To enhance communication with students, parents/guardians, staff, community members and the public at large, the Stanislaus County Office of Education ("SCOE") encourages the development and ongoing maintenance of SCOE and SCOE school websites and social media on the Internet. Websites and social media shall support the educational vision and goals of SCOE and shall be consistent with SCOE's plans for communications and media relations.
(cf. 0000 - Vision)
(cf. 0200 - Goals for the School District)
(cf. 0440 - District Technology Plan)
(cf. 1100 - Communication with the Public)
(cf. 1112 - Media Relations)
(cf. 1114 - Social Media Use)
(cf. 3312 - Contracts)
(cf. 4040 - Employee Use of Technology)
(cf. 5124 - Communication with Parents/Guardians)
(cf. 5145.2 - Freedom of Speech/Expression)
(cf. 6010 - Goals and Objectives)
(cf. 6020 - Parent Involvement)
(cf. 6145.5 - Student Organization and Equal Access)
(cf. 6162.7 - Use of Technology in Instruction)
(cf. 6163.4 - Student Use of Technology)
The Stanislaus County Superintendent of Schools or designee shall develop guidelines regarding the content of SCOE and SCOE school websites, which shall include standards for the ethical and responsible use of information and technology. Design standards shall address the accessibility of SCOE sponsored websites to individuals with disabilities, including compatibility with commonly used assistive technologies. These guidelines shall be consistent with law, County Board policy and administrative regulation.
(cf. 0410 - Nondiscrimination in Programs and Activities)
SCOE and school websites shall not include content which is obscene, libelous or slanderous, or which creates a clear and present danger of inciting students to commit unlawful acts on school premises, violate school rules or substantially disrupt the school's orderly operation.
(cf. 4040 - Employee Use of Technology)
(cf. 5145.2 - Freedom of Speech/Expression)
(cf. 5131 - Students/Conduct)
(cf. 6163.4 - Student Use of Technology)
Any links to external sites shall support the educational mission of SCOE. SCOE is not responsible or liable for the content of external websites.
The County Superintendent or designee shall ensure that copyright laws are not violated in the use of material on County Office or SCOE school websites and in other SCOE-produced media.
(cf. 4132/4232/4332 - Publication or Creation of Materials)
(cf. 6162.6 - Use of Copyrighted Materials)
Design Standards
The County Superintendent or designee shall develop content guidelines for the SCOE websites in order to maintain a consistent online identity, professional appearance, and ease of use.
Content Guidelines
The County Superintendent or designee shall ensure that web site content protects the privacy rights of students, parents/guardians, staff, SCOE Board members and other individuals.
No personal information about students or their parents/guardians, including phone numbers, home addresses or e-mail addresses, shall be published on a SCOE or SCOE school websites. Student directory information shall not be published if parents/guardians have requested that it be withheld.
(cf. 1340 - Access to District Records)
(cf. 4119.23/4219.23/4319.23 - Unauthorized Release of Confidential/Privileged Information)
(cf. 5022 - Student and Family Privacy Rights)
(cf. 5125 - Student Records)
(cf. 5125.1 - Release of Directory Information)
(cf. 5145.1 - Privacy)
(cf. 6145.5 - Student Organizations and Equal Access)
SCOE's web and social media sites are created for the express purpose of disseminating SCOE educational and administrative information. SCOE maintains full authority to regulate and limit access to its web and social media sites, which are the property of SCOE and are closed forums. As a closed forum, SCOE reserves the right to regulate the content of items posted so that they are consistent with the educational purpose of SCOE.
Individuals wishing to post items on the SCOE or SCOE school web or social media sites shall submit such items to the site or department administrator, who will determine whether, and in what format, to post such items, based on adopted SCOE standards. Staff, students, and other individuals may not post items on SCOE or SCOE school web or social media sites without the consent of the designated administrator unless there is a space designated for such postings.
Privacy Rights
Photographs of students shall not be published with their names or other personally identifiable information without written permission from the students' parents/guardians.
(cf. 5125.1 - Release of Directory Information)
Photographs of individual students or groups of students, such as at a school event, may be published provided the students' names or other personally identifiable information is not included.
The nature of a student's disability shall not be posted without written permission from the student's parents/guardians.
(cf. 5022 - Student and Family Privacy Rights)
Home addresses or telephone numbers of staff members shall not be posted.
SCOE, SCOE school websites and other SCOE-produced media shall not post the home address or telephone number of any elected or appointed official without the prior written permission of that individual. (Government Code 3307.5, 6254.21, 6254.24)
(cf. 1100 - Communication with the Public)
(cf. 3515.3 - Police/Security Department)
No public safety officer shall be required as a condition of employment to consent to the use on the Internet of his/her photograph or identity as a public safety officer for any purpose if that officer reasonably believes that the disclosure may result in a threat, harassment, intimidation or harm to the officer or his/her family. (Government Code 3307.5, 6254.21, 6254.24)
(cf. 3515.3 - Police/Security Department)
The County Superintendent or designee may establish standards for the design of SCOE and SCOE school websites in order to maintain a consistent identity, professional appearance and ease of use.
Staff and students may submit materials for web site publication to the SCOE or webmaster who shall ensure that the content adheres to SCOE guidelines and policies.
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
35182.5 Contracts for advertising
35258 Internet access to school accountability report cards
48907 Exercise of free expression; rules and regulations
48950 Speech and other communication
49061 Definitions, directory information
49073 Release of directory information
60048 Commercial brand names, contracts or logos
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS CODE
22580-22582 Digital privacy
22584-22585 Student Online Personal Information Protection Act
22586 Preschool and prekindergarten privacy
GOVERNMENT CODE
3307.5 Publishing identity of public safety officers
6254.21 Publishing addresses and phone numbers of officials'
6254.24 Definition of public safety official
11135 Nondiscrimination; accessibility to state websites
PENAL CODE
14029.5 Prohibition against publishing personal information of person in witness protection program
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 17
101-122 Subject matter and scope of copyright
504 Penalties for copyright infringement
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 20
1232g Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 29
705 Definitions; Vocational Rehabilitation Act
794 Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; accessibility to federal websites
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 42
12101-12213 Americans with Disabilities Act
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 16
312.1-312.12 Children's Online Privacy
312.2 Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 34
99.1-99.67 Family Educational Rights and Privacy
104.1-104.61 Nondiscrimination on the basis of disability
COURT DECISIONS
Aaris v. Las Virgenes Unified School District, (1998) 64 Cal.App.4th 1112
City of San Jose v. Superior Court, (2017) 2 Cal.5th 608
Management Resources:
CSBA PUBLICATIONS
Maximizing School Board Governance: Community Leadership, 1996
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE PUBLICATIONS
Accessibility of State and Local Government Websites to People with Disabilities, June 2003
WEBSITES
California Department of Education, Web Accessibility Standards: http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/di/ws/webaccessstds.asp
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, December 2008: https://www.w3.org
California School Boards Association: http://www.csba.org
California School Public Relations Association: http://www.calspra.org
National School Public Relations Association: http://www.nspra.org
U.S. Department of Justice, Americans with Disabilities Act: http://www.ada.gov
Federal Trade Commission, Complying with COPPA: https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/complying-coppa-frequently-asked-questions#Websites and online
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr
Policy STANISLAUS COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION
adopted: February 4, 2003 Modesto, California
revised: October 6, 2008
revised: May 31, 2018