it policies – IT-Directorate

Shining a light on policies!

As a member of Aamusted University, each of us needs to help minimize the risk of non-compliance with a growing number of laws and regulations.

Explore IT policies and additional resources

Aamusted Account Policy

The Aamusted Account provides access to computing resources across the University.

Appropriate Use Policy

This policy sets forth standards for responsible and acceptable use of Aamusted Information Technology Systems (ITS) resources.

Security Extension to Appropriate Use Policy

Security Extension to the Policy on Appropriate Use of Aamusted Information Technology System is to define the policy governing connecting devices to the network.

Data Security Policy - All Employees

Take the time to review our Data Security Policy for All Faculty, Staff and Student Employees.

File Sharing and Copyright Awareness

Aamusted provides its faculty, staff and students with access to the electronic resources they need to support its mission of education, research and service. Learn about our policies for file sharing and copyright.

Privacy Policy

This privacy policy sets out how Aamusted uses and protects any information that you give to the university when you use the instituition websites as well as other information you may provide to us from time to time.

Other Service Policies

Email Policy

The purpose of a list must be to further or augment one of the primary activities of the University, which include education, research, and teaching. Examples of such purposes include:
- work-related activity
- classroom instruction
- research
- University administration
- announcements by student clubs and organizations registered with the University
Mass mailing lists are intended for: announcements of campus events and deadlines; changes in campus policies, procedures, organizations or departments; and notification of the availability of services and/or facilities, for example. Mass mailing lists are NOT, however, intended for messages such as those of a personal nature, those soliciting support for charity or special causes not connected with a university effort, those expressing personal opinion or that support public debate or campaigning (unless this is the list’s express purpose), giveaways, unverified public service announcements (such as virus alerts, unsafe products, etc.), or chain mail.
Under no circumstances can a list be used to participate in or promote activities that are illegal, violate the Code of Student Conduct, or the Policy on the Acceptable Use of Clark University Computing Resources.
ITS will not automatically add members to lists from University or individual databases. The list owner or the individual members of a list are responsible for subscribing or unsubscribing members to the lists. List owners should use the web browser interface to add or remove members from the list in bulk. When absent, the list owner must ensure that an alternate or designee performs list maintenance tasks without sharing their Clark Account username and password (an AUP violation). The designation of an alternate is required for list creation.
The list owner (or alternate) must read email directed to the list regularly, preferably daily.
It is strictly forbidden for anyone to attempt to falsify his or her identity in any action associated with a list.
In the event that a list is running without a list owner, due to a retirement, re-location, graduation, etc., ITS will have no alternative but to remove the list. ITS is not responsible for finding a new list owner to assume responsibility for an existing list, nor is it possible for ITS to maintain lists for individuals in their absence.
If a situation arises where a list is interfering with normal operation of the list server, campus network, or other parts of the campus-computing infrastructure, ITS will attempt to notify the list owner to rectify the problem. ITS will disable the list if the problem is not corrected promptly.

Other Factors Associated with List Creation and Operation

An application for establishing a list will be processed by the ITS Help Desk prior to its creation. It may take up to 5 business days to process a list request. A mailing list may not be the appropriate solution for all purposes. A different electronic communication technology might better serve the purpose of a particular request. Also, the Help Desk may ask for additional documentation regarding the establishment of a list, including, but not limited to, proof of official student group recognition. Other considerations that may affect the status of a list request include the relevance of the list to education, research, or the administrative activities at Clark University and the capacity of available list server computing resources. If there is reason to believe that the list would be used for illegal or unethical purposes, that list will not be established.

Violators of the policies and guidelines described above will be subject to the removal of privileges to receive messages from the lists and/or send to the lists. Use of lists for distribution of materials that violate State, Federal, or Clark University rules will result in action by the appropriate authorities, including the University Judicial Board.

Lists will be periodically reviewed for activity and continued conformance to the current list server policies. Those that are inactive or fail to conform to policy will be removed. Lists associated with courses will be removed at the end of each semester or at the conclusion of the course, unless other arrangements are made. Those associated with student organizations require annual renewal for their continuation. Those associated with academic departments or administrative offices require biannual renewal for their continuation. The mailing list administrator will contact list owners prior to removal of the list.

Copyright Policy

Aamusted university expects all members of its community to respect the rights of intellectual property ownership by adhering to the United States copyright laws, including amendments made to the laws by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and the Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act. Clark University also expects all members of the community to be mindful of the limited rights conferred on them by the “fair use” exemption and other exclusions to the copyright laws.

Works that are subject to copyright protection should only be used with the expressed written permission of the copyright owner or with a documented exception to the copyright law (U.S. Code Title 17 on copyright). While the fair use provision (section 107) is probably the most widely used exception to seeking permission for uses of copyrighted works, especially in the university environment, there are other provisions in the copyright law which outline performance or display exceptions for “face-to-face” classroom settings and distance education (section 110). There are also specific rules for music (section 107, section 112, section 114, and section 115) and works of visual art (section 113). Reliance on this exception should be limited to those cases that clearly meet the fair use balancing test and/or compliance criteria associated with the TEACH Act. Faculty, students, and other authorized staff should be familiar with these standards and all are encouraged to document a good faith application of these standards to all Clark-related uses.

In order to support Fair Use at Aamusted services, student access to courses in the LMS will be removed approximately 1 month after the end of the semester. Exceptions can be made by the faculty member in consultation with ITS.

Not all educational uses are covered by the fair use provision.