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IJNDD Social Networking Policy

IJNDD

SOCIAL NETWORKING POLICY OF LEVERETT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

1. Internet AUP still in force

This policy is adopted in addition to, and not as a substitute for, the School District’s Internet Acceptable Use Policy, which governs use of the School District’s technological resources.

All online, electronic or computerized means of communication are subject to this policy. Given the rapid pace of technological change it is not possible to identify all proprietary or commonly named or identified means of such communications.

2. General Concerns

Leverett Elementary School recognizes the proliferation and, in some instances, usefulness, of online conversation between employees and students and/or their parents or guardians. However, due to the nature of social networking sites, there exists a risk that the lines between one’s professional life and personal life will be blurred. LES staff should always be mindful of how they present themselves to the world, online and otherwise. Engaging with current students through social media could undermine the employee’s authority to maintain discipline, encourage inappropriate behaviors and compromise the employee’s ability to remain truly objective with his or her students.

In addition, any online communication using one’s own personal resources, as opposed to school District resources, compromises the employee’s, as well as the school District’s, ability to retain public records in accordance with the requirements of the Commonwealth’s public records laws. The law requires public employees who send, receive or maintain records in their capacity as public employees, to retain, disclose and dispose of such records in compliance with strict provisions of the public records law. This law applies whether or not the record is in the form of a paper document or an electronic communication. When staff members communicate through school-based resources, such as staff email or school sponsored web pages, such records are retained and archived through the school’s information technology department. If, however, an employee communicates outside of these resources, such information is not retained. The burden falls on the employee to comply with public records laws when using personal email or social network accounts to communicate with students and/or parents and guardians.

3. Expectations of Staff

With these concerns in mind, Leverett Elementary School has extended  its expectations for staff members’ use of social networks, personal email accounts, text message features of cell phones, use of blogs, and other electronic or technologically based communication systems.

A. Before endeavoring to establish any social networking account, employees should thoroughly familiarize themselves with the features of any account they choose to use. The employee must become educated about the features of any other social networking site before using it. The employee will be responsible should any information intended to be “private” becomes “public” due to one’s ignorance of the features of the social network or  failure to properly use such features.

B. Because any information shared privately with a recipient could be redistributed by such recipient, without knowledge or consent, the same principles applied to in-person communication should be applied to online conversation. In essence, nothing posted online is ever truly “private.”

C. Every employee is expected to keep the line between one’s professional life and one’s personal life clearly drawn at all times. Only an educational social media account or school district email account should be used to communicate with students and/or parents and guardians on matters directly related to education. The “friends” associated with such an educational social media account should only be members of the educational community, such as administrators, employees, students, and parents of such students. Employees must reject friend requests from individuals who do not fit into any of these categories.

D. At all times, and in the use of any form of communications, staff members must always adhere to student privacy rights and the rights of employees to have their personnel and medical information kept confidential. Information that is protected by law from disclosure to third parties will not be communicated online in a way that unreasonably exposes such information to retrieval by those third parties. An employee may not post confidential student information in any form on a social media site.

E. Employees should communicate with students and parents on educational matters only, and only through school-based resources, such as school-provided email or web portal accounts. Information sent or received by a school employee, even through personal email or social network accounts, that are related to one’s capacity as a school employee, are still subject to public records retention, exemption and disclosure requirements.

F. If an employee conveys school related messages to students and parents through a private account, the employee should save such email or any communication conveyed through a social networking site, or print and save a paper copy of such email or other online communication, and file it, and regard its privacy, in the same manner as any other document concerning that student. The employee should forward copies of any such emails or online communications to their school based email account so that it can be properly retained and archived in compliance with the requirements of the public records law. Any document created or received by a public employee in their capacity as such is subject to retention, and perhaps disclosure under the public records law.

G. No matter what medium of communication is used, the employee must adhere to appropriate employee/student boundaries.

H. This policy is not intended to infringe upon an employee’s right to speak publicly on matters of public concern, or to communicate with fellow members of their union on workplace issues, so long as such communication adheres to appropriate time, place and manner restrictions and does not interfere with the performance of their job duties. However, restrictions may be placed upon the freedom to express oneself via social networking on matter concerning one’s work. Those restrictions are intended to preserve student confidentiality, maintain one’s status as an objective employee and role model for students, be able to maintain order and discipline of students, and remain objective with respect to the students.

I. Employees are discouraged from using home telephones, personal cell phones, personal email accounts and personal social media accounts to communicate with students. Communications with students, even if school resources are not used for such communications, are within the jurisdiction of the school District to monitor as they arise out of one’s position as an employee. Any conduct, whether online or not, that reflects poorly upon the school District or consists of inappropriate behavior on the part of a staff member, may expose an employee to discipline up to and including discharge. An employee may also face individual liability for inappropriate online communications with students and/or parents and guardians, as well as exposing the District to liability in certain instances.

The District recognizes that, in limited cases, use of cell phone, text messages or cell phone calls or emails outside of regular school hours may be reasonably necessary. For example, in connection with school sponsored events for which employees serve as duly appointed supervisors (e.g. on field trips), they may need to convey messages in a timely manner to students and may not have access to school based email accounts, school provided telephones or school based web pages. In such limited circumstances, the District anticipates that employees will make reasonable use of their cell phones or other devices to convey time sensitive information on scheduling issues and the like.

J. When an employee needs to access their personal email account or private social network account using school District computer resources, it must be during non-pupil contact time and it must adhere to the District’s AUP policy.

K. When communicating as an employee of the District through online communications, the employee must be aware that readers will assume them to be “speaking for the School District.” Therefore, all online communications, when an employee is actually acting on behalf of the District, or creating the appearance of doing so, must be professional at all times and reflect positively on the School District.

L. In the use of an employee’s personal social media account, one may not, without express permission from the Superintendent of Schools, use the school’s logo, likeness or any school photographs or other property that belongs to the school.

 Second Reading, First Vote: 01-07-13

Final Vote: 02-04-13

Reviewed by Leverett Policy Committee: 12/22/16

Final Vote by Leverett School Committee: 01/09/17