Web Policy

Policy Statement

Introduction

Use of the World Wide Web as a communication and information resource to students, faculty, staff and the greater community is critical to the mission of Cal Poly Pomona. The following Web policy is designed to provide an immediate guide for the campus regarding the most basic of issues. It is the responsibility of the university to provide the resources necessary for users to meet these requirements, and the responsibility of the users to seek information about these resources from the Division of Instructional & Information Technology.

Applicable policies and laws

The current Appropriate Use Policy for Information Technology applies to web pages. Use must be in accordance with applicable state and federal laws. Users are expected to consult the appropriate law for content and understanding.

Description of University Policy

Scope

• This policy pertains to:
  1. All web servers connected to, and web pages hosted on, the csupomona.edu domain.
  2. All web servers belonging to Cal Poly Pomona, regardless of their domain, and all web pages hosted on them, regardless of content.
  3. All web pages that represent Cal Poly Pomona or its Auxiliaries in any capacity, regardless of their domain or where they are hosted.

• This policy is applicable only to web sites that are available to the general public or generally to members of the Cal Poly Pomona community—documents intended for private use or documents shared by defined groups of users are not covered, provided that they may not be viewed by others.

Affected and responsible entities

Web pages – general requirements

• Each individual web page must provide a way for a user to contact the owner of the page, either an email address, a contact form, or a link to a page that includes either or both of these.
• Each individual web page must adhere to the accessibility guidelines set forth in Executive Order 926 and Coded Memorandum AA-2006-41 or its successors, best evidenced by adherence to guidelines for Sect. 508 compliance.

Organizational web pages

Definition

An organizational web page represents an organizational unit of the university and its activities and services (e.g., Division of Administrative Affairs, College of Engineering, Biological Sciences Department, Cal Poly Pomona Downtown Center).

Responsibility

Because organizational web pages are official documents, the content on each organizational web site must be the responsibility of an employee of Cal Poly Pomona, who will personally, or through delegates, insure that the web page content meets all applicable policies and guidelines, and that the pages are available to their intended audiences.

Specific requirements

• Organizational web pages must maintain the visual identity of Cal Poly Pomona by adhering to the Cal Poly Pomona Graphic Standards Manual or by use of official Cal Poly Pomona web templates. Each page must identify the organizational unit that it represents.
• Each individual web page must have an indication of the currency of its information. This can be accomplished by a publication date, a “last modified” or “last reviewed” date, by clear association in a unit with other web pages that show their currency , or by any other means that are appropriate.

Course web pages

Definition

A course web page is explicitly associated with a specific course or group of courses at Cal Poly Pomona. Course web pages ordinarily provide content or administrative information for their respective courses.

Responsibility

Course web pages remain the option of the instructor.  Should a course web page be developed for a specific course or group of courses, the content of that page is the responsibility of an instructor or a group of instructors.

Personal web pages

Definition

Personal web pages belong to individuals associated with Cal Poly Pomona, and are covered by this document only when they satisfy items (1) or (2) of "Scope", above. Pages pertaining to faculty research or research groups are personal pages unless they are created to satisfy contractual obligations of the university or the Foundation, in which case they are organizational pages.

Responsibility

The content of a personal web page is the responsibility of the individual in whose web space it is hosted.

Specific requirements

All personal web pages that contain personal opinion must either contain a disclaimer, or link to a page (usually the personal home page or a specific disclaimer page) that contains a disclaimer, such as: “Space for this page is provided by California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Although it is intended to further the educational mission of the university, the opinions expressed here are the author's, and do not represent official policy of the university.”

Auxiliary and Affiliate Organization web pages  

Definition

Auxiliaries are organizations affiliated with Cal Poly Pomona that have been formally recognized by The California State University. Cal Poly Pomona auxiliaries are:

• Cal Poly Pomona Foundation, Inc. ("Foundation")
• Associated Students, Inc. ("ASI")
• University Educational Trust ("UET")

Affiliate Organizations are organizations associated in a formal way with Cal Poly Pomona or one of its auxiliaries. Affiliate Organization web sites that meet one or more of the items in "Scope", above, are covered by this policy. Some examples of Affiliate Organizations:

• Student clubs
• California State University recognized collective bargaining organizations
• Cal Poly Pomona Alumni Association
• Department and College advisory boards
• Organizations of retired faculty and staff

Responsibility

• Web page content representing the Foundation, ASI or the UET is the responsibility of an employee of the respective organization or of the university.
• For content on web pages of student clubs, it is the responsibility of each club and organization advisor to “assist students in interpreting various university policies, rules and regulations” (OSL Club Resource and Information Online Guide); this includes helping students understand this policy and consulting directly with students, when changes are necessary. All content on other Affiliate Organization web pages must be the responsibility of an employee of Cal Poly Pomona, the Foundation, or ASI.

Specific requirements

No Auxiliary or Affiliate Organization web page may represent that it is an official web page of Cal Poly Pomona.

Implementation

The implementation of this policy is the responsibility of the Division of Instructional & Information Technology.

Definition of terms

Glossary

• web page — a single document or file of any type intended to be viewed directly with a web browser.
• web site — a collection of interlinked web pages integrated in such a fashion that a user would likely choose to visit more than one.

APPROVED:

President J. Michael Ortiz 
February 8, 2010

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