Student Acceptable Use Policy
Jacksonville School District 117
Acceptable Use Policy for Use of District Technology
Acceptable Use
All users of the District Technology System (“System”) must comply with the District’s Acceptable Use
Policy (AUP). “User” is defined as any individual who uses the System. These guidelines may change
and notice will be given to stakeholders through www.jsd117.org. The Board’s comprehensive policy
manual is available for public inspection through the District’s website www.jsd117.org or at the
Board office located at: 516 Jordan St., Jacksonville, IL 62650.
A signed AUP must be on file for each User no later than 10 school days after the start of the school
year. It is also understood that this document goes into effect beginning with the first day of school.
The AUP is to be electronically acknowledged online during registration or upon entering as a new
student to the district. Users with no AUP on file after the 10thday will be denied access to the
System.
The System shall include:
• Personal devices when connected to the System
• All device hardware and software owned or operated by the District
• District electronic mail, website, and browser-based services (e.g. Skyward, District Google accounts)
• District affiliated social media services
• District wired and wireless network access
The System, including all information and documentation contained therein is the property of the
District except as otherwise provided by law.
“Use” of the System shall include use of or obtaining access to the System from any device whether or
not owned or operated by the District.
The Board of Education of Jacksonville School District 117 supports the use of the Internet and other
computer networks in the District’s instructional program in order to facilitate learning and teaching
through interpersonal communications, access to information, research, and collaboration. Use of
the System shall be consistent with the curriculum adopted by the school district, as well as the
varied instructional needs, learning styles, abilities, and developmental levels of users.
Authority
The electronic information available to users does not imply endorsement of the content by the
school district, nor does the District guarantee the accuracy of information received on the Internet.
The District shall not be responsible for any information that may be lost, damaged, or unavailable
when using the System or for any information that is retrieved via the Internet. While the District
takes precautions to restrict controversial material, it is impossible to restrict all materials that might
be deemed controversial.
The school district shall not be responsible for any unauthorized charges or fees resulting from access to
the Internet.
Users have no expectation of privacy in their use of the System. The District has the right to access,
review, copy, delete, or disclose, as allowed by law, any user files accessed through the System. The
District has the right to and does monitor use of the System by users, including access of the Internet,
as part of System maintenance and to determine whether use is consistent with federal and state laws
and District policies and guidelines.
The Board establishes that use of the System is a privilege, not a right; inappropriate, unauthorized,
and illegal use will result in the cancellation of those privileges and appropriate disciplinary action.
Responsibility
The District shall provide reasonable effort and supervision to ensure that this educational resource is
used responsibly. Administrators, teachers, and staff have a professional responsibility to work
together to help students develop the intellectual skills necessary to discriminate among information
sources, to identify information appropriate to their age and developmental levels, and to evaluate and
use the information to meet their educational goals.
Students are responsible for appropriate behavior on the District’s System just as they are in a
classroom or on a playground.
No warranty, expressed or implied, is made as to the quality or extent of Internet service or access by
users on the District’s system. The District shall not be responsible for any damages the user suffers.
This includes, but is not limited to, damage to personal devices, loss of data from delays, non-
deliveries, missed- deliveries, or service interruptions caused by negligence, errors, or omissions.
Use of information obtained via the Internet is at the user’s own risk. The District is not responsible
for any user’s intentional or unintentional access of material on the Internet which may be obscene,
indecent, or of an inappropriate nature.
Network Guidelines
Network accounts will be used only by the authorized owner of the account for its authorized purpose.
System users shall respect the privacy of other users on the system. Each user is responsible for
his/her individual account and must take all reasonable precautions to prevent others from being able
to use their account(s).
Prohibitions
Users are expected to act in a responsible, ethical, and legal manner in accordance with District
policy, accepted rules of network etiquette, and federal and state law. Prohibitions include but are not
limited to the following:
1. Engage in activities which are not related to District educational purposes or which are
contrary to the instructions from supervising District employees as to the System’s use.
2. Access, retrieve, or view obscene, profane, or indecent materials, which, taken as a whole, do
not have any literary, artistic, political, or scientific value that is connected to the District
curriculum.
3. Access, retrieve, view or disseminate any material in violation of any federal or state laws or
regulation or District policy or rules. This includes, but is not limited to improper use of
copyrighted material; improper use of the System to commit fraud or with the intent to
commit fraud; improper use of passwords or access codes; or disclosing full name, home
address, or phone number of any student, District employee, or System user.
4. Transfer any software to or from the System without authorization from the System
Administrator.
5. Use of the System for commercial or for-profit purposes.
6. Use of social networking of any form (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo mail, Google for
Education) unless approved by a District Administrator for educational purposes.
7. Use of the System for product advertisement for political lobbying.
8. Use of the System to harass, threaten, intimidate, or demean an individual or group of
individuals for any reason including but not limited to: sex, color, race, religion,
disability, national origin, or sexual orientation.
9. Use of the System to disrupt the educational process, including use that is reasonably
foreseeable to result in a disruption, or interfere with the rights of others at any time, either
during school days or after school hours.
10. Gain unauthorized access to or vandalize the data or files of another user.
11. Unauthorized or illegal installation, distribution, reproduction, or use of copyrighted materials.
12. Forge or improperly alter electronic mail messages, use an account owned by another user
without authorization, or disclose the user’s individual password or that of another user.
13. Use of the System to invade the privacy of any individual, including violating federal or
state laws regarding limitations on the disclosure of student records.
14. Use of the System to download, copy, print or otherwise store or possess any data which
violates federal or state copyright laws or these Guidelines.
15. Use of the System to search for inappropriate sites/content. Internet searches are to be
curricular related.
16. Use of the System to intentionally obtain or modify files, passwords, and data belonging to other
users.
17. Conceal or misrepresent the user’s identity, or the use of any means to remain anonymous
while using the System.
18. Installation, loading, or use of unauthorized games, program files, or other electronic media.
19. Destruction, modification, or abuse of network hardware and software.
20. Using the System while access privileges are suspended or revoked.
21. Using another person’s account or password.
22. Possessing personal storage devices that contain executable files including but not limited to
portable browsers, hacking tools, network sniffers, etc. Personal storage devices may only be
used to store non-executable files unless prior approval is granted by the system
administrator.
Consequences for Inappropriate Use
1. The District may discipline a user whose personal web site or other off-site activity involving
electronic technology causes, or can be reasonably be expected to cause, a substantial
disruption of the school environment, without regard to whether that activity or disruption
involved the use of the System.
2. The System user shall be responsible for damages to equipment, systems, and software
resulting from deliberate or willful acts that violate this policy.
3. General standards of good behavior and communication apply when using the System. Any
user of the System who engages in any of the prohibited acts listed above, shall be subject
to discipline which may include:
a. discipline as provided in the District’s policies,
b. suspension or revocation of System privileges, and
c. referral to law enforcement authorities or other legal action in
appropriate cases.
4. The building administrator shall have the authority to determine what constitutes
inappropriate use, and his/her decision is final.
5. Illegal use of the System, intentional deletion or damage to files of data belonging to others,
copyrighting violations, or theft of services will be reported to the appropriate legal authorities
for possible prosecution.
6. Vandalism will result in cancellation of access privileges. Vandalism is defined as any
malicious attempt to harm or destroy data of another user, the Internet, or any part of the
System. This includes, but is not limited to, uploading or creation of computer viruses.
Security
System security is protected through the use of passwords. Failure to adequately protect or update
passwords could result in unauthorized access to personal or district files. To protect the integrity of
the system, the following guidelines shall be followed:
1. Users shall not reveal their passwords to another individual.
2. Users are not to use a computer that has been logged in with another user’s name.
3. Users identified as a security risk or having a history of problems with other computer
systems may be denied access to the network.
4. If a user identifies a security problem, he/she must notify the appropriate building
personnel. Building personnel will notify the District’s system administrator. Do not
demonstrate the problem to others.
5. Attempts to log on to the System as a system administrator by anyone other than the
system administrator will result in cancellation of user privileges.
Safety
Reasonable and good faith efforts shall be employed to protect users from harassment or unwanted or
unsolicited electronic communication. Any user who receives threatening or unwelcome
communications shall immediately bring them to the attention of the appropriate building personnel.
Building personnel will notify the appropriate building administrator. The building administrator will
notify the district system administrator.
User shall not reveal personal addresses to other users on the network, unless required to do so by law
or court order.
Adopted 01/19/2011 Updated 04/10/2017
Copyright
The illegal use of copyrighted software by users is prohibited. Any software uploaded to or
downloaded from the System shall be subject to “fair use” guidelines.
Republishing of text or graphics found on the Web or on the District’s Web Site or file servers shall
provide a notice at the bottom of the page crediting the original producer and noting how and when
permission was granted. If possible, the notice should also include the web address of the original
source.
Credits:
Robin, Schwartz, Nicholas, Lifton & Taylor, Ltd.
20 North Clark Street, Suite 900
Chicago, Illinois