The World Wide Web has many uses. It is unmatched in its ability to share large amounts of information with many people all over the world simultaneously. If used properly, it will allow the University to deliver information and services quickly and inexpensively, 24 hours a day worldwide.

This year, hundreds of thousands of people will visit SFSU's Web site seeking information about who we are, what we do, and services we offer. Whether that person is a current student, faculty or staff member, a prospective student, a corporate donor, a parent, an alum, or a journalist, it is important that he or she finds SFSU's Web site easy to navigate, inviting to read, accurate, and informative.

To ensure that SFSU's Web site provides clear and consistent information to the outside world, a committee representing SFSU faculty, administrators, staff, and students has developed the following Web policy. It provides general guidelines for effective communication and efficient use of SFSU's Web site as well as for creating a positive representation of the University, while recognizing the creative diversity of campus departments and programs. If you have any questions or comments about this policy, please contact any member of the SFSU Web Committee.

Web Oversight and Management

Official SFSU Web Pages (colleges, departments, programs, administrative offices)

Personal/Curricular Web Pages (faculty, staff, and students)

Student Organization Web Pages

Content Considerations

Access and Technology Considerations

Copyright, Trademarks, and Use of Images

Related Policies and Guidelines

Violations of Web Policies

For More Information

Design, content, and ease of access are key components of a good Web site. To ensure quality, several University departments are responsible for the oversight and management of SFSU's Web.

The Division of Information Technology (DoIT) manages the resources and technical issues regarding Web accounts, University servers, and system configurations. DoIT also oversees all aspects relating to maintenance of the main SFSU Web server.

The Publications Office and DoIT together are responsible for determining the organizational structure and appearance of the University's main home page and first-level -- or index -- pages directly linked from the main page.

The Publications and Public Affairs offices will periodically review official SFSU pages and notify Web authors about out-of-date or inaccurate information on University Web sites and other issues that affect this or other University policies.

Technology training is the responsibility of DoIT, the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching (CET ), and the J. Paul Leonard Library. DoIT provides training sessions in basic Web development to all members of the campus community and provides curricular Web support services for individual faculty; CET offers workshops, seminars, and hands-on training on using technology to enhance teaching and on publishing course materials on the Web to faculty and staff; the Library offers workshops on searching electronic data bases and other topics for students, faculty, and staff.

A Web Steering Committee composed of faculty, staff, and students (the successor to the Web Review Team) will meet periodically to review SFSU's Web and make recommendations about Web policy.

All SFSU pages created by University departments, programs, and administrative offices are, by definition, "official" in that they must have the approval of the University president or the appropriate vice president, dean, director, or department chair before being posted to the Web. Pages created by students or student organizations or by faculty and staff for personal or curricular use are not considered official Web pages.

Administrative and academic departments are encouraged to develop official pages for linkage to the SFSU home page so that a comprehensive view of the University is offered. DoIT will link official pages to appropriate categories on the home page after a general review by DoIT and the Publications Office.

A good first step in creating Web pages is to consult the online information provided by DoIT and CET. Give careful thought to ongoing Web site maintenance and to appointing a staff or faculty member to be responsible for the site and for keeping information up-to-date.

Academic and administrative offices are free to write and design their own pages within these guidelines:

• Include the University's complete name -- San Francisco State University -- on the Web site.

• Include an "SFSU Home Page" link at the bottom of the site.

• Include a contact name with e-mail address. Check and answer e-mail sent to this address within a reasonable period.

• Include the date (month, day, year) the material was last updated.

• Link any information on your home page that exists in original form elsewhere on the Web (e.g., the Bulletin, campus map, directions to campus) to its original source, rather than copying it. This reduces duplication and helps ensure consistency and accuracy.

• When using official University graphic images/logos on your Web site, use the standard versions available through the Publications' graphics library. Note: the official University seal or logo cannot be altered in any way. However, they can be resized if graphic proportions are retained.

The University recognizes the value of publishing on the Internet and supports faculty, staff, and students in creating personal or curricular Web pages. However, the University can accept no responsibility or liability for the content of those pages.

To create their own Web sites, faculty, staff, and students should follow the steps outlined in DoIT's Web Publishing at SFSU or in CET's online workshops. Review SFSU's Policy and Procedures for Internet Access and Eligibility to check eligibility for an account.

When considering what to place on a home page, keep in mind the policies outlined in the SFSU Internet Account Application, Certification of Use, Student Code of Conduct/Student Discipline (if you are a student), and Computing Ethics and Security. Home page authors agree to these guidelines/policies when they open their accounts.

Recognized student organizations are encouraged to create Web sites to provide information about their programs, services, and events. They are allowed up to 2 MB of central computing storage for their site. If more space is required, the organization should acquire its own server. Include on the main page the name and e-mail address of the individual responsible for managing the organization's Web site and for keeping it up-to-date. Each Web site must also have a faculty sponsor who is responsible for the content of the organization's pages.

Student organizations should request linkage of their Web site from the Student Programs office, which posts the following disclaimer on its Web site: The information presented by student organizations reflects their own thoughts, interests, and activities; they do not implicitly or explicitly represent official positions and policies of San Francisco State University.

Because writing for the Web is equivalent to creating a publication potentially available for the world to see, it is important that the material be accurate, up-to-date, grammatically correct, and free of spelling errors. Visitors seldom return to Web sites that contain out-of-date or inaccurate information.

Web page authors also need to familiarize themselves with legal issues that relate to the Web, and avoid unlawful or inappropriate activities, such as:

• Copyright and licensing violations

• Vandalism and mischief that incapacitates, compromises, or destroys University resources and/or violates federal or state laws

• Posting of private or confidential information (e.g., directory information without permission, student records or addresses)

• Use of a Web site for personal business or gain, including advertisements for commercial services or products

• Dissemination of obscene, harassing, threatening, or unwelcome communications

The University is committed to ensuring Web site accessibility. Persons with disabilities are guaranteed equal opportunity under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. For assistance, visit the "More Information" section of SFSU's Web Publishing Style Guide.

Before announcing their sites, Web authors are encouraged to review and test their pages. Test for valid HTML code and links and to make sure pages can be read by all browsers. Consult the viewable with any browser campaign and CET workshops for assistance.

Copyright laws that apply to printed material also apply to online publishing. Photographs, graphics, video, audio, or text created by another person may not be placed on a page without permission of the artist or author.

Any violation of copyright, trademark, or any other law is the responsibility of the Web page author and not San Francisco State University.

All material posted to an official SFSU Web site is copyrighted by virtue of its posting. It is unnecessary and inappropriate to include the copyright symbol (©) followed by an individual or department's name in an official SFSU Web site. (For more information, contact University Counsel.)

Although this medium is new, many existing laws or federal policies apply to its use. These include the following:

Intellectual Property Rights

Copyright

Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy

Federal Computer Abuse Amendment Act

Federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act

Other issues are guided by existing policies or practices regarding the acceptable use of campus computing technology and development of publications, news releases, and official University announcements.

Violations of Web Policies

Questions that arise about the content of material on any of SFSU's servers may be directed to the offices below:

• For official pages (e.g., administrative, college, department, and program pages): Publications

• For personal/curricular pages:
  

  • Faculty Affairs
  • Staff: Human Resources
  • Students: Student Affairs
• For student organizations: Office of Student Programs/Leadership Development

Submit any apparent violation of Web policy or law to the appropriate administrative authority (vice president, dean, director, department, or program chair) or to webabuse@sfsu.edu.

As has been policy, the University reserves the right to delete the account of an Internet account holder if a Web site posted on its server violates this or other University policies or practices. This action removes the Web site from SFSU's Web server. In addition, disciplinary action may be applicable under other University policies, guidelines, implementing procedures, or collective bargaining agreements.

If you have any questions or comments about this proposed policy, please contact any member of the Web Steering Committee.

For more information, consult the following:

Web Publishing at SFSU (include URLs for these pages)

Policy and Procedures for Internet Access Eligibility at SFSU

Web Publishing Style Guide

Web Publishing: Other Useful Resources

Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design

Best Viewed with Any Browser