Loras College World Wide Web &
Electronic Communications
Electronic Communications and WWW Presence Policy
Also see WWW Content Disclaimer, Copyright and Privacy
Introduction
Loras College’s presence electronically and via the World Wide Web is essential to the Mission of the college. The Loras College community embraces core values that define the way we work, behave, and relate with others. Truth, Respect, Responsibility, Excellence and Service.
Loras is committed to the proposition that an academic institution is a community in which the ideal of honesty is to be fostered, encouraged and achieved. Respect for the College, one’s fellow humans and for property—both real and intellectual—are therefore essential ingredients of that ideal, and the College expects all its members to exhibit such respect. The ideal of honesty is of course a moral ideal, and so the policy will in many respects go beyond the mere requirements of the law. Electronic information, because of its extremely volatile nature, presents strong possibilities, and hence temptations, for misuse. It is important, therefore, for all members of the College community to be aware of that fact and to be extremely committed to use such technology appropriately and to exhibit respect for the College, for one’s fellow humans, one’s self expressions and individualism. Inappropriate or questionable use will be addressed. If content is determined inappropriate or disrespectful, it is expected the content be removed or corrected.
Loras College recognizes the benefits of utilizing technology as a tool in the teaching and learning environment. In providing these resources Loras College expects all users to agree to use the resources legally, ethically and in keeping with their intended use. Anyone who uses electronic resources and the web of Loras College agrees by such use to comply with the expectations outlined. Thus, Loras’ web presence policy is designed to establish standards and guidelines that will:
- support the Vision, Mission, Goals, and traditional academic values of Loras;
- assist Web Development in developing sites that comply with College policies, rules, and regulations, and local, State, and Federal laws; and
- facilitate the official operations of Loras College and appropriate online activity including electronic communications.
This document applies to:
- www.loras.edu; depts.loras.edu; the official web presence of Loras College
- web pages and files located on servers within the loras.edu domain
- pages, sites and domains outside loras.edu domain or Loras network representing or promoting Loras College or any Loras College organization, department, division, official business, campus activity or event.
- faculty, staff, and student pages on servers owned, managed, maintained and/or connected to the Loras College network.
- electronic communication – which includes, however not limited to electronic mail (email), newsgroup posts, World Wide Web ("WWW") pages, blogs, social networking , data or file transfers, pdf files, presentation materials, multi-media files, facsimile communications, and any electronically published or distributed content, which represents or promotes Loras College, a Loras College organization, department, division, official business, staff, student, campus activity or event.
Internet, Web and Other Electronic Resources
Usage of internet, web and other electronic resources is limited to purposes related to the College’s Mission of education. Usage of resources outside these guidelines is prohibited unless pre-approved by Web Development. Loras College Web Development reserves the right to remove any electronic file, resource or page on any loras server.
Publishing and Distributing Electronic Files, Documents, and Information
All Loras College and/or Loras College affiliated electronic publications, including and not limited to pages, sites, blogs, documents, policies, forms, applications, PDF files, newsletters, presentation materials, facsimiles, html formatted email, advertising banners, etc., must display (without scrolling) the official trademarked Loras College logo, publishing department or division, purpose [title], and contact information. Whenever possible, the logo must be hyperlinked to www.loras.edu. Each publication must clearly identify to the reader the Loras College brand, without scrolling, and follow the guidelines outlined in the Loras College Marketing Identity Manual (usage of images, colors, logos, graphics, etc).
Electronic documents should never be published or made available electronically in a Microsoft or other non web-standard proprietary document type (unless posted via the Inside.Loras portal). Approved electronic file types include; pdf, txt, htm, html, xhtml, shtml, asp, aspx, php, xml, and jsp. Microsoft and other proprietary documents can carry a wide range viruses and linked scripts along with printer specific properties which can execute and alter the way a document is viewed. The initial view and alignment of the document can be subsequently inconsistent, introducing unknown first impression variables. These guidelines may also help avoid the unintentional - or otherwise – accessibility to skew or modify the document's content, brand, images, components or properties. For instructions on how to save documents as a PDF file, contact at x4949 or helpdesk@loras.edu.
A standardized Loras College footer is required on web pages and electronic files whenever possible. The following footer is required on all pds and any other printable electronic document variations allowed for phone number and department - contact Web Development for variations.
LORAS COLLEGE | +Catholic | Liberal Arts | Dubuque, Iowa | Campus Ministry | 563.588.7650
All PDF documents must be titled properly [meta content] with “Loras College [your division or department] Document Title” For details on how to title a PDF document, contact the Help Desk x4949 or Web Development x4092.
Email - Attachments, Signatures, BCC and Mass Emailing
All email signature files or signature area of email must include: Senders full name (first and last), official College title, College name "Loras College", and a contact phone number (office phone number, department resource phone number, or the Loras College main information desk phone number 563.588.7100). All images or graphics used in signature files or signature area must be optimized properly and pre-approved by the Director of Web Development or Director of Campus Communications.
When sending email off-campus, avoid the usage of mailing lists and BCC-Blind Carbon Copy for more than just a few addresses. By sending to a large mailing list and/or adding several addresses to the BCC field, this can increase the spam rating of your email and potentially jeopardize the entire loras.edu email domain. When needing to send an email to many recipients (mailing list, prospects, friends of the College, parents, newsletter group, athletic mailing list, etc.) please contact Web Development at x4092. We can give you guidelines focused to your specific needs and discuss template options and mass email options which can track delivery and click through variables. More importantly, together we can ensure the email will not jeopardize the Loras.edu domain. .
Avoid sending Microsoft or other proprietary document types electronically or via email attachment (unless exclusively utilized on the Inside.Loras Portal). Microsoft and other proprietary documents can increase the spam rating on an email and also can carry a wide range of viruses and linked scripts. For instructions on how to save documents as PDF, contact the Loras College HelpDesk at x4949 or helpdesk@loras.edu.
Use of College Name, Logo, Crest and Marks
The Loras College name, logo, crest, artwork, tagline and other branding components are among the words and symbols that directly represent and brand Loras College. The Loras College logo is trademarked and protected by law. Institutional Marketing regulates the use of the Loras College trademarks, including use on the web, electronic files, electronic email, multi-media files, facsimile documents, and presentation materials.
The Loras College Identity Manual provides information on use of these marks. The manual includes policies for the use of the Loras College name, graphics, logos, photos, colors, and marks in print, merchandise, electronic files, electronic email, multi-media files, facsimile documents, and presentation materials when promoting or representing Loras College, a Loras College organization, department, division, official business, staff, student, campus activity or event.
Computer Use Policy
The Computer Use Policy, included in the Loras College Student Handbook governs all campus computing and networking activities, including use of the World Wide Web.
Copyright
All electronic publications must follow College and legal standards regarding copyright. Web publishers must secure permission from the owner of the copyright when including copyrighted or trademarked material such as text, photographs, audio, video, graphics, maps, multi-media or logos as required by the owner of the copyright or trademark. For more information on copyright, see the U.S. Copyright Office web site.
Student Information Disclosure
The disclosure of information about students is governed by the Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Faculty, staff and students are advised to consult the registrar’s office registrar@loras.edu on FERPA guidelines prior to posting student information on their web sites.
Privacy
Web sites that collect individually identifiable information must provide a privacy statement. The statement must be clear and easily accessible, and should cover the Federal Trade Commission's five core principles of privacy : notice, consent, access, security, and enforcement. Web sites that collect individually identifiable information and provide services to children 12 and under may also be required to comply with provisions of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.
Social Networking / Media
Social networking, blogs, wikis, and social media sites (along with other on-line community sites) such as Facebook, Twitter, My Space, Youtube, Flickr, etc., are used increasingly more by individuals to electronically communicate with each other. Loras College recognizes the benefits of utilizing social media resources and expects all users to agree to use the resources legally, ethically and in keeping with their intended use.
Most online social networking sites and resources require an e-mail address and personal profile information; personal accounts should not be used to officially represent or promote Loras College, a Loras College organization, department, division, athletic team, group, official business,campus activity or event. When representing the College, or entity of the College, an approved campus representative account must be used. Individuals or groups are not permitted to freely create campus representative accounts on social networking, blog, wiki, or other social media sites; only Loras employees specifically authorized by Web Development and Campus Communications may create online accounts and/or post official College (departmental, divisional, athletic, organizational, etc.), information, media files, documents, resources, calendars, and events.
Loras College, Duhawk, or other College branding taglines cannot be used in the titling or naming of individual social networking, blogs, wikis, social media, or other online accounts. All official College posted content must comply with the Campus identity policies, and other Campus related policies.
Loras College is committed to the proposition that an academic institution is a community in which the ideal of honesty is to be fostered, encouraged and achieved. Respect for the College, for one’s fellow humans and for property—both real and intellectual—are therefore essential ingredients of that ideal, and the College expects all its members to exhibit such respect. The ideal of honesty is of course a moral ideal, and so the policy will in many respects go beyond the mere requirements of the law. Social Networking, because of its extremely volatile nature, presents strong possibilities, and hence temptations for misuse. It is important, therefore, for all members of the College community to be aware of that fact and to be extremely conscious and committed to use electronic resources appropriately and to exhibit respect and pride for the College, for one’s fellow humans, one’s self expressions and individualism. Inappropriate or questionable use will be addressed.
Individuals or groups within the College community are not permitted to express or represent personal opinions in ways that may imply endorsement by Loras College. Use of copyrighted material is illegal. It is expected only properly licensed content or personal content will be posted; if you do not own the copyright, you must have permission from the copyright holder in order to distribute their work. Unauthorized duplication, distribution, or other use of copyrighted material is illegal and will be addressed accordantly.
Links to and from Non-Loras College Web Sites
Links from a Loras College page to any non-Loras site or page must not imply College endorsement of the site's products or services and should open in a new window [ _blank ]. The following disclaimer is on the Website Internet Policies: Content Disclaimer, Copyright Policy, Privacy Policy page. A disclaimer must be included unless it is clear from the context that the university does not endorse the product or service. The disclaimer is: Links on pages to non-Loras College sites or pages do not represent endorsement by Loras College or its affiliates.
Loras welcomes links to its web site for educational or informational purposes. The link (and supporting company or organization) must not imply affiliation with or endorsement by Loras College and must be pre-approved by the Director of Web Development or Director of Campus Communications.
Personal Web Pages
Web pages created by faculty, staff, or students are the sole responsibility of their authors. Loras College provides every faculty, staff and student web space. Personal web pages are to be utilized for educational purposes only, subject to all existing laws and Loras policies, and may not be used to promote businesses, goods, or services; for advertising; or to provide financial gain for any individual or organization. Loras may provide lists of and/or links to personal web pages. Loras College is not responsible for and does not regularly monitor the content of these pages.
When necessary, Loras may investigate complaints, and may remove or limit access to web pages that are deemed unacceptable, unethical, or questionable. Since access to the Loras College web space is a privilege, acceptability will be determined primarily on content and how the content is being used educationally, via mission of teaching, Mission of the college, respect for self and others, research, creative work, and public service.
Faculty, staff or students conducting online research with human subjects are required to submit electronic survey files and details to the Director of Web Development or Director of Campus Communications prior to publishing or electronically submitting.
Personal pages must not convey the impression that the author is representing, giving opinions, or otherwise making statements on behalf of Loras College or any unit of the college. A disclaimer must be included on the page unless it is clear from the context that an author is not representing Loras College. The disclaimer is: The opinions or statements expressed herein should not be taken as a position or endorsement of Loras College. I [state your name] assume full responsibility for the content represented on this page.
Hosting
Web sites covered by this policy are prohibited from hosting pages on behalf of individuals, organizations, departments, divisions, or any entity or part of each that are not pre-approved by Web Development. Personal web space [myweb.loras.edu] is intended to be used as a personal portfolio; it may not host pages for campus organizations, departments, divisions, other individuals, events, off-campus businesses or any other information outside of personal portfolio content. Organizations can be setup with their own webspace - contact Web Development for more information. Loras reserves the right to edit or remove inappropriate or questionable content. When utilizing a hosting company, it must be preapproved by Web Development.
Providing information on conferences and other activities jointly sponsored by the university and unaffiliated organizations must be pre-approved by Web Development when utilizing a hosting company or Loras network resources. Loras’ role and participation will be a factor in determining approval. Exemptions to this policy may be considered when hosting a web page that directly serves the Loras College Mission of teaching, research, creative work, and public service. For information, contact the Director of Web Development.
Domain Use / Purchase / Lease
The creation, use, and purchase of any external domain (outside loras.edu) and internal domain (loras.edu) must be reviewed by a VP or the Director of Web Development prior to finalization. The following criteria must also be met.
- The Loras Trademarked logo must be prominently represented on the site (without scrolling). The Loras College logo must be linked back to the Loras College www home page [http://www.loras.edu] .
- The domain and/or hosting company's contract must be reviewed by Web Development prior to signing. A copy of the signed contract must be available to Web development.
- The domain and/or hosting lease must be registered to Loras College. A current staff member must be the active contact. Students cannot be contact representatives.
- The site must clearly contain complete contact information which must include an individual's name or position along with the representing department or division, and a direct phone number and email address (mailing address optional).
- The site's design must clearly represent the Loras College approved electronic HEX colors [purple:48235d, gold:ddbc5a].
- The site should inherit design attributes and/or similar structure of the supporting Loras College department or division page.
- The site cannot sell goods or services or offer online payments of any type without prior approval from theVice President for Finance and Administrative Services.
- The site and site's content must follow all other electronic, identity and other related college policies.
Advertising, Sponsorships, and Partnerships
Advertising
To protect the educational nature of Loras College, and to preserve their primary role in support of the Mission of the college, websites owned and operated by Loras College will not accept external paid advertising. Questions or concerns regarding Loras College’s Web Content Management Policies should be addressed to the Director of Web Development and theVice President for Finance and Administrative Services.
Co-branding, hyperlinked logos, link exchanges, and associate, affiliate, and referral programs are among the items that will be considered and must be pre-approved by the Director of Web Development and theVice President for Finance and Administrative Services. Text links provided for informational purposes or as part of a comprehensive list of sources will not be considered advertising unless the purpose is to promote a product or service. This policy is not meant to prohibit auxiliary-funded departments from providing appropriate information on their products and services.
Sponsorships
Sponsors may be acknowledged on official College sites related to College-sponsored artistic or cultural programs, conferences, or special events upon approval of the Director of Web Development and theVice President for Finance and Administrative Services. These acknowledgments must be supported by a written agreement between the sponsor and the university entity that specifies a limited term, typically concluding with the end of an event or series. A copy of the written agreement must be presented to the Director of Web Development and will be considered when determining final approval of electronic sponsorship.
Approved acknowledgements may include the sponsor's corporate name or logo, but may not include a URL, street address, telephone number, email address, hyperlink to a web page, product name or service information, call to action, or comparison. The acknowledgement must include a disclosure such as "The Artist Series acknowledges the support of these sponsors" and may not imply endorsement by Loras College.
Partnerships
Official Loras College sites covered by this policy may acknowledge business partnerships for services provided [upon approval of Web Development] at no cost that assist the university in achieving its mission; for example, access to an online research service or a search engine. Otherwise, all the provisions for sponsorships apply to partnerships, except that logos may be hyperlinked to the service provided.
Additional Applicable Policies
Other Campus-wide policies outline global expectations and limitations. Many of these policies also apply to web sites, electronic files, electronic use, presentation materials, multi-media files, facsimile files, web-related activities, and internet activities. All publishers and users of electronic files and resources must make themselves aware of all Loras College policies and guidelines, regent laws and policies, and any local, State, or Federal laws or regulations that apply to electronic publishing and internet use.
Policy Violations
Violations of web and electronic file and electronic use policy on web pages or electronic communication; including, however not limited to electronic mail (email), newsgroup posts, World Wide Web ("WWW") pages, blogs, social networking , data or file transfers, attachments, pdf files, presentation materials, multi-media files, facsimile communications sent, or any electronically published content, which represent or promote Loras College, a Loras College organization, department, division, official business, staff, student, campus activity or event may result in restricted access to college computing resources; removal from menu pages, indexes, and search results on the Loras College web site, vice president / HR review; and/or deleted permanently. Submit questions regarding apparent violation of policy to webmaster@loras.edu.
Style Guidelines
In addition to the regulations and requirements listed above, those creating web content for publication on the Loras College website or supported website, must comply with Web Style Standards and all other campus-wide policies that apply.
Web Style Standards
To keep a consistent look and feel, standards have been set in place on the website. This portion of branding helps your pages fit into the Loras College scheme and gain credibility. All regular pages within the loras.edu domain need to follow the following style rules or they may be deleted [and not available for restore] from the web server.
Templates / CMS
The majority of pages on the Loras site are housed within the College's Content Management Systems; Active Campus, WebTwist, Drupal, Wordpress, and an internal custom CMS. When building and maintaining pages within a CMS, the font size, type or orientation is not to be changed. Changes to font color or style is highly discouraged as templates are built to keep a consistent look, feel and expectation.
Headers
HTML headers are utilized to label information in the copy text. They are important for search engines and web readers use them to skim pages. Headers are generally available from 1-6, with decreasing importance as the number rises.
- Loras.edu uses header levels 1-3 in normal practice.
- Header level 1 is reserved to describe the entire page and is programmatically placed in the document from the display name--You should not utilize a header level 1 outside of this scope.
- Header level 2 denotes sections of a document and is styled with an underline.
- Header level 3 shows the lowest level of content division.
Copy Text
Copy text should remain concise with the Loras site and follow inherent templates and style sheets. The exception is press releases in which guidelines are determined by the Institutional Marketing. All other exceptions must be approved by Web Development. All web copy must be reviewed and approved by the representing department director, assigned web content editor, or vice president prior to posting electronically or submitting for publication.
Images
To change or add a photo to the website, contact Web Development or Institutional Marketing. They will approve all photo changes, assist in make the photo the correct size and resolution if necessary, and make sure the photo fits the design of the page. Exceptions may be approved by Web Development or. A library of photos provided by Institutional Marketing - located under Marketing Resources on the Inside Loras Portal A-Z index -is available for print, electronic, or other media purposes. If you wish to utilize a photo outside this library for electronic or web use, it must be approved by Web Development prior to posting.
Stock photos, clip art style, Microsoft images, and freeware community use graphics should not be used on the Loras College website. Images and graphics for use on the internet or any electronic presence need to be pre-approved by Web Development.
Links
Links to documents is possible, however limited to file types of pdf, swf, html. htm, cms pages, jpg, png, gif, or shtml. Microsoft or other non web friendly documents are not allowed on the Loras site or linked within the site. Linking to the approved documents types should be done within the CMS. All linked documents must follow the Loras College Electronic Presence Policies and other applicable campus policies. Links to documents and pages not housed or maintained by Loras College must open in a new window (_blank).
Managing Content
- Content on the Loras College website will be user friendly and integrative
- Content on the Loras College website must be evaluated at least once a year
- Content on the Loras College website must be current and pertinent
- Individual departments are responsible for providing updated content to Web Development for department specific web content
- Content on the Loras College website will strive for search engine optimization (SEO)
- Only designated content providers can publish changes directly to the web – all other content is updated and published via Web Development.
- The Director of Web Development shall have the right to suspend content deemed as inappropriate, obscene, or questionable with option to be reviewed by web committee or Vice President of Enrollment Management.
- Content shall conform to the approved style guide with the exception of faculty, staff and student individual web pages.
- All web content and pages must comply with all publishing, identity policies, usage, and any other policies outlined by Loras College.
- A link to the WWW Content Disclaimer, Copyright and Privacy should be included on every page.
For questions or comments regarding electronic communications and www presence policies contact
webmaster@loras.edu or feel free to call us at 563.557.4092
