The signature(s) at the end of this document is/are legally binding and indicate(s) the party/parties who signed has/have read the terms and conditions carefully and understand(s) their significance.

Terms and Conditions for Internet Access

General:

1. Acceptable Use:
   The purpose of the internet is to support research and education in and among academic institutions in the United States (U.S.) by providing access to resources and the opportunity for collaborative work. School use must be in support of education, research, and consistent with educational objectives. Use of any other organization’s network or computing resources must comply with the rules appropriate for the network. Transmission of any material in violation of any U.S. or state regulation is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to, copyrighted material, threatening or obscene material, or material protected by trade secret. Use for product advertisement or political lobbying is also prohibited. Use for commercial activities is generally unacceptable.

2. Prohibited Use:
   The internet is a global network, and it is possible to access material which may contain illegal, violent, destructive, defamatory, inaccurate, pornographic, and/or offensive material. Due to the nature of the Internet, the District cannot guarantee that students and employees will not access such material. However, the District is committed to enforcing a policy of Internet Safety and monitoring the Internet activities of its students & employees. The deliberate use of illegal, defamatory, pornographic, and/or other offensive material deemed inappropriate by a designated Northeast Technology Center staff member is prohibited.
   
   Students & employees must not change the default settings related to electronic mail on the internet and must not delete temporary internet files unless directed to do so by the administration.
   
   Northeast Technology Center is committed to educating all students and staff about inappropriate on-line behavior, including cyber bullying.

3. Consequences of Unacceptable Use:
   The use of the internet is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate use may result in a cancellation of internet privileges and/or disciplinary action. The District may monitor online activities of students & employees to ensure that students & employees are not accessing inappropriate material, revealing prohibited information, or violating the District’s policy on Internet access and use. Northeast Technology Center may deny, revoke, or suspend specific user access.

Prohibited Uses:

Northeast Technology Center internet users are expected to abide by the generally accepted rules of network etiquette. These include, but are not limited to the following.

1. Politeness: Messages must not be abusive to others.

2. Appropriate Language: Language used will exclude swearing, vulgarities, or other inappropriate language.

3. Personal Information: For your safety and security student users will not reveal their personal address, phone number, social security number, credit card number, or the addresses and/or numbers of fellow students or Northeast Technology Center staff members.

4. Illegal Activities: Illegal activities are strictly forbidden.

5. Network Disruption: Users will not use the network in a manner which is disruptive to other users or change the default settings related to the internet browser or delete temporary internet files unless directed to do so by the administration.

6. Intellectual Property: All communications and information accessible via the internet should be assumed to be private property.

No Expectation of Privacy:

Users of the electronic mail (e-mail), or chat rooms will remember that such information is not guaranteed to be private and that internet system operators have access to all mail. Messages relating to or in support of illegal activities may be reported to appropriate government agencies.

Filtering:

Northeast Technology Center will provide filtering of all internet activities to limit access to web content found inappropriate by the Internet Access, Security, and Use Policy.

Copyright Infringement:

Students are prohibited from installing, copying, downloading or distributing any copyrighted material or software on the District’s computer hardware. Unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material, including peer-to-peer file sharing, may subject a student to Northeast Technology Center, civil and criminal liabilities. Employees are prohibited from installing, distributing or copying any copyrighted material or software that is not property of the District, on Districts hardware without the express written consent of the copyright holder and the approval of the Superintendent.

Copyright infringement is the act of exercising, without permission or legal authority, one or more of the exclusive rights granted to the copyright owner under section 106 of the Copyright Act (Title 17 of the United States Code). These rights include the right to reproduce or distribute a copyrighted work. In the file-sharing context, downloading or uploading substantial parts of a copyrighted work without authority constitutes an infringement.

Damages:

Northeast Technology Center and its Internet service provider(s) make no warranties of any kind, whether expressed or implied for the service provided. Northeast Technology Center and its Internet service provider(s) will not be responsible for any damages suffered, including loss of data resulting from delays, non-deliveries, misdeliveries, or service interruptions caused by negligence, errors or omission. Use of any information obtained via Northeast Technology Center or its Internet service provider (s) is at the user’s own risk. Northeast Technology Center is not responsible for the accuracy or quality of information obtained.

Security:

Users of Northeast Technology Center’s internet system agree to notify our service provider whenever they encounter a possible security problem on the network. Users agree not to use another individual’s account. Any user identified as a security risk or having a history of, or generating problems for other computer systems may be denied access to the internet. This includes, but is not limited to, the uploading or creation of computer viruses, any attempt to harm or destroy hardware, data of another user, or any agencies or other networks.

Education of Students Regarding Appropriate On-Line Behavior:

In compliance with the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act, Section 254 (h) (5), Northeast Technology Center is educating minors about appropriate on-line behavior, including interacting with other individuals on social networking websites and in chat rooms and cyber bullying awareness and response. As part of this education, the following information on cyber bullying and internet safety is distributed with this Policy to all students for their review prior to signing an Internet Access Agreement to access the Internet:

Cyber Bullying and Internet Safety

As people embrace the Internet and other mobile communication technologies, bullying has manifested itself in a new and potentially more dangerous way – through cyber bullying. Cyber bullying can generally be defined as sending or posting harmful or malicious messages or images through e-mail, instant messages, cell phones and websites. It is emerging as one of the more challenging issues facing educators, since it has a direct impact on students but often occurs away from school property.

Examples of cyber bullying include, but are not limited to:

• Sending cruel, vicious and sometimes threatening messages;

• Creating websites that contain stories, cartoons, pictures and jokes ridiculing others;

• Posting pictures of classmates on-line with intent to embarrass them;

• Breaking into an e-mail account and sending vicious or embarrassing material to others;

• Engaging in IM (instant messaging) to trick another person into revealing sensitive or

  personal information and forwarding that information to others; and

• Taking a picture of a person using a digital phone camera and sending that picture electronically to others without consent.

Internet Safety

No action is foolproof, but there are steps students can take to protect themselves on-line and lessen the chance of becoming the victim of unsolicited messages:

• Never give out personal information, passwords, PIN numbers, etc.

• Remember that personal information includes your name, age, e-mail address, the names of family or friends, your home address, phone number (cell or home) or school name.

• Choose a user name that your friends will recognize but strangers will not recognize (such as a nickname used at school). This will help you to identify yourself to friends and lets you know who is trying to communicate with you.

• Do not submit or post pictures of yourself to any website, including your own. These can easily be copied and posted to any other website.

• Passwords are secret. Never tell anyone your password except your parents or guardians.

• Do not respond to “spam” or unsolicited e-mail.

• Set up e-mail and instant messenger accounts with your parents.

• Do not respond to, or engage in, cyber abuse.

If you are a victim of a cyber bully:

• Do not reply to messages from cyber bullies.

• Tell an adult you know and trust. Just as with any other kind of bullying, ignoring it often leads to escalation. If the bullying is occurring through text messaging, use “call display” or dial *69 to identify the phone number and have it tracked through your cell phone/pager service provider.

• Instant messages (e.g. Yahoo instant messenger; Microsoft Messenger) are best handled by blocking messages from certain senders.

• Bullies are likely to register for an anonymous e-mail account, such as Hotmail, Yahoo or G-Mail, using a fake name. If you receive threatening e-mail messages, instruct your email program to block messages from that address. Then, inform your Internet Service Provider (ISP).

• If physical threats are made or the bullying escalates, inform your local police.

• Do not erase or delete messages from cyber bullies. You do not have to read them; but keep them as evidence. You may get similar messages from other accounts. The police, your ISP and/or your telephone company can use these messages to help you.

• If necessary, get a new phone number, account or e-mail address and give it out to only one (1) person at a time.

Suggestions for Parents of Minors:

• Make sure your children understand how vast and public the Internet is. Remind them that anything they post or send in a message is virtually available to be seen or read by anyone in the world.

• Talk to your children about cyber bullying. Make sure they understand what it is. Let them know that cyber bullying is no less serious and unacceptable than other forms of bullying.

• Set up the family computer in an open, common area so that you can monitor what your child is sending and receiving.

• Inform your ISP or cell phone service provider of any abuse. Although it can take a lot of time and effort to get Providers to respond and deal with your complaints about cyber bullying, it is necessary in order to try to stop it from reoccurring.

• Purchase software that can help track activity. There are parental controls that filter both IM and chat rooms.

Exception of Terms and Conditions:

All terms and conditions as stated in this document are applicable to Northeast Technology Center and to its internet service provider(s). These terms and conditions reflect the entire agreement of the parties and supersede all prior oral or written agreements and understandings of the parties. These terms and conditions shall be governed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Oklahoma and the United States of America.

Approved by the Board of Education, March 17, 1997
Amended October 15, 2001
Amended March 13, 2003
Amended September 13, 2010
Amended September 10, 2018