Office of the Provost

Faculty and Unclassified Staff Handbook Chapter 1 -- General Policies

Use of Computing Resources

Introduction

Fort Hays State University (FHSU) provides computing resources and worldwide network access to its faculty, staff, and students for legitimate administrative, educational, and research efforts. As a member of the FHSU electronic community it is your responsibility to use computing resources ethically and responsibly. Members of the FHSU electronic community are expected to use computing resources ethically, and to exercise reasonable care in utilization of FHSU information systems or their components.

Privacy

There are limitations on the amount of privacy that can be expected for individuals. Complaints or exceptional circumstances may result in investigation. The Electronic Communications Act of 1986 provides no protection for employees using company online systems.

Users should exercise extreme caution in using e-mail to communicate confidential or sensitive matters, and should not assume that e-mail is private and confidential. It is especially important that users are careful to send messages only to the intended recipient(s). Particular care should be taken when using the “reply” command during e-mail correspondence.

Because the contents of such e-mail are subject to laws governing public records, Users will need to exercise judgment in sending content that may be deemed confidential. Furthermore, e-mail transmissions may not be secure, and contents that are expected to remain confidential should not be communicated via e-mail. Common examples of confidential contents include: student grades, personnel records, individual donor gift records, and data subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) regulations, and the Gramm Leach Bliley Act (GLBA).

Responsibilities

In making appropriate use of the FHSU computing resources, users must accept the responsibility for their behavior and:

• Protect their user IDs and passwords from unauthorized use, recognizing that individuals are responsible for all activities on his/her user IDs.
• Access only files and data that they own, they have been given authorization for, or that are publicly available.
• Use only legal versions of copyrighted software in compliance with vendor license requirements.
• Be considerate in their use of shared resources. Refrain from monopolizing systems, overloading networks with excessive data (spamming), wasting computer time, connect time, disk space, printer paper and toner, and other computing resources
• Be cautious about e-mail message because the information is public and may be retrieved and used in a court of law.
• Comply in all respects with any request by the University to retain certain information, recognizing that information stored on the University's network is ultimately the responsibility of the University.

Individuals Will Not...

In making appropriate use of computing resources, individuals should avoid:

• Accessing another person's files or data without permission.
• Using computer programs to decode passwords or access control information.
• Engaging in any activity that might be harmful to systems or to any information stored thereon, such as creating or propagating viruses, worms, trojan horses, or such as disrupting services, spamming, or damaging files.
• Making or using illegal copie sof copyrighted software or other copyrighted materials (such as digitized artistic productions), store such copies on FHSU systems, or transmit them over FHSU networks.
• Using e-mail or message services to harass, intimidate, threaten, or otherwise annoy another person by use of sexual or bigoted content or content which poses an imminent threat to the life or safety of the person or persons receiving the communication.
• Disclosing their passwords or using another person's user IDs or passwords.
• Using FHSU systems for commercial use, such as performing work for profit or advertising in a manner not authorized by FHSU.
• Posting web pages that contain material that is illegal or promotes illegal activity (e.g., gambling or child pornography).
• Masking the identity of an account or machine. This includes sending mail that appears to come from someone else.
• Using computer and telecommunications systems for personal use (as regulated by Kansas law and regulations on misuse of state property; see KSA 75-2949 F(d) and the State Department of Administration policy on Internet use).

Use of E-mail for FHSU business

The official Fort Hays State University E-mail Account is the only electronic mail platform for communicating University business. Official e-mail communications are intended only to meet the academic and administrative needs of the campus community. All electronic notifications from the University are transmitted through this e-mail account and are not forwarded to other non-FHSU e-mail accounts. Users are expected to read, and shall be presumed to have received and read, all Fort Hays State University e-mail messages sent to their official Fort Hays State University e-mail accounts. The University expects that such communications will be received and read in a timely fashion.

Assignment of Student E-mail

Official University e-mail accounts are available for all enrolled students. The addresses are all of the form [Name]@e-mail.fhsu.edu. These accounts must be activated before the University can correspond with its students using the official e-mail accounts. An account website available through the TigerTracks Portal has been designed for this purpose. Students’ official e-mail addresses will be included in directory information. As with other directory information, any student may request that access to his or her official e-mail address be restricted.

Expectations about Student use of E-mail

Students are expected to check their e-mail on a frequent and consistent basis in order to stay current with University-related communications. Students have the responsibility to recognize that certain communications may be time critical. Failure to check e-mail, error in forwarding mail, or e-mail returned to the University with “Mailbox Full” or “User Unknown” are not acceptable excuses for missing official University communications via e-mail.

Educational uses of E-mail

Faculty will determine how electronic forms of communication such as electronic mail will be used in their classes, and will specify their requirements in the course syllabus. This will ensure that all students will be able to comply with e-mail-based course requirements specified by faculty. Faculty can therefore make the assumption that students’ official FHSU accounts are being accessed.

Redirecting of E-mail

If a student wishes to have e-mail redirected from their official FHSU address to another e-mail address such as @aol.com, @hotmail.com, or an address on a departmental server, they may do so, but at their own risk. The University will not be responsible for the handling of e-mail by outside vendors or by departmental servers. Having e-mail redirected does not absolve a student from the responsibilities associated with official communication sent to his or her FHSU account.

Authentication for Confidential Information

It is a violation of University policies for any user of official e-mail addresses to impersonate a University office, faculty/staff member, or student. To minimize this risk, some confidential information may be made available only through the password-protected TigerTracks Portal. In these cases, students will receive e-mail correspondence directing them to the appropriate TigerTracks Portal link, where they can access the confidential information only by supplying their student ID and personal identification number (PIN). The confidential information will not be available in the e-mail message.

Consequences of Misuse

Individuals who misuse FHSU computing resources will be held accountable for their conduct, which may include discipline under Student Code of Conduct or Faculty and Unclassified Staff Handbook.

Academic Freedom

No provision of this policy shall be constructed so as to impose any limit to the academic freedom of faculty in their instructional, research, or service activities.

Approved by President Edward Hammond (06-16-99).
Revised policy adopted by President's Cabinet (04-05-06).
Revised policy adopted by President's Cabinet (03-05-08)

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