Caveats: NONE
I think that what often gets lost in this discussion is that policy does
not equal education and to some degree, I believe you should treat them
as separate, but related entities. Keep the policy broad and then
educate around the specifics. =20
At its root your question is about whether friending on social networks
gives any appearance of impropriate and could it expose the school or
individual teachers to risk that is not balanced by the benefits. As a
matter of policy I would recommend that you require (or recommend)
faculty and staff to maintain a profile that is only used for school.
As a matter of education, I would offer guidance (classes, one-page
guides, etc) to them on how to limit their professional liability by
removing anything that could be deemed unprofessional from their
personal accounts in addition to how to interact on their "school
account". This part would be educating them on the practical
application of your existing policies but does not require you to create
a policy for every potential type of interaction.=20
The following provides numerous fresh examples of what faculty should
not do on social networks:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/education/sfl-flpfacebook0601pnjun01,0,
370501.story
"Elementary school music teacher Dennys Fradera, 54, had a page
sprinkled with profanity about his former administrators and musings
that some of the kids he teaches make him proud, but "there are a few
that make you think if they are worthy of having the government force us
to pay for their education." Special-education teacher Andrew Summerlin,
27, had a page that revealed he is "super horny" and an "A++" in bed.
His page also lets people take quizzes with questions like "What's Your
Secret Sexual Fantasy?"=20
_J
___________________________________
Jason Johnson - Program Director
Web Services Branch - Walter Reed Army Medical Center Ingenium (ISO
9001:2000 certified)
Office: 202-782-1047
Cell: 202-262-0516
jason.johnson@ingenium.net
jason.p.johnson2@us.army.mil=20
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED=20
Caveats: NONE
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