Series 4000: PERSONNEL -- CERTIFIED & NON-CERTIFIED

4118.51 Social Networking 

The Board of Education recognizes the importance and utility of social media and networks for its employees. The laws regarding social media continue to evolve and change. Nothing in this policy is intended to limit an employee’s right to use social media under applicable law, as it may evolve. The Board acknowledges that its employees have the right under the First Amendment, in certain circumstances, to speak out on matters of public concern. The Board will resolve any conflict between this policy and applicable law in favor of the law.

Ordinarily employee use of social media, including employees’ personal use of social media, will not be a legal or policy issue. While a policy cannot address every instance of inappropriate social media use, employees must refrain from social media that:

1. interferes, disrupts or undermines the effective operation of the school district;

2. is used to engage in harassing, defamatory, obscene, abuse, discriminatory or threatening or similarly  inappropriate communications to harass coworkers or other members of the school community;

3. creates a hostile work environment;

4. breaches confidentiality obligations of school district employees;

5. harms the goodwill and reputation of the school district in the community; or

6. violates the law, Board policies and/or other school rules and regulations.

The Board of Education therefore adopts the following guidelines for the use of social media by Board of Education employees.

Definitions:

• Social media includes, but is not limited to, social networking sites, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn,  YouTube, and MySpace.

• Board of Education includes all names, logos, buildings, images and entities under the authority of the  Board of Education.
  

Rules Concerning Personal Social Media Activity

1. An employee may not mention, discuss or reference the Board of Education, the school district or its  individual schools, programs or teams on personal social networking sites, unless the employee also  states that the post is the personal communication of the employee of the school district and that the  views posted are the employee’s alone and do not represent the views of the school district or the Board  of Education.

2. Employees must refrain from mentioning other Board of Education employees or other members of the  school community (e.g., parents or others) on personal social networking sites, without such individuals’  express consent unless the employee is addressing an issue of public concern and the employee’s  speech falls under applicable constitutional protections pertaining to same.

3. Employees are required to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with students, parents, and  colleagues. For example, it is not appropriate for a teacher or administrator to “friend” a student or his/her  parent or guardian or otherwise establish special relationships with selected students through personal  social media, and it is not appropriate for an employee to give students or parents access to personal  postings unrelated to school.

4. Unless given written consent, employees may not use the Board of Education’s logo or trademarks on  their personal posts. Please note that this prohibition extends to the use of logos or trademarks  associated with individual schools, programs or teams of the school district.

5. Employees are required to use appropriately respectful speech in their personal social media posts; and  to refrain from harassing, defamatory, abusive, discriminatory, threatening or other inappropriate communications. Such posts reflect poorly on the school district’s reputation, can affect the educational  process and may substantially and materially interfere with an employee’s ability to fulfill his/her  professional responsibilities.

6. Employees are individually responsible for their personal posts on social media. Employees may be sued  by other employees, parents or others, and any individual that views an employee’s social media posts  as defamatory, pornographic, proprietary, harassing, libelous or creating a hostile work environment. As  such activities are outside the scope of employment, employees may be personally liable for such  claims.

7. Employees are required to comply with all Board of Education policies and procedures with respect to the  use of computer equipment, networks or electronic devices when accessing social media sites. Any  access to personal social media activities while on school property or using school district equipment  must comply with those policies, and may not interfere with an employee’s duties at work.

8. The Board of Education reserves the right to monitor all employee use of district computers and other  electronic devices, including employee blogging and social networking activity. An employee should have  no expectation of personal privacy in any personal communication or post made through social media  while using computers, cellular telephones or other electronic data devices that are the property of the  school district.

9. All posts on personal social media must comply with the Board of Education’s policies concerning  confidentiality, including the confidentiality of student information. If an employee is unsure about the  confidential nature of information the employee is considering posting, the employee shall consult with  his/her supervisor prior to making the post.

10. An employee may not link a personal social media site or webpage to the Board of Education’s website or the websites of individual schools, programs or teams; or post Board of Education material on a social media site or webpage without written permission of his/her supervisor.

11. All Board of Education policies that regulate off-duty conduct apply to social media activity including, but  not limited to, policies related to public trust, illegal harassment, code of conduct, and protecting  confidential information.

Rules Concerning District-Sponsored Social Media Activity

1. If an employee seeks to use social media sites as an educational tool or in relation to extracurricular  activities or programs of the school district, the employee must seek and obtain the permission of his/her  supervisor prior to setting up the site.

2. If an employee wishes to use Facebook or other similar social media site to communicate meetings,  activities, games, responsibilities, announcements etc., for a school-based club or a school-based activity  or an official school-based organization, the employee must also comply with the following rules:

a. The employee must set up the club, etc. as a group list which will be “closed and moderated.”

b. Members will not be established as “friends” but as members of the group list.

c. Anyone who has access to the communications conveyed through the site may only gain access by the permission of the employee (e.g. teacher, administrator or supervisor). Persons desiring to access the page may join only after the employee invites them and allows them to join.

d. Parents shall be permitted to access any site that their child has been invited to join.

e. Access to the site may only be permitted for educational purposes related to the club, activity, organization or team.

f. The employee responsible for the site will monitor it regularly.

g. The employee’s supervisor shall be permitted access to any site established by the employee for a school-related purpose.

h. Employees are required to maintain appropriate professional boundaries in the establishment and        maintenance of all such district-sponsored social media activity.

3. Employees are required to use appropriately respectful speech in their social media posts on

 district-sponsored sites; and to refrain from harassing defamatory, abusive, discriminatory, threatening or other inappropriate communications.

4. Employees are required to comply with all Board of Education policies and procedures and all applicable  laws with respect to the use of computer equipment, networks or devices when accessing

 district-sponsored social media sites.

5. The Board of Education reserves the right to monitor all employee use of district computers and other  electronic devices, including employee blogging and social networking activity. An employee should have  no expectation of personal privacy in any communication or post made through social media while using  computers, cellular telephones or other data devices that are the property of the school district.

6. All posts on district-sponsored social media must comply with the Board of Education’s policies  concerning confidentiality, including the confidentiality of student information. If an employee is unsure  about the confidential nature of information the employee is considering posting, the employee shall  consult with his/her supervisor prior to making the post.

7. An employee may not link a district-sponsored social media site or webpage to any personal social media  sites or sites not sponsored by the school district.

8. An employee may not use district-sponsored social media communications for private financial gain,  political, commercial, advertisement, proselytizing or solicitation purpose.

9. An employee may not use district-sponsored social media communications in a manner that  misrepresents personal views as those of the Board of Education, individual school or school district, or  in a manner that could be construed as such.

Disciplinary Consequences

Violation of this policy may lead to discipline up to and including the termination of employment consistent with state and federal law.

(cf. 4118.24/4218.24 – Staff/Student Non-Fraternization)

(cf. 4118.4/4218.4 – E-Mail – Electronic Monitoring)

(cf. 4118.5/4218.5 – Acceptable Computer Network Use)

(cf. 4131 – Staff Development)

(cf. 5125 – Student Records)

(cf. 6141.32 – Computer Literacy)

(cf. 6141.321 – Student Acceptable Use of the Internet)

(cf. 6141.322 – Websites/Pages)

(cf. 6141.323 – Internet Safety Policy/Filtering)

Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes

The Freedom of Information Act

53A-182B Harassment in the first degree.

31-48d – Employees engaged in electronic monitoring required to give prior notice to employees. Exceptions. Civil penalty.

United States Code, Title 20

675 1-6777 Enhancing Education Through Technology Act, Title II, Part D, especially:  6777 Internet Safety

United States Code, Title 47

254 Universal Service Discounts (E-rate)

Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47

54.520 Internet safety policy and technology protection measures, E-rate discounts

U.S. Constitution, 1st Amendment

Connecticut Constitution, Article 1, Sections 3, 4, 14

Policy adopted: August 21, 2023 THOMASTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS Thomaston, Connecticut