Administrative Guidelines for Board of Education Policy 6420
“Use of Communication Technologies by Employees”
Technology is an important part of the teaching, administrative,
communicative, and professional development process of district employees.
These administrative guidelines define the rights and responsibilities of both the
employee and of the district relative to acceptable use of communication
technologies. In the event that an employee misuses communications
technologies in accordance with Board policies or administrative guidelines, the
employee will be subject to disciplinary action which may include, but shall not be
limited to, reprimand, termination, or other action as deemed appropriate by the
employee’s supervisor or Board of Education.
Definition of Communication Technologies
For the purposes of these guidelines, communication technologies include
the Internet, World Wide Web (WWW), on-line services, e-mail, other Internetrelated services, school and school district computer networks, telephone, voice
mail, and other applicable services or technologies either now in service or
implemented in the future. Communication technologies include technologies
(whether or not owned, operated, or provided by the school district) in use on
school grounds or at school activities.
Blue Valley School District Rights and Responsibilities
The district has the responsibility for communicating the expectations
regarding use of communication technologies and for providing training
opportunities so that employees may develop skills necessary for successful and
appropriate use of those technologies.
In order to ensure the security of district information resources, including
confidential student files, personnel files, and financial files, the district may
restrict access to communication technologies and reserves the right to access
electronic files and account information on district owned computers. In
particular, the district may access electronic files, including, but not necessarily
limited to, employee e-mail and voice mail in order to investigate suspected acts
that may be in violation or Board of Education policies or that may be criminal in
nature.
There is no reasonable expectation of privacy with regards to use of
district-provided communication technologies.
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Employee Rights and Responsibilities
Employee use of communication technologies is provided for the benefit of
the employee. In using communication technologies, the employee will
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Respect the rights of privacy of other district personnel and of students;
Bear in mind that all communications represent the district and thus reflects
on the integrity, ethics, and good name of the district as a K-12 public
education institution;
Apply the same standards of behavior, conduct, and courtesy as are
expected in the school, classroom, or other district setting.
Comply with all laws, Board policies, and administrative guidelines
regarding the use of copyrighted materials;
Not seek unauthorized access to school, district, other public, or private
computer networks, computers, or electronic files for any purpose; and
Comply with any and all related Board, administrative guidelines, and
operating procedures relative to acceptable and responsible use.
Student Records, Open Meetings, and Public Records
State and federal laws may impact or limit the use of communication
technologies. Users of those technologies must be aware of and comply with
requirements of the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the
Kansas Open Meetings Act (KOMA), and the Kansas Open Records Act
(KORA). Except as specifically provided by law, any student records which are
made, maintained, or transmitted by virtue of communication technologies, must
be kept confidential (see Board policies 3811 and 3820). Communication
technologies, e.g., telephone, video conferencing, e-mail, voice mail, and the
internet, shall not be used to circumvent open meetings and open records
requirements. Both the KOMA and the KORA apply to use of communications
technologies (see Board policies 1640 and 5700).
Unacceptable and Inappropriate Use
The following forms of use of communication technologies are
unacceptable and inappropriate and will be considered violations of Board policy
and administrative guidelines. For example, it is unacceptable and/or
inappropriate for employees to
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Create, copy, or knowingly propagate a computer virus;
Send messages using someone else's name;
Send a message that is sexist, racist, or otherwise prejudicial or
inflammatory;
Send messages or download files that knowingly contain obscene
language, graphics, pictures, or attached graphics files, either
encoded/encrypted or un-encoded/de-crypted;
Use district e-mail or voice mail for commercial purposes;
Use the district e-mail or voice mail systems to solicit sales of personal
items;
Use e-mail or voice mail distribution lists without proper authorization;
Use district e-mail for excessive personal use;
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Engage in online chat sessions that are sexually explicit or otherwise violate
Board policies or guidelines;
Lend his/her account and/or password to other adults and/or students;
Use any forms of obscene, harassing or abusive language on-line;
Violate copyright laws;
Log-in or attempt to log-in to district computer networks as a network
administrator without proper authorization;
Vandalize or otherwise destroy data of another user, including the district;
Access or attempt to access any part of the district computer networks or
any part of a sub-system of the Internet without proper authorization;
Use communication technologies in any way that violates district rules,
administrative guidelines, Board policies, state statutes, local ordinances,
and other laws.
Consequences of Unacceptable Use
In the event that an employee uses communication technologies in an
inappropriate or unacceptable manner, in violation of Board policies, or in
violation of administrative guidelines, the employee will be subject to disciplinary
action. Such action may include, but shall not be limited to, reprimand,
termination, or other action as deemed appropriate by the employee’s supervisor
or Board.
Created November 2001
Revised February 2007
Revised February 2009
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