Since Findlay Digital Academy is in partnership with Findlay City Schools (FCS), academy students must be in compliance with FDA and FCS internet policies.

Form 200 FDA Policy

FDA, is pleased to make available to students access to interconnected computer systems within the Academy and to the Internet, the worldwide network that provides various means of accessing significant educational materials and opportunities.
All students must take responsibility for appropriate and lawful use of this access. Students must understand that their misuse of the network and Internet access may jeopardize their ability to enjoy such access. While FDA's teachers and other staff will make reasonable efforts to supervise student use of network and Internet access, they must have student and parent/foster parent/guardian cooperation in exercising and promoting responsible use of this access.
FDA provides each student with the tools and equipment necessary for participation in FDA. The equipment shall not be abused, misused, or disassembled. Parents/foster parents/guardians and students hereby accept responsibility for damages resulting from abuse, misuse, or disassembly, and agree to abide by appropriate disciplinary actions. Students who transfer to another school, withdraw, graduate, are expelled, or leave FDA for any reason, must return all tools and equipment provided by FDA in working order and in original or equivalent packing materials to Findlay Digital Academy, 1219 West Main Cross, Findlay, OH 45840. Damaged or stolen equipment must be reported to FDA immediately.
Below is the Acceptable Computer and Internet Use Policy ("Policy") of FDA. Upon reviewing, signing and returning this Policy as the students have been directed, each student is agreeing to follow the Policy. If a student is under 18 years of age, he or she must have his or her parents/foster parents/guardians read and sign the Policy. FDA cannot serve any student who, if 18 or older, fails to sign and submit the Policy to FDA as directed or, if under 18, does not return the Policy as directed with the signatures of the student and his/her parents/foster parents/guardians.
Listed below are the provisions of your agreement regarding computer, network and Internet use. If you have any questions about these provisions, you should contact the FDA administration. If any user violates this Policy, the student's access will be disabled or revoked, and he or she may be subject to additional disciplinary action.

I PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY
By signing this Policy, you are agreeing not only to follow the rules in this Policy, but are agreeing to report any misuse of the network to the FDA administration. Misuse means any violations of this Policy or any other use that is not included in the Policy, but has the effect of harming another or his or her property.

II. TERMS OF THE PERMITTED USE
A student who submits to FDA, as directed, a properly signed Policy and follows the Policy to which she or he has agreed will have computer network and Internet access during the course of the school year only. Students will be asked to sign a new Policy each year during which they are students in FDA before they are given an access account.

III. ACCEPTABLE USES
A. Responsible Use. The purpose of this agreement is to ensure that use of Internet resources remains consistent with our stated mission, goals and objectives. The computer and Internet resources must be used in a responsible, safe, ethical, and legal manner. Parents/foster parents/guardians are asked to play an active role in their child's educational experiences, both on and off the computer.
B. Unacceptable Uses of Network. Among the uses that are considered unacceptable and which constitute a violation of this Policy are the following:
1. Uses that violate the law or encourage others to violate the law. Do not transmit offensive, harassing or bullying messages; offer for sale or use any substance the possession or use of which is prohibited by the School District's Student Discipline Policy; view, transmit, or download pornographic materials or materials that encourage others to violate the law; transmit any form of illegal solicitation; intrude into the networks or computers of others; and download or transmit confidential, trade secret information, or copyrighted materials.
Even if materials on the networks are not marked with the copyright symbol, you should assume that all materials are protected unless there is explicit permission on the materials to use them.
2. Uses that cause harm to others or damage to their property. For example, do not engage in defamation (harming another's reputation by lies); employ another's password or some other user identifier that misleads message recipients into believing that someone other than you is communicating or otherwise using his/her access to the network or the Internet; upload a worm, virus, "Trojan horse," "time bomb," or other harmful form of programming or vandalism; participate in "hacking' activities or any form of unauthorized access to other computers, networks or information systems.
3. Uses that jeopardize the security of student access and of the computer network or other networks on the Internet, For example, do not disclose or share your password with others; do not impersonate another user.
4. Uses that are commercial transactions. Students and other users may not sell or buy anything over the Internet. You should not give others private information about you or others, including credit card numbers and social security numbers.
C. Netiquette. All users must abide by rules of network etiquette, which include the following:
1. Be polite. Use appropriate language. No swearing, vulgarities, suggestive, obscene, belligerent, or threatening language.
2. Avoid language and uses which may be offensive to other users. Do not use access to make, distribute, or redistribute jokes, stories, or other material which is based upon slurs or stereotypes relating to race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, or sexual orientation.
3. Do not assume that a sender of e-mail is giving his or her permission for you to forward or redistribute the message to third parties or to give his/her e-mail address to third parties. This should only be done with prior permission of the original sender.
4. Be considerate when sending attachments with e-mail (where this is permitted). Be sure that the file is not too large to be accommodated by the recipient's system and is in a format which the recipient can open.

IV INTERNET SAFETY
A. General Warning; Individual Responsibility of Parents/Foster Parents/Guardians and Users. All users and their parents/foster parents/guardians are advised that access to the electronic network may include the potential for access to materials inappropriate for school-aged pupils. Every user must take responsibility for his or her use of the computer network and Internet and stay away from these sites. Parents/foster parents/guardians of minors are the best guides to identify materials to avoid.
B. Personal Safety. Be safe. In using the computer network and Internet, do not reveal personal information such as your home address or telephone number. Do not use your real last name or any other information which might allow a person to locate you without first obtaining the permission of a supervising teacher. Do not arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone you "meet" on the computer network or Internet without your parent's permission (if you are under 18). Regardless of your age, you should never agree to meet a person you have only communicated with on the Internet in a secluded place or in a private setting.
C. "Hacking" and Other Illegal Activities. It is a violation of this Policy to use the FDA's computer network or the Internet to gain unauthorized access to other computers or computer systems, or to attempt to gain such unauthorized access. Any use which violates state or federal law relating to copyright, trade secrets, the distribution of obscene or pornographic materials, or which violates any other applicable law or municipal ordinance, is strictly prohibited.
D. Confidentiality of Student Information. Personally identifiable information concerning students may not be disclosed or used in any way on the Internet without the permission of a parent/foster parent/guardian or, if the student is 18 or over, the permission of the student himself/herself. Users should never give out private or confidential information about themselves or others on the Internet, particularly credit card numbers and Social Security numbers. A supervising teacher or administrator may authorize the release of directory information, as defined by Ohio law, for internal administrative purposes or approved educational projects and activities.
E. Active Restriction Measures. FDA will utilize filtering software or other technologies to help prevent students from accessing visual depictions that are
obscene, (2) contain child pornography, or (3) are harmful to minors. Internet filtering software or other technology-based protection systems may be disabled by a supervising teacher or school administrator, as necessary, for purposes of bona fide research or other educational projects being conducted by students age 17 and older.
The term "harmful to minors" is defined by the Communications Act of 1934 (47 USC Section 254 [h][7]), as meaning any picture, image, graphic image file, or other visual depiction that, taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; depicts, describes or represents in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value as to minors.

V. PRIVACY
Network and Internet access is a tool for your education. FDA reserves the right to monitor, inspect, copy, review and store at any time and without prior notice any and all usage of the computer network and Internet access and any and all information transmitted or received in connection with such usage. All such information files shall be and remain the property of FDA and no user shall have any expectation of privacy regarding such materials.

VI. FAILURE TO FOLLOW POLICY
The user's use of the computer network and Internet is a privilege, not a right. A user who violates this Policy, shall at a minimum, have his or her access to the computer network and Internet terminated, which the School District may refuse to reinstate for the remainder of the student's enrollment in the School District. A user violates this Policy by his or her own action or by failing to report any violations by other users that come to the attention of the user. Further, a user violates this Policy if he or she permits another to use his or her account or password to access the computer network and Internet, including any user whose access has been denied or terminated. FDA may also take other disciplinary action in such circumstances.

VII. WARRANTIES/INDEMNIFICATION
FDA make no warranties of any kind, either express or implied, in connection with their provision of access to and use of their computer networks and the Internet provided under this Policy. They shall not be responsible for any claims, losses, damages or costs (including attorney fees) of any kind suffered, directly or indirectly, by any user or his or her parent(s) or guardian(s) arising out of the user's use of its computer networks or the Internet under this Policy. By signing this Policy, users are taking full responsibility for his or her use, and the user who is 18 or older or, in the case of a user under 18, the parent(s) or guardian(s) are agreeing to indemnify and hold FDA harmless from any and all loss, costs, claims, or damages resulting from the user's access to its computer network and the Internet, including but not limited to any fees or charges incurred through purchases of goods or services by the user. The user or, if the user is a minor, the user's parent(s), foster parent(s) or guardian(s) agree to cooperate with FDA in the event of the initiating of an investigation of a user's use of his or her access to its computer network and the Internet, whether that use is on a FDA computer or on another computer outside the FDA network.

VIII. UPDATES
Users, and if appropriate, the user's parents/foster parents/guardians, may be asked from time to time to provide new or additional registration and account information or to sign a new Policy, for example, to reflect developments in the law or technology. Such information must be provided by the user (or his/her parents/foster parents or guardian) or such new Policy must be signed if the user wishes to continue to receive service, and FDA must be notified of such changes.

Findlay City Schools Policy

STUDENT ACCEPTABLE USE AND INTERNET SAFETY POLICY for the Computer Network of the FINDLAY CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT

Students are encouraged to use the school's computers/network and the Internet connection for teacher-assigned, educational work. All references to schools in this policy will mean any school in the Findlay City School District.

Access to the School District's Network is provided as an educational tool only. In order to continue enjoying access to the Network, each student must take responsibility for appropriate and lawful use of this privilege. Students are responsible for good behavior on the Network just as they are in a classroom, school hallway or other School District property. While the School District's teachers and other staff may make reasonable efforts to supervise student use of Network access, the ultimate responsibility for exercising and promoting responsible use of this access is that of the student and the parent/foster parent/guardian.

This shall constitute the School District's Computer Network and Internet Acceptable Use Policy for Students ("Policy"), any parent/foster parent/guardian of a student under the age of 18 may direct that the student not be given access to the Internet. An "opt out" form for this purpose may be obtained from any school office in the School District.

Each student is responsible for reading and abiding by this Policy. If you have any questions about the provisions of this Policy, you should contact the Computer Lab Facilitator or other designated administrator in your school building. Any use of your account that violates this Policy may result in your access being withdrawn and/or additional disciplinary action. Violations of this Policy are considered violations of the Student Discipline Code and may result in disciplinary action as specified therein.

The District periodically may make determinations on whether other incidental non-educational uses of the Network are consistent with this Agreement. Uses that interfere with normal District business or educational activities are prohibited and may be cause for disciplinary action at the discretion of the District.

It is within the rights of the District to periodically modify the list of acceptable uses.

The District, in combination with the Information Technology Center (ITC) providing Internet access, will utilize filtering software or other technologies designed to restrict users from accessing visual depictions that are (I) obscene, (2) child pornography, or (3) harmful to minors, as these terms are defined and interpreted by the Children's Internet Protection Act and applicable state and federal laws.

As it is impossible to limit access to all materials that may be considered to be inappropriate, students are responsible for their use of the Network and are required to avoid sites that are inappropriate for the educational setting. Students are prohibited from taking any measures to override the filtering software. The District shall monitor students' online activities, through direct observation and/or technological means, to endeavor to ensure that users are not accessing such depictions or any other materials that are inappropriate for the educational setting.

Terms and Definitions:

1. The term computer or computer equipment includes: system units, displays, mice, keyboards, speakers, microphones, scanners, video projectors, video cameras, printers, hubs, switches, routers, patch panels, wiring, connectors, programs and any other piece of equipment or software which is part of the school's computer system.

2. The network is defined as all computers and other devices that are interconnected to the District local/wide area network and is the sole property of the Findlay City School District.

3. The Internet is defined as a collection of networks linking millions of computers and hundreds of millions of users all over the world.

4. Electronic Communication includes, but is not limited to, email, blogs, podcasts, discussion boards, web sites, video conferencing and virtual classrooms.

5. Portable electronic devices include, but are not limited to, laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), cellular telephones, recording and/or storage devices.

6. Web Page - A document designed for viewing in a web browser, typically written in hypertext markup language (HTML).

Acceptable Student Use:

1. Students may only access the district network and/or Internet by using their assigned network account. Use of another person's account/password is prohibited. Students may not allow other users to utilize their passwords.

2. Students may not intentionally seek or suggest to other students to seek information on, obtain copies of, or modify files, data or passwords belonging to other users, or misrepresent other users on the network.

3. Students may not upload, download, create or transmit confidential information, a computer virus, worm, Trojan horse, or other harmful components or corrupted data, or vandalize the property of another. Vandalism includes any malicious attempt to hack, alter, harm or destroy software, hardware, and data of another user, other Network resources, or the use of the Network to destroy anything on the Internet or outside Networks.

4. Students may not purposely engage in computer activities that degrade or disrupt the operation of the Network or that waste limited resources. For example, do not waste toner or paper in printers, and do not send chain letters, even for non-commercial or apparently "harmless" purposes, as these, like "junk email", use up limited Network capacity resources.

5. Students are encouraged to save and store their work in their server account, understanding that school staff may review computer files or messages that are created by the student. Material may be reviewed for grading and appropriate content. Additionally, files may be reviewed for any harassing or threatening material, and/or any vulgar or obscene content.

6. Students are not to modify or remove any identifying labels on computer equipment.

7. Students are permitted to use networked software and school-supplied software. Programs written by the
student which are part of an assignment in a school's course of study may be run, as required, for that course of
study's requirements, with teacher supervision.

8. Students may not install or delete programs on the school's computers. Students may not download programs from the Internet or any portable device and attempt to install onto District computers. Students shall not remove, alter or copy Network software for their own personal use or for the use of others.

9. All electronic communication between students and teachers should take place through their district assigned accounts.

10. Students are asked to advise school staff when they observe any violation of the school's policy for the use of the school's computers.

11. Students are asked to advise their teacher when a computer malfunctions in any way.

12. Students may not use the District's computers or network to offer for sale any substance the possession or use of which is prohibited by law or the Student Discipline Code.

13. Students may not create, copy, view, transmit, download, upload, or seek, sexually explicit, obscene or pornographic materials.

14. Students may not create, copy, view, transmit, download, or upload any materials that include the design or detailed information for the purposes of creating an explosive device, materials in furtherance of criminal activities or terrorist acts, threatening materials or any other materials that violates or encourages others to violate the law or the Student Discipline Code.

15. Students may not upload, download, copy, redistribute or republish copyrighted materials without
permission from the owner of the copyright. Even if materials on the Network are not marked with the copyright symbol, students should assume that they are protected under copyright laws unless there is explicit permission on the materials to use them.

16. Students may not use web proxies to view, download or seek materials, files, information, software or other content that may be offensive, defamatory, misleading, infringing, or illegal, or to view or access content or information unrelated to the curriculum.

17. Students may not post or distribute inappropriate photos or media (pornography, dangerous, or hate-related media of any kind). This includes cyberbullying or harassing another individual (student or employee) or posting/transmitting information of any kind about another person without their consent, including, but not limited to video, images, audio, text, or any other media. Example: Any material, images/media taken from within the district or its property cannot be used for defamatory, inaccurate, obscene, sexually explicit, lewd, hateful, harassing, discriminatory, violent, vulgar, rude, inflammatory, threatening, profane, pornographic, offensive, or terroristic purposes. This includes, but is not limited to, disseminating electronically (email/Instant Messaging) or posting this type of information about another student or employee on an outside communication site such as MySpace, FaceBook, etc.

Exceptions to any of the above rules are permitted only under direct teacher supervision. Violations of these rules may result in disciplinary action, including, but not limited to, termination of access to the school's computers, detention and/or suspension. Violations also may be referred to the appropriate legal authorities and/or other legal action may be pursued.

Server Storage

Each user is granted an equitable share of our storage resources. Requests for increased disk quota may be granted with a valid reason AND a staff sponsor. Such increases are temporary, lasting only for the duration of the project.

Electronic Communication

E- mail and Instant Messaging are communication tools, which allow students to communicate one-to-one with people throughout the world. Students may be provided with individual e-mail or communication accounts under special circumstances, at the request and under the supervision of their teacher. Students may not attempt to establish outside web e-mail accounts through the School's network. All users must abide by the rules of Network etiquette. Among the uses and activities that violate Network etiquette and constitute a violation of this Policy are, but not limited to, the following:

1. Using inappropriate language, including swearing, vulgarities or other language that is suggestive, obscene, profane, abusive, belligerent, harassing, defamatory or threatening. Users must be polite: No FLAMING, SCREAMING, demeaning or other inappropriate communications.

2. Using the Network to make, distribute or redistribute jokes, stories or other material that would violate this Policy or the School District's harassment or discrimination policies, including material that is based upon slurs or stereotypes relating to race, gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation or other protected characteristics.

3. Forwarding or redistributing the private message of an e-mail sender to third parties or giving the sender's email address to third parties without the permission of the sender.

4. Sending e-mail attachments that are too large to be accommodated by the recipient’s system.

5. Communications that violate any District Policy or the law.

6. All electronic communication across the District’s network is a matter of public record and should never be considered private or secure.

Internet Safety

1. All students and their parents/foster parents/guardians are advised that access to the Network, and particularly the Internet, may include the potential for access to materials inappropriate for school-aged pupils, including materials that may be illegal, defamatory, obscene, inaccurate or offensive. Certain areas on the Internet may contain warnings as to their content, and users are advised to heed these warnings. Not all sites that may contain inappropriate material, however, will include warnings. You must take responsibility for your use of the Network and stay away from these sites. Parents/foster parents/guardians of minors are the best guide to the materials to avoid. If you find that other users are visiting offensive or harmful sites, you should report that use to the person designated by the School District.

2. Personal Safety. Be safe. Do not use the Network or the Internet to access chat rooms or chat lines. In using the Network or the Internet, do not reveal personal information such as your or another’s home address, telephone number, social security number or photograph. Due to the anonymous nature of the Internet, students should not arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone you “meet” through the Network or the Internet without permission of your parents/foster parents/guardian. Students should never give out private or confidential information about themselves or other on the Internet.

3. Internet filtering software or other technology based protection systems may only by disabled by the IT department at the request of a principal or school administrator, as necessary, for purposes of bona fide research or other educational projects being conducted by students age 17 and older.

4. Privacy Network access is provided as a tool for your education. The School District reserves the right to monitor, inspect, copy, review and store at any time, and without prior notice, any and all usage of the Network and any and all materials, files, information, software, communications and other content transmitted, received or stored in connection with this usage. All such information, content and files shall be, and remain, property of the School District and you should not have any expectation of privacy regarding those materials. Network administrators may review files and intercept communications for any reason, including, but not limited to, for purposes of maintaining system integrity and insuring that users are using the system consistently with this policy.

5. Websites created through the Network and/or linked with the School District’s official website must relate specifically to District-sanctioned activities, programs or events. Websites created using the Network or the School District’s equipment, or websites created as part of a classroom or club assignment or activity, are the sole and exclusive property of the School District. The School District reserves the right to require that all material and/or links with other sites found to be objectionable be altered or removed.

6. Failure to follow Policy, your use of the Network is a privilege, not a right. If you violate this Policy, you may be subject to disciplinary action. At a minimum you will be subject to having you access to the Network terminated, which the School District may refuse to reinstate for the remainder of your tenure in the School District. You breach this Policy not only by affirmatively violating the above Policy, but also by failing to report any violations by other users that come to your attention. A violation of this Policy may also be a violation of the law and subject the user to criminal or civil investigation and prosecution.

Warranties and Indemnification

The School District makes no warranties of any kind, either express or implied, in connection with its provision of access to or use of its Network. It shall not be responsible for any claims, losses, damages or costs (including attorney's fees) of any kind suffered, directly or indirectly, by any student or parent/guardian arising out of the student's use of, or inability to use, the Network. Each student is responsible for backing up his or her files. The School District is not responsible for the accuracy of information obtained through electronic information resources, and this information should be used at the student's own risk.

By accessing the Network, you (or, if you are a minor, your parents/guardians) are agreeing to cooperate with the School District in the event of the School District's initiating an investigation of use or access to the Network through your account, whether that use is on a School District computer or on another computer outside of the Network. By accessing the Network, you (or, if you are a minor, your parents/guardians) are further agreeing to indemnify and hold the School District and the Information Technology Center (ITC) providing Internet access and all of their administrators, teachers and staff harmless from any and all loss, costs, claims or damages (including attorney's fees) resulting from access to and use of the Network through your account, including, but not limited to, any fees or charges incurred through purchases of goods or services by the user.

Copyright in an Electronic Environment
(Guidelines from Consortium of College & University Media Centers)

- Students may use portions of lawfully acquired copyrighted works in their academic multimedia projects with proper credit and citations. They may retain them in personal portfolios as examples of their academic work.
- Students and teachers must include on the opening screen of their programs and on any printed materials that their presentation has been prepared under fair use exemption of the U.S. Copyright Law and are restricted from further use.
- Educators may claim fair use for their own productions providing these productions are:
- For face-to-face curriculum-based instruction
- Demonstrations of how to create multimedia productions
- Presented at conferences (but you may not share copies of the actual production)
- For remote instruction as long as the distribution signal is limited
- Kept for only 2 years
- Fair use ends when the multimedia creator loses control of his product's use, such as when it is accessed by others over the Internet.
- Educators or students need not write for permission if their presentation falls within the specific multimedia fair use guidelines; however, educators and students are advised to note that if there is a possibility that their own educational multimedia project incorporating copyrighted works under fair use could later result in broader dissemination, whether or not as commercial product, it is strongly recommended that they take steps to obtain permissions during the development process for all copyrighted portions rather than waiting until after completion of the project.

Fair Use Guidelines for Multimedia

TEXT
Up to 10% of a copyrighted work or 1000 words, whichever is less.
Poems
- Entire poem if less than 250 words
- 250 words or less if longer poem.
- No more than 5 poems (or excerpts) of different poets, from an anthology.
- Only 3 poems (or excerpts) per poet.
MOTION MEDIA
Up to 10% of a copyrighted work or 3 minutes, whichever is less.
Clip cannot be altered in any way.
ILLUSTRATIONS
A photograph or illustration may be used in its entirety.
No more than 5 images of an artist's or photographer's work.
When using a collection, no more than 10% or no more than 15 images, whichever is less.
MUSIC
Up to 10% of a copyrighted musical composition, but no more than 30 seconds. Up to 10% of a body of sound recording, but no more than 30 seconds.
Any alterations cannot change the basic melody or the fundamental character of the work.
INTERNET
Internet resources often combine both copyrighted and public domain sites; therefore care should be used in downloading any sites for use in multimedia presentations.
Until further clarification, educators and students are advised to write for permission to use Internet resources and to be mindful of the copyright ramifications of including embedded additional links to that particular site.
NUMERICAL DATA SETS
Up to 10% or 2500 fields or cell entries, whichever is less, from a copyrighted database or data table.
A field entry is defined as a specific item of information (e.g. name, Social Security number) in a record of a database file.
A cell entry is defined as the intersection where a row and a column meet on a spreadsheet.
COPYING AND DISTRIBUTION LIMITATIONS
Do not post multimedia projects claiming fair use exemption on an unsecured website. No more than 2 copies of the original production may be made.
Only 1 may be placed on reserve for others to use for instructional purposes.
An additional copy may be made for preservation purposes, but may be used or copied only to replace a copy that has been lost, damaged or stolen.
If more than one person has created the multimedia presentation, each principal creator may retain only one copy.
ALTERATION LIMITATIONS
Multimedia selections falling within the above guidelines may be altered to illustrate a specific technique or to support a specific instructional objective.
Notation of the alteration should be documented within the presentation itself.
MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATON CITATIONS
Educators and students must credit sources, giving full bibliographic information when available
Educators and students must display the copyright notice and copyright ownership information if this is shown in the original source.
Copyright information for images may be shown in a separate bibliographic section unless the presentation is being used for distance learning. In this case, the information must be incorporated within the image itself (i.e. it must appear on the screen when the image is viewed).
PERMISSION REQUIREMENTS
For multimedia projects used for non-educational or commercial purposes.
For duplication or distribution of multimedia projects beyond limitations outlined above.

© Information Technology Evaluation Services, Public Schools of North Carolina, 1997NotesCourse