McFarland Unified School District
Student/Family/Community Computer, Telephone and Network Acceptable Use Policy
McFarland Unified School District (MUSD) may offer Internet access to students. This document contains the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for student and family use of the computer system. It must be signed by each student prior to using the Internet or email. Students under the age of 18 must also have the signature of a parent or legal guardian.
A. Educational Purpose
School site computer system is:
· For educational purposes such as classroom activities, career development, and limited high-quality self-discovery activities.
· Established as a public access service or a public forum. MUSD has the right to restrict the material accessed or posted through the system.
· Not to be used for commercial purposes. You may not offer, or provide for sale, products or services through the computer system.
B. Student Internet Access
· Students have access to Internet resources.
· Students may have email access through a classroom account or through an individual account.
· Student created Web pages hosted by MUSD must be pre-approved by School Administration before posting on the Internet/Intranet. Material on the Web page may relate to your school, community or personal interests that are appropriate in an educational environment.
· Students may not access public Internet Chat Rooms.
· Students may access District hosted Internet Chat Rooms under teacher supervision
C. Unacceptable Uses
Personal Safety
· Do not post personal contact information about yourself or other people. This includes your address, telephone, school address, work address, etc.
· Do not agree to meet with someone you have met online.
· Disclose to your teacher or other school employee any message you receive that is inappropriate or makes you feel uncomfortable.
Illegal Activities
· Do not attempt to gain unauthorized access to the MUSD computer system or to use MUSD computer system to gain unauthorized access to other computer systems.
· Do not go beyond your authorized access. It is illegal to attempt to log in through another person’s account or access another person’s files even if only for the purposes of “browsing”.
· It is illegal to attempt to disrupt the computer system or destroy data by spreading computer viruses or by other means.
· Do not use the MUSD computer system to engage in any other illegal acts, such as arranging for a drug sale, engaging in criminal gang activity, or threatening the safety of persons, etc.
· Or any activity to be an unreasonable disruption to school activities per Ed Code 48900, section k.
System Security
· You are responsible for your individual account/file; take precautions to prevent others from being able to use your account. Under no conditions should you provide your password to another person. Sharing of access is prohibited.
· Immediately notify your teacher or the system administrator if you have identified a possible security problem. Do not look for security problems; this may be seen as an illegal attempt for you to gain access.
Inappropriate Language
· Restrictions against inappropriate language apply to all public messages, private messages, and material posted on Web pages or in email.
· Do not use obscene, profane, lewd, vulgar, rude, inflammatory, threatening, or disrespectful language.
· Do not engage in personal attacks, including prejudicial or discriminatory attacks; do not post information that could cause damage or a danger of disruption.
· Do not harass (act in a manner that distresses or annoys) another person.
· Do not knowingly post false or defamatory information about a person or organization.
Respect for Privacy
· Do not re-post a message that was sent to you privately without permission of the person who sent you the message.
· Do not post private information about another person.
Respecting Resource Limits.
· Do not post chain letters or engage in “spamming”. Spamming is sending an annoying or unnecessary message to a large number of people.
· Check your email frequently; delete unwanted messages promptly.
Plagiarism and Copyright Infringement
· Do not plagiarize works that you find on the Internet. Plagiarism is taking the ideas or writings of others and presenting them as if they were yours. Plagiarizing is a crime and is against the law. This includes images, sound bytes, and video.
· Respect the rights of copyright owners.
Inappropriate Access to Material
Do not use MUSD computer system to access material that:
· Is profane or obscene (pornography).
· Advocates illegal acts.
· Advocates violence or discrimination towards other people.
If you mistakenly access inappropriate information, immediately tell a teacher.
Your parents/legal guardian should instruct you if there is additional material that they think it would be inappropriate for you to access.
D. Your Rights
Free Speech
· Because the MUSD computer system is a limited public forum (like a school newspaper) restrictions may be placed on the expression of your ideas. School Administrators retain the right to determine the appropriateness of all materials.
Search and Seizure
· All contents of your personal files are accessible to School Administrators at all times.
· The MUSD computer system is monitored frequently. Discovery that you have violated this AUP or the law will result in immediate termination of your access.
· Parents/legal guardians have the right to see the contents of their student’s files.
E. Limitation of Liability
MUSD makes no guarantee that the computer/Internet functions or services provided will be error-free or without defect. MUSD will not be responsible for any damage you may suffer, including but not limited to, loss of data or interruptions of service. MUSD is not responsible for the accuracy or quality of the information obtained through or stored on the system. MUSD will not be responsible for financial obligations arising through the unauthorized use of the system.
F. For Your Information
Whenever you do something on a network you leave “electronic footprints”. School Administrators frequently follow those “footprints”. If inappropriate activity is traced to your sign-on account, on the first offense you will receive a warning, a meeting with your parents/legal guardians and School Administration, and must submit a 250-word paragraph discussing an assigned Internet-use related topic. The second offense will result in loss of the Internet access for a minimum of 18 weeks. The third offense will be cause of permanent suspension of Internet use, and possible school suspension or expulsion as determined by the school and District administration.
If an illegal activity occurs through the use of the Internet or MUSD technology use as defined in this AUP the previous aforementioned consequences will be superseded by the California Education Code and State and Federal Laws accordingly.
Resources
Student AUP Agreement
( 46.9 KB )
McFarland Unified School District (MUSD) may offer Internet access to students. This document contains the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for student and family use of the computer system. It must be signed by each student prior to using the Internet or email. Students under the age of 18 must also have the signature of a parent or legal guardian.