Technology Coordinator.

• Any questions about copyright provisions should be directed to the District Technology Coordinator.
• Illegal copies of software may not be created or used on school equipment.

• The legal and ethical practices of appropriate use of technology resources will be taught to all students and employees in the system (i.e. during lab orientation, network orientation, faculty meetings, etc).
• Web page authors will be held responsible for the contents of their pages. Do not "borrow" icons or graphics from other pages without documented permission.

Electronic mail access is for the individual’s use in any educational and instructional business that he/she may conduct.

• Personal non-commercial uses of electronic mail are permitted as long as it does not violate Cullman City Schools’ policy and/or adversely affect others or the speed of the network.
• Electronic mail should reflect professional standards at all time.
• Cullman City Schools' e-mail accounts may not be used for political or personal gain.
• Cullman City Schools' e-mail accounts may not be used for attempting or successfully sending anonymous messages.
• Cullman City Schools' e-mail accounts may not be used for sending mass e-mails except for authorized messages in the conduct of the district’s business.
• Cullman City Schools' e-mail accounts may not be used for posting or forwarding other user’s personal communication without the author's consent.

• The intent of the Cullman City Schools is to provide access to resources available via the Internet with the understanding that faculty, staff, and students will access and use information that is appropriate for his/her various curricula.
• Internet access is provided for students to allow them to conduct research.

• Students will gain access to the Internet by agreeing to conduct themselves in a considerate and responsible manner and by providing written permission from their parents.

• Students will be allowed to conduct independent research on the Internet upon the receipt of the appropriate permission forms.

• Permission is not transferable, and therefore, may not be shared.

• Resources that will be used in the classroom will be screened for content prior to their introduction.

• All school rules and guidelines for appropriate technology usage shall apply to usage of the Internet.

• Internet access for all users is filtered and monitored through one central point.
• Internet access is filtered by URL, IP address and content.
• Internet searches are filtered by keyword and content.
• URLs and IP addresses may be added to or deleted from the list by the District office. The staff member requesting the change is responsible for ensuring that the site is appropriate for use before requesting the site to be unblocked.
• Software is used to track which computer has contacted which Internet site, at what time.

• The Cullman City Schools' web server cannot be used for profit, commercial purposes, to express personal opinions, or to editorialize.
• Acting on behalf of the Superintendent, the District Technology Coordinator will periodically review all web pages that are posted on the District web server. The District Technology Coordinator will remove any content that is in violation of this policy or that could adversely affect students, employees, or the school system.

• Pictures and other personally identifiable information should only be used with permission in writing from the parent/guardian of the student involved. No full names should be used—only first name, last initial. No written permission is required for in-school broadcasts (i.e. morning news, announcements, class profiles, etc.)

• All web page authors are responsible for insuring that parental permission has been granted before using a student’s name (first name and last initial only) or picture or school work on a web page.

• All links should be checked regularly to make sure they are current and working.

• Pages that are not updated in a timely fashion, that contain inaccurate or inappropriate information, or contain links that do not work will be removed and the author will be notified.
• Unfinished pages will not be posted until they are fully functional.

• Teacher created web pages, stored on a commercial or private server, may be a link from a teacher created web page stored on the Cullman City Schools Internet server.

• Student posting of personal information of any kind is prohibited. Personal information includes: home and/or school address, work address, home and/or school phone numbers, full name, social security number, etc.
• No written permission is required to list faculty/staff and their school contact information (phone extension, e-mail address, etc.)
• Written consent will be required for posting of any employee photographs.
• Infringement of copyright laws, obscene, harassing or threatening materials on web sites are against the law and are subject to prosecution.

No student’s name, picture or work will be published on the Internet without written parental permission. Parental permission will be granted or denied as part of the technology use agreement. It is the responsibility of the person posting the information to determine if parental permission has been granted.

The following activities are examples of inappropriate activities for any Cullman City Schools’ computer, network, network equipment, e-mail system, or the Internet. This list is not all-inclusive. Anything that would be considered inappropriate in "paper form" is also considered inappropriate in electronic form.

• Using another user's password or attempting to find out another’s password

• Sharing your own password
• Trespassing in another user’s files, folders, home directory, or work

• Saving information on ANY network drive or directory other than your personal Home directory OR a teacher specified and approved location

• Downloading, installing, or copying programs or other executable software of any kind onto a workstation, your home directory, or any network drive
• Harassing, insulting, or attacking others via technology resources
• Damaging or altering computers, computer systems, computer networks, or network equipment (this includes changing workstation configurations such as screen savers, backgrounds, printers, BIOS information, preset passwords, etc.)
• Any attempt to interrupt the flow of data across the network
• Intentionally wasting limited resources such as disk space and printing capacity
• Accessing inappropriate web sites (sites containing information that is violent, illegal, satanic, lewd, pornographic, etc.)
• Sending, displaying, or downloading offensive messages or pictures
• Using obscene, racist, profane, discriminatory, threatening, or inflammatory language
• Participating in on-line chat rooms without the permission/supervision of an adult staff member
• Posting any false or damaging information about other people, the school system, or other organizations
• Posting of any personal information about another person without his/her written consent
• Broadcasting network messages and/or participating in sending/perpetuating chain letters
• Violating copyright laws
• Plagiarism of materials that are found on the Internet
• Use of technology resources to create illegal materials (i.e. counterfeit money, fake identification, false official records, etc.)
• Altering or attempting to alter or allowing another to alter the setup of any server. Adding or attempting to add or deleting or allowing another to add or delete software, hardware, peripheral equipment from a server
• Interrupting or attempting to interrupt or change or allowing another to interrupt or attempt to interrupt or change data flow on the network
• Failure to properly guard against unauthorized use of a password
• Use of any Cullman City Schools Technology resource for personal gain, commercial or political purposes

My child MAY use the Internet while at school according to the rules outlined.

My child's name (first name, last initial only), picture, or class work MAY be published on the Internet for awards, sporting events, clubs, etc.

My child's name (first name, last initial only), picture, or class work MAY NOT be published on the Internet for sporting events, awards, clubs, etc.

Last updated on: August 27, 2001