TECHNOLOGY / INTERNET ACCEPTABLE USE AND SAFETY POLICY

The Coffee County School System is pleased to make available to students, access to the school computer network and the Internet. In order for the school system to be able to continue to make its computer network and Internet access available, all students must take responsibility for appropriate and lawful use of this access. Students must understand that one’s misuse of the network and Internet access may jeopardize the ability of all students to enjoy such access. While teachers and staff make reasonable efforts to supervise student use of network and Internet access, they must have student cooperation in exercising and promoting responsible use of this access.

Below are the Student Acceptable Use and Internet Safety Policy of the school system. Students will enjoy Internet access at school when the form in the front of this handbook has been completed and returned to the school.  By completing and returning the form, the student agrees to follow the policy.  If a student is under 18, he or she must have his or her parents or guardians read and sign the policy. The school system cannot provide access to any student 18 or older who fails to sign and submit the policy to the school as directed. Nor can the system provide access to any student under 18 who does not return the completed form. Listed below are provisions of your agreement regarding computer network and Internet use. If you have any questions about these provisions, you should contact your school’s designated person.  Violation of any part of this agreement will result in the loss of the student’s access and he or she may be subject to additional disciplinary action.

Personal Responsibility

By signing this policy, you are agreeing to follow the rules in this policy and to report any misuse to the person designated for such reporting. Misuse means any violations that have the effect of harming another or his or her property.

Terms of Permitted Use

Students will be asked to sign a new policy as needed before they are given an access account.

Acceptable Uses

Educational Purposes Only.  The school system is providing service for educational purposes only.   

Unacceptable Uses of the Network:

  1. Uses that violate the law or encourage others to violate the law, including transmission of offensive or harassing messages; offering for sale or use any substance the possession or use of which is prohibited by the school system’s Student Behavior Code Policy; viewing, transmitting or downloading pornographic materials; intruding into the networks or computers of others; and downloading or transmitting confidential, trade secret information, or copyrighted materials. Even if materials on the networks are not marked with the copyright symbol, users should assume that all materials are protected unless there is explicit permission on the materials to use them, 
  2. Uses that cause harm to others or damage to their property, including defamation (harming another's reputation by lies); using another’s password or some other user identifier that misleads message recipients into believing that someone other than yourself is communicating or otherwise using his/her access to the network or the Internet; upload a “worm,” virus, “Trojan horse,” “time bomb” or other harmful form of programming or vandalism; participating in “hacking” activities or any form of unauthorized access to other computers, networks, or information systems, 
  3. Uses that jeopardize the security of student access and of the computer network or other networks on the Internet, and 
  4. Uses that are commercial transactions. Users may not sell or buy anything over the Internet or email. You should not give others private information about you or others, including credit card and social security numbers. 

Netiquette.

All users must abide by rules of network etiquette, which include the following:

  1. Use appropriate language. No swearing, vulgarities, suggestive, obscene, belligerent, or threatening language.
  2. Avoid language that may be offensive to other users. Don’t use access to make, distribute, or redistribute jokes, stories, or other material which is based upon slurs or stereotypes relating to race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, or sexual orientation.
  3. Don’t assume that a sender of email is giving his/her permission for you to forward or redistribute the message,
  4. Don’t send to third parties or to give his/her e-mail address to third parties. This should only be done with permission or when you know that the individual would have no objection.
  5. Be considerate when sending attachments with e-mail. Be sure that the file is not too large to be accommodated by the recipient’s system and is in a format, which the recipient can open.

Internet Safety

A. General Warning; Individual Responsibility of Parents and Users: All users and their parents/guardians are advised that access to the network may include the potential for access to materials inappropriate for school-aged pupils. Every user must take responsibility for his or her use of the computer network and Internet. If a student finds that other users are visiting offensive or harmful sites, he or she should report such use to the person designated by the school.

B. Personal Safety. Be safe. In using the computer network and Internet, do not reveal personal information such as your home address or telephone number. Do not use your real last name or any other information that might allow a person to locate you without first obtaining the permission of a supervising teacher. Do not arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone you “meet” on the computer network or Internet without your parent’s permission (if you are under 18). Regardless of your age, you should never agree to meet a person you have only communicated with on the Internet in a secluded place or in a private setting.

C. “Hacking” and Other Illegal Activities. It is a violation of this policy to use the school’s computer network or the Internet to gain unauthorized access to other computers or computer systems, or to attempt to gain such unauthorized access. Any use which violates state or federal law relating to copyright, trade secrets, the distribution of obscene or pornographic materials, or which violates any other applicable law or municipal ordinance, is strictly prohibited. Virtual Private Network (VPN) services are not allowed on the school district’s network.

D. Confidentiality of Student Information.   Identifiable information concerning students may not be disclosed or used in any way on the Internet without the permission of a parent or guardian or, if the student is 18 or over, the permission of the student himself/herself. Users should never give out private or confidential information about themselves or others on the Internet or through email, particularly credit card and Social Security numbers.  A supervising teacher or administrator may authorize the release of directory information, as defined by Georgia law, for internal administrative purposes or approved educational projects and activities.

E. Active Restriction Measures. The Coffee County School System will utilize filtering hardware/software or other technologies to prevent students from accessing visual depictions that are obscene or harmful to minors. The school system will also monitor the online activities of students, through direct observation and/or technological means, to ensure that students are not accessing such depictions or any other material that is inappropriate for minors.

Internet filtering software or other technology-based protection systems may be disabled by a supervising teacher or school administrator, as necessary, for purposes of bona fide research or other educational projects being conducted by students age 17 and older.

The term “harmful to minors” is defined by the Communications Act of 1934 (47 USC Section 254 [h] [7]), as meaning any picture, image, graphic image file, or other visual depiction that

  1. taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion
  2. depicts, describes, or represents, in an obviously offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals;
  3. taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value as to minors.

Privacy

Network and Internet access is provided as a tool for your education. The school system reserves the right to monitor, inspect, copy, review and store at any time and without prior notice any and all usage of the computer network and Internet access and any and all information transmitted or received in connection with such usage. All such information files shall be and remain the property of the school system and no user shall have any expectation of privacy regarding such materials.

Failure to Follow Policy

The user’s use of the computer network and Internet is a privilege, not a right. A user who violates this policy, shall at a minimum, have his or her access to the network and Internet disabled, which the school system may refuse to reinstate for the remainder of the student’s enrollment in the school system. A user may violate this policy by his or her own action or by failing to report any violations by other users. Further, a user violates this policy if he or she permits another to use his or her account or password to access the computer network and Internet, including any user whose access has been denied or terminated. The school system may also take other disciplinary action in such circumstances.

Warranties/Indemnification

The school system makes no warranties of any kind, either express or implied, in connection with its provision of access to and use of its networks and the Internet provided under this policy. It shall not be responsible for any claims, losses, damages or costs (including attorney's fees) of any kind suffered, directly or indirectly, by any user or his or her parent(s) or guardian(s) arising out of the user’s use of its networks or the Internet under this policy. By signing this policy, users are taking full responsibility for his or her use. Users 18 or older and the parent(s) or guardian(s) of users under 18, are agreeing to and indemnify and hold the school, the school system and all of their administrators, teachers, and staff harmless from any and all loss, costs, claims or damages resulting from the user’s access to its computer network the Internet, including but not limited to any fees or charges incurred through purchases of goods or services by the user. The user or, if the user is a minor, the user’s parent(s) or guardian(s) agree to cooperate with the school in the event of the school’s initiating an investigation of a user’s use of his or her access to its computer network and the Internet, whether that use is on a school computer or on another computer outside the school system's network.

Updates

Users, and if appropriate, the user’s parents/guardians, may be asked from time to time to provide new or additional registration and account information or to sign a new policy, for example, to reflect developments in the law or technology. Such information must be provided by the user (or his/her parents or guardian) or such new policy must be signed if the user wishes to continue to receive service. If after you have provided your account information, some or all of the information changes, you must notify the person designated by the school to receive such information.

Chromebook Damage

For Chromebook damage that is determined to be intentional, including theft or loss of device and associated equipment, a student will be issued a media fine:

Lost/Destroyed- Full Device Replacement: $230

Keyboard/Mousepad Replacement: $40

Screen Replacement: $20

Power Brick Replacement: $20

In addition to a fine, a discipline referral reflecting damage to school property should also be made at the school level, along with parent/guardian contact to explain the situation.