HN. College Website Policy

 

Purpose

South Plains College recognizes the importance of developing and maintaining a website on the World Wide Web. The purpose of the college’s presence on the World Wide Web is to provide online access to the college whereby internal and external users may obtain information about the college, its programs and services. To this end, the SPC Website is considered an official college publication in electronic format, which communicates the vision, mission, aims and philosophy of the college. The SPC Website functions to inform, encourage and persuade individuals to seek higher education in the context of a comprehensive community college setting. Additionally, the SPC Website exists to support the instructional process in innovative and creative ways, provide students with online access to services and programs, and facilitate the development of a viable learning community. The purpose of the SPC Web Policies and Guidelines is to:

§ Establish standards of conformity and good practice for official pages posted on the SPC Website.

§ Ensure proper use, accuracy and consistency of the SPC Website.

§ Develop policies that foster professional use of the SPC Website by faculty, staff, and students.

§ Aid faculty, staff, and students in publishing web pages that reflect the mission and goals of South Plains College.

Oversight Responsibilities

To assure a unified image, high quality content and acceptable use, all South Plains College web pages and information will be subject to these oversight policies.

Non-instructional information, use and content will be directed through the Office of Marketing and Communications. The Web Content Coordinator is responsible for monitoring content of uploaded pages, training users in use of software for building and uploading pages, questions about the content and design of SPC pages, and monitoring resources being used by the SPC Website. The Office of Marketing and Communications will periodically review the Website for accuracy, currency and compliance with SPC Website Policies and Guidelines.

Instructional Website information and pages, use and content will be directed through the Office of Instructional Technology. Departmental chairpersons or instructional dean(s) will have full control over and responsibility for departmental information within established policy and guidelines. In addition, the Office of Instructional Technology will serve as a source for assistance in setting up and maintaining web pages that are appropriate for instructional purposes. The Office of Instructional Technology will periodically review

instructional Website content for accuracy, currency and compliance with SPC Website Policies and Guidelines.

The Information Services Office is responsible for administering web server equipment, assigning and managing accounts for faculty, staff, and student, maintaining system security and integrity, and providing technical support.

Each SPC department (i.e., Nursing, English, Industrial Technology, Counseling) is responsible for assigning at least one person to be responsible for the web content of that department, to help that department develop its web presence, and to work with the Web Content Coordinator in developing each department’s web pages(s). Approved web authors are responsible for maintaining the department’s collective web pages, evaluating the content of these pages, and checking the external links. The department head or chairperson is responsible for the approval and periodic review of content for the department.

The SPC Web Content Advisory Committee is responsible for periodic review of the SPC Website to make sure the SPC Website is achieving its goals and expected outcomes and that policies and guidelines are being followed.

Definitions

Official SPC Web Pages: Official SPC pages are professional faculty, staff, department, or student organization pages that are created for and represent the programs, services and activities of South Plains College. Such pages are considered SPC publications and must adhere to the same standards and publishing criteria and policies as any other SPC publication. Official pages must be hosted on approved SPC web servers. Unofficial pages will not be hosted on the SPC Website.

Unacceptable Material: Material that promotes activities that are illegal and/or violate existing SPC policies including, but not limited to, criminal acts, intellectual property violations, pirated software, viruses, and offensive materials is deemed unacceptable material. Offensive materials are those that are obscene in nature, pornographic in nature, or that negatively impact SPC. Questionable material, such as artwork, must be used under sensible discretion and must include a disclaimer.

Layer: Layer 1 is the main SPC homepage. Layer 2 is the submenu contained on the left, or any submenu linked to and from Layer 1. Layer 3 is specific college and department pages hosted on the SPC server, or redirected from the SPC server. Layer 4 is individualized pages posted through the MySPC Portal, or redirected from the SPC server.

Acceptable Use Policy

Use of an official SPC web page must be consistent with the mission and goals of South Plains College.

Materials placed on the College Website represent South Plains College, not individual staff or students.

All users are expected to provide materials that are consistent with federal and state law and college policies and established procedures. Beyond these limits, users are expected to provide materials that are high in quality, are technically complete and adequate to the purpose, and provide information that results in a benefit to the college.

Use of the Website and computer equipment must follow existing college policies. Please read Computer and Internet Usage policy (Policy ID) regarding the acceptable use of SPC equipment and network.

Design Consistency

South Plains College has adopted a Content Management System (CMS) that provides for design consistency throughout the Website. All web pages must conform to CMS standards. Acceptable page templates are available from the Web Content Coordinator for use. Any modifications to CMS standards must be approved by the Web Content Coordinator.

Official SPC web pages must contain the following:

Official SPC web page header and footers found online at https://www.southplainscollege.edu (need location).

A text link back to the SPC Homepage with the words “SPC Home”.

All pages on the first two layers are under full control of the Web Content Coordinator.

All “third layer” pages must meet the following criteria: Must adhere to the approved CMS design standards and templates.

Must contain official SPC header/footer and text link.

Must have a redirect from www.southplainscollege.edu (if page is not hosted on www.southplainscollege.edu).

Must be approved by Web Content Coordinator.

SPC web pages must follow existing college policies concerning the use of the college logo. Please consult the Policy and Procedures Manual (Policy HP) for more information.

Links

Links to external commercial and non-commercial sites must be appropriate to the mission and purpose of the college and must be properly approved by the Office of Marketing and Communications, Instructional Technology, Information Services, or the departmental chairperson.

External links from the SPC Website to a Website outside of South Plains College must be verified to at least three levels to ensure there are no links to unacceptable material or offensive material. (i.e., an SPC page links to xyz.com which links to abc.com which links to a pornography site).

External Links from SPC pages can link to a commercial site only if the site is being used as an educational resource rather than a way to compete with local businesses or as a source of college or personal revenue. Links to commercial sites cannot interfere with existing SPC contracts.

The page creator should check links at regular intervals to check for dead links, missing pages, and links to unacceptable material. All external links are subject to review and approval by the Web Content Coordinator.

Copyright, Intellectual Property, and Privacy Issues

Use of copyrighted material without the user’s knowledge and permission is not allowed. Proper permissions must be obtained and filed with the Offices of Marketing and Communications or Instructional Technology before using any copyrighted material on a SPC Website. Trademarks are the property of their owners and must be used by permission. Failure to provide appropriate permission will result in the Web page being removed from the SPC Website immediately.

Intellectual property posted to the SPC Website, which has been written or created by a user, shall have its ownership determined by applicable law. One is prohibited from using, either for commercial purposes or for nonprofit academic publication, any file or programs created by a student or employee without that person's written permission. It is the responsibility of the user to determine that there is a clear legal right to use the information.

SPC web pages must follow all existing privacy policies and laws. Publication Procedures The Web Content Coordinator will provide access to relevant files that are needed by the user, and the Web Content Coordinator will provide any training necessary in the publication of web page files to the SPC Server.

Personal Home Pages

Home pages for personal use by employees or students will not be allowed on the SPC web server. Links from faculty or staff web pages to personal home pages are not permitted.

Commercial Advertising

Commercial advertising or commercial use of pages is not allowed on the SPC Website. This includes promotion or advertisement of specific book publisher items.

Continuing Review

Web page authors should check their pages regularly to make sure information is up-to-date and links are operational. The entire Website will be reviewed continuously for currency and accuracy of links. Every page will be checked for expiration date, continuation of the person indicated as being responsible for the page, continued existence of the links embedded in the page, etc. Discrepancies will be noted to the

responsible departmental web author or individual for correction. Any page that is not upgraded after notification will be removed.

The Offices of Marketing and Communications, Instructional Technology and Information Services reserve the right to remove or refuse server uploads for any programs, HTML documents, graphics, audio, video, forms, or data that do not comply with the SPC Website Policies and Guidelines. When opinions differ on the appropriateness of materials or a page’s compliance to these policies and guidelines, differences will be resolved through appropriate supervisory channels.

Policy Questions

Any questions or clarifications concerning the SPC Web Policies and Guidelines should be directed to the Office of Marketing and Communications.

Policy Revised: August 1, 2022
Approved By: Executive Council 
Approval Date: 09/19/2006
Date Issued: 02/03/2003