Responsible Use Guidelines

Our students and employees use technology to learn. Technology is essential to facilitating the creative problem-solving, information fluency, and collaboration that we see in today’s global economy. While we want our students and staff to be active contributors in our connected world, we also want them to be safe, legal, and responsible. These Responsible Use Guidelines (RUG) support our vision for technology use and uphold a strong sense of digital citizenship among our users. This policy applies to all Splendora Independent School District (SISD) computer networks (including the resources made available by them) and all devices connected to those networks.

Responsible Use and Digital Citizenship

• Respect Yourself: Select online names, language/content, and posts that are educationally appropriate.
• Protect Yourself:  Do not publish personal details, contact details, or a schedule of activities. Unless otherwise authorized, owners of accounts are responsible for all activity initiated by and/or performed under these accounts. It is the owner’s responsibility to secure account credentials appropriately and to maintain and back up all data. If uncertain whether a specific computer activity is permitted or appropriate, a teacher/administrator must approve before engaging in that activity.
• Respect Others: Do not use technology to bully or tease others. Do not make audio or video recordings of students/employees without their prior permission. Posing as someone else is forbidden.
• Protect Others: Maintain a safe computing environment by notifying appropriate campus/department officials of inappropriate behavior, vulnerabilities, risks, and breaches involving district technology.
• Respect Intellectual Property: Suitably cite any and all use of websites, books, media, etc., and respect all copyrights.
• Protect Intellectual Property: Request permission to use software and media produced by others.

General Guidelines

• The purpose of a user account is to provide access to the SISD network and to facilitate creativity and innovation. We use this network to support communication and collaboration. We use technology to extend research and information fluency, to collect and analyze data, and to solve problems.
• Access is a privilege, not a right. Access entails responsibility, and inappropriate use may result in the cancellation of those privileges.
• Students/employees should have no expectation of personal privacy in any matters stored in, created, received, or sent through the SISD computer network. These are subject to review by the SISD at any time, with or without notice, with or without cause, and without the permission of any student, parent/guardian, or employee.
• A content filtering solution is in place to prevent access to certain sites that may contain inappropriate material, including pornography, weapons, illegal drugs, gambling, and any other topics deemed non-educational by the SISD.  

Government Laws
Technology is to be utilized in conformity with the laws of the United States and the State of Texas. Violations include, but are not limited to, the following:
1. Criminal Acts – These include, but are not limited to:

• unauthorized tampering
• cyber stalking
• vandalism
• harassing email
• child pornography
• cyberbullying

2. Libel Laws - You may not publicly defame people through published material.
3. Copyright Violations - Copying, selling, or distributing copyrighted material without the express written permission of the author or publisher (users should assume that all materials available on the Internet are protected by copyright), and/or engaging in plagiarism.

Bring Your Own Technology
Splendora ISD allows students and employees to Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT). Employees may use a personal device in place of (or along with) their district-assigned devices if they choose. Students may use a personal device in class for instructional purposes with the teacher's permission. If personal devices are damaged or stolen while on SISD property, SISD will not be liable for the replacement or repair of any personal device. Any data and/or SMS/MMS (texting) charges will not be reimbursed by the SISD.

All BYOT users will have access only to the guest wireless service provided by SISD. The Internet will still be filtered by the SISD content filter when connected to the guest wireless service.

Google Apps and Other Third-Party Accounts
In accordance with our district's mission, goals, and vision for technology, our students/employees may require accounts in third-party systems. Many of these accounts will be used for school-related projects, but may also be accessed outside of school. The use of these accounts will help our students/employees master effective and proper online communications as required in the PreK-12 Technology Applications Standards.

Acknowledgment

By signing and returning this document, I understand and will abide by these Responsible Use Guidelines. If I break this agreement, the consequences could include suspension of BYOT privileges, district-owned accounts, and network access. In addition, I could face disciplinary/legal action, including, but not limited to, criminal prosecution and/or penalties under applicable state and federal laws.

The following actions are not permitted and could result in the consequences outlined above:

• Users may not attempt to disable or bypass the SISD content filter.
• Users may not illegally access or manipulate information in private databases or systems, such as gradebooks and other student information systems.
• Users may not install unauthorized network access points or other connections that may not effectively integrate with existing infrastructure.
• Users may not use their accounts for non-school-related activities, including but not limited to: o Using the Internet for financial gain, personal advertising, promotion, nongovernment-related fundraising, or public relations o Political activity: lobbying for personal political purposes, or activities such as solicitation for religious purposes
• Users may not send, save, view, forward, or create harassing or offensive content/messages. Offensive material includes, but is not limited to, pornographic, obscene, or sexually explicit material, sexual comments, jokes, or images that would violate school policies. The school policies against harassment and discrimination apply to the use of technology.

The Director of Information Technology Services and the campus principal will determine what constitutes inappropriate use of the SISD computer network. The campus principal may suspend an account or network access at any time. In addition, the administration, faculty, and staff of the SISD may request that a user’s account be suspended or denied at any time.