ACCEPTABLE USE AGREEMENT
AND RELEASE OF DISTRICT FROM LIABILITY (STUDENTS)
Walnut Creek School District (the "District") makes a variety of communications and information technologies available to students through computer/network/internet access. These technologies, when properly used, promote educational excellence in the District by facilitating resource sharing, innovation, and communication. Illegal, unethical, or inappropriate use of these technologies can have dramatic consequences, harming the District, its students, and its employees. This Acceptable Use Agreement is intended to minimize the likelihood of such harm by educating students, as well as setting standards which will serve to protect the District and the students we serve. The District firmly believes that digital resources, information, and interactions available on the computer/network/Internet far outweigh any disadvantages.
Mandatory Review
The District requires legal, ethical, and appropriate computer/network/Internet use. To educate students on proper use and conduct, students and parents/legal guardians are required to review these guidelines at the beginning of each school year and acknowledge understanding of the guidelines.
Student Access/Student Safety
Access to the District's electronic communications system, including the Internet, is made available to students for instructional purposes and to enhance learning consistent with the District's educational goals. Access to the District's computer/network/Internet is a privilege, not a right. The WCSD network has filtering software that blocks access to inappropriate or harmful material and images as defined by the federal Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA). Internet access is provided to all students unless parents or legal guardians request in writing that access be denied. Parents/legal guardians who do not want their students to have access to the Internet may "Opt-Out" by checking the appropriate field during the annual update process.
Google Apps for Education
Students at all grade levels will have access to Google Apps for Education, Google Apps for Education is a suite of web-based programs that includes email, document creation, a shared calendar, collaboration, and assessment tools.
Student Email Accounts
Electronic communication is an important skill for 21st Century students. Email and other digital tools, such as blogs and wikis, are tools used to communicate within the District and beyond. WCSD students may be issued email accounts with access differentiated by grade level.
District Internal Use Only
To ensure student safety and compliance with Children's Online Privacy Protection Rule ("COPPA") law, these accounts can only be used to exchange email within our District @ walnutcreeksd.org domains. In other words, email with District students and staff only.
All student email accounts are set up with the student's user ID and are available while they are currently enrolled in the District. Students whose parents/legal guardians choose to Opt-Out of Internet access will not be issued an email account.
Subject to Monitoring
District computer/network/Internet usage shall not be considered confidential and is subject to monitoring by designated staff at any time to ensure appropriate use. Since the use of District technology is intended for educational purposes, students shall not have any expectation of privacy in any use of District technology. Students should not use the District network to send, receive, or store any information, including email messages, that they consider personal or confidential and wish to keep private. All electronic files, including email messages, transmitted through or stored in the District network system will be treated no differently than any other electronic file. The District reserves the right to access, review, copy, modify, delete, or disclose such files for any purpose.
Monitoring may occur at any time without prior notice for any legal purposes including, but not limited to, record retention and distribution and/or investigation of improper, illegal or prohibited activity. Students should be aware that, in most instances, their use of District technology (such as web searches and emails) cannot be erased or deleted.
All passwords created for or used on any District technology are the sole property of the District. The creation or use of a password by a student on District technology does not create a reasonable expectation of privacy.
Student Code of Conduct and Computer/Network/Internet Responsibilities
District students are bound by all portions of the Acceptable Use Agreement. A student who knowingly violates any portion of the Acceptable Use Agreement will be subject to suspension of access and/or revocation of privileges on the District's system, and will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with Board approved policy.
Discipline Management Plan and Student Code of Conduct
Use of Social Networking/Digital Tools
Students may participate in District-approved social media learning environments related to curricular projects or school activities and use digital tools, such as, but not limited to, blogs, discussion forums, RSS feeds, podcasts, chats, wikis, and online meeting sessions. The use of blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other digital tools are considered an extension of the classroom. Verbal or written language that is considered inappropriate in the classroom is also inappropriate in all uses of blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other District-approved digital tools. Pictures, videos, and photos should not be placed on Internet sites in an unrestricted manner. "Private" videos can be shared with specific family members and friends and should not be available to all Internet users.
Security
Students are required to maintain password confidentiality by not sharing their password with others. Students may not use another person's system account. A student who gains access to any inappropriate or harmful material is expected to discontinue the access and to report the incident to the supervising staff member. The security problem should not be shared with others. Any student identified as a security risk or as having violated the Acceptable Use Agreement may be denied access to the District's system and other consequences may also be assigned. A student who knowingly brings prohibited materials into the school's electronic environment will be subject to suspension of access and/or revocation of privileges on the District's system and will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with Board-approved policy.
Use of Personal Telecommunication Devices (BYOD)
The District's goal is to increase student access to digital tools and facilitate immediate access to technology-based information. To this end, some schools will allow students to connect privately- owned (personal) telecommunication devices to the District wireless network. Students using personal telecommunication devices must follow the guidelines stated in this document while on school property, attending any school-sponsored activity, or using the WCSD network. Internet access is filtered by the District on personal telecommunication devices in the same manner as District-owned equipment. If network access is needed, connection to the filtered, wireless network provided by the District is required.
Personally-owned devices are the sole responsibility of the student owner. The campus or District assumes no responsibility for personal telecommunication devices if they are lost, loaned, damaged or stolen, and only limited time or resources will be spent trying to locate stolen or lost items. These devices have educational and monetary value. Students are prohibited from trading or selling these items to other students on District property, including school vans. Each student is responsible for his/her own device: set-up, maintenance, charging, and security. Staff members will not store student devices at any time, nor will any District staff diagnose, repair, or work on a student's personal telecommunication device. Telecommunication devices will not be used as a factor in grading or assessing student work. Students who do not have access to personal telecommunication devices will be provided with comparable District-owned equipment or given similar assignments that do not require access to electronic devices. Telecommunication devices are only to be used for educational purposes at the direction of a classroom teacher or as stated for specific age groups. Campus administrators and staff members have the right to prohibit use of devices at certain times or during designated activities (i.e. campus presentations, theatrical performances, or guest speakers) that occur during the school day.
Students' personally owned devices shall only be searched by District personal consistent with the requirements of SB 178. This would include, for example, searches done pursuant to a warrant, a wiretap order, searches done in the event that there is a good faith belief that access is required in an emergency to prevent death or serious injury, or with the consent of the authorized possessor of the device.
Inappropriate Use
Inappropriate use includes, but is not limited to, those uses that violate the law, that are specifically named as violations in this document, that violate the rules of network etiquette, or that hamper the integrity or security of the WCSD computer/network/Internet system or any components that are connected to it. The following actions are considered inappropriate uses, are prohibited, and will result in revocation of the student's access to the computer/network/Internet as well as disciplinary action in accordance with the Board-approved policy.
Violations of Law and District Policy
Transmission of any material in violation of any federal or state law is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to:
* threatening, harassing, defamatory or obscene material;
* copyrighted material;
* plagiarized material;
* material protected by trade secret;
* or blog posts, Web posts, or discussion forum/replies posted to the Internet which violate federal or state law.
Tampering with or theft of components from District systems may be regarded as criminal activity under applicable state and federal laws. Any attempt to break the law through the use of a District computer/network/Internet account may result in prosecution against the offender by the proper authorities. Modification of computer or network, modifying or changing computer settings and/or internal or external configurations without appropriate permission is prohibited. Installation of unauthorized software is prohibited.
Students are prohibited from using District technology to access, post, display, or otherwise use material that is discriminatory, libelous, defamatory, obscene, sexually explicit or distractive.
Students may not use District technology to bully, harass, intimidate or threaten students, staff or other individuals ("cyberbullying").
Transmitting Confidential Information.
Students may not redistribute or forward confidential information without proper authorization. Confidential information should never be transmitted, redistributed, or forwarded to outside individuals who are not expressly authorized to receive the information. Revealing personal information about oneself or of others such as, but not limited to, home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, birthdates is prohibited. Commercial use of the system for any type of income- generating activity is prohibited. Advertising the sale of products, whether commercial or personal, is prohibited. Likewise, students may not disclose, use, or disseminate personal identification information (such as name, address, telephone numbers, Social Security numbers, or other personal information) of another student, staff member, or other person with the intent to threaten, intimidate, harass, or ridicule that person.
Marketing by Non-WCSD Organizations.
Use of the system for promoting activities or events for individuals or organizations not directly affiliated with or sanctioned by the District is prohibited.
Vandalism/Mischief
Any malicious attempt to harm or destroy District equipment, materials or data, or the malicious attempt to harm or destroy data of another user of the District's system, or any of the agencies or other networks to which the District has access is prohibited. Deliberate attempts to degrade or disrupt system performance are violations of District policy and administrative regulations and may constitute criminal activity under applicable state and federal laws. Such prohibited activity includes, but is not limited to, the uploading or creating of computer viruses.
Vandalism as defined above is prohibited and will result in the cancellation of system use privileges. Students committing vandalism will be required to provide restitution for costs associated with system restoration and may be subject to other appropriate consequences.
Impersonation
Attempts to log on to the computer/network/Internet impersonating a system administrator or District employee, student, or individual other than oneself, will result in revocation of the student's access to computer/network/Internet.
Illegally Accessing or Hacking Violations
Intentional or unauthorized access or attempted access of any portion of the District's computer systems, networks, or private databases to view, obtain, manipulate, or transmit information, programs, or codes is prohibited. Deleting, examining, copying, or modifying files and/or data belonging to other users, without their permission is prohibited.
System Interference/Alteration
Deliberate attempts to exceed, evade or change resource quotas are prohibited. The deliberate causing of network congestion through mass consumption of system resources is prohibited.
Consequences of Violating this Agreement, Board Policy or Relevant Laws
Any attempt to violate the provisions of this Agreement, District Board policy or relevant laws may result in revocation of the student's access to the computer/network/Internet, regardless of the success or failure of the attempt. In addition, school disciplinary and/or appropriate legal action may be taken.
Denial, Revocation, or Suspension of Access Privileges
With just cause, the System Administrator and/or site administrator, may deny, revoke, or suspend computer/network/Internet access as required, pending an investigation.
Student Safety/Internet Content/Third-Party Supplied Information.
Students and parents or legal guardians of students with access to the District's system should be aware that use of the system may provide access to other electronic communication systems in the global electronic network that may contain material that is illegal, defamatory, inaccurate or controversial. Each District computer with Internet access has filtering software that blocks access to visual depictions that are obscene, pornographic, inappropriate for students, or harmful to minors, as defined by the federal Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA). The District makes every effort to limit access to objectionable material; however, controlling all such materials on the computer/network/Internet is impossible, even with filtering in place. With global access to computers and people, a risk exists that students may access material that may not be of educational value in the school setting.
Disclaimer
The District's system is provided on an "as is, as available" basis. The District does not make any warranties, whether expressed or implied, including, without limitation, those of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose with respect to any services provided by the system and any information or software contained therein. The District does not guarantee that the functions or services performed by, or that the information or software contained on the system will meet the system user's requirements, or that the system will be uninterrupted or error free, or that defects will be corrected.
The District denies any responsibility for material encountered on a computer network, including the Internet, which may be deemed objectionable to a user (or his/her parents, if a minor) or for any hostile or injurious actions of third parties encountered through a computer network. Any statement accessible on the computer network or the Internet is understood to be the author's individual point of view and not that of the District, its affiliates or employees. Due to the nature of electronic communications and changes in the law, it is also impossible for the District to guarantee confidentiality of email sent and received over any computer network.
Opinions, advice, services, and all other information expressed by system users, information providers, service providers, or other third-party individuals in the system are those of the providers and not the District.
The District will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials in any investigation concerning or relating to misuse of the District's electronic communications system.
This Acceptable Use Agreement is consistent with the District's Board Policy and Administrative Regulation 6163.4.
Student Acknowledgment
I have received, read, understand, and agree to abide by this Acceptable Use Agreement and other applicable laws and District policies and regulations governing the use of District technology. I understand that there is no expectation of privacy when using District technology. I further understand that any violation may result in loss of user privileges, disciplinary action, and/or appropriate legal action.
Name: _________________________________________ Grade: __________________
(Please print)
School: __________________________________________________________________
Signature: _______________________________ Date: _____________________
Parent or Legal Guardian Acknowledgment
If the student is under 18 years of age, a parent/guardian must also read and sign the agreement.
As the parent/guardian of the above-named student, I have read, understand, and agree that my child shall comply with the terms of the Acceptable Use Agreement. By signing this Agreement, I give permission for my child to use District technology and/or to access the school's computer network and the Internet. I understand that, despite the District's best efforts, it is impossible for the school to restrict access to all offensive and controversial materials. I agree to release from liability, indemnify, and hold harmless the school, District, and District personnel against all claims, damages, and costs that may result from my child's use of District technology or the failure of any technology protection measures used by the District. Further, I accept full responsibility for supervision of my child's use of his/her access account if and when such access is not in the school setting.
Name: ___________________________________ Date: ________________________
(Please print)
Signature: _____________________________
Exhibit WALNUT CREEK SCHOOL DISTRICT
version: May 11, 2020 Walnut Creek, California