The College is a student-centered, open-access, postsecondary institution devoted to quality instruction and public service. Among the services provided are various information technology resources, including office/classroom computing equipment, distance learning system/computer laboratory/multimedia equipment, and network/Internet access. Regular employees and, where appropriate, currently enrolled students are encouraged to make use of these resources for educational purposes. Every user has two fundamental rights: privacy and fair access to the resources.

It is the College’s intent to provide basic, on-campus information technology facilities for all faculty, students, and appropriate staff.

All users of College information technology resources are responsible for seeing that these resources are used in a safe, effective, ethical, and lawful manner. Adherence to the following guidelines is the responsibility of each user:

• Respect the intended purpose of the College’s information technology resources. Use should be for purposes of or in support of education or other College related activities.
• Users should never knowingly violate federal, state or copyright laws.
• College information technology resources should not be used for commercial ventures or for personal financial gain.
• Use of College information technology resources to interfere with or disrupt network users, services, or equipment is not acceptable. Such interference or disruption includes, but is not limited to:

1. attempts to discover another user's network password
1. distribution or execution of any program or file that damages another user's files or otherwise impedes the performance of College computing resources
1. attempts to gain access to resources/equipment for which proper authorization has not been given
1. attempts to gain administrative rights to any system
1. using an unfair share of resources

• Allowing another individual access to computing resources by sharing login names/passwords is prohibited. When establishing network or Internet accounts, each user will be given an account name with a user modifiable password. Users are responsible for the proper use of the account, including password protection and the prevention of use of the account by others.
• Each user should follow published College approved procedures for the use of office computers, multimedia equipment, Internet resources, distance learning systems, computer laboratories and (local/wide area) networks. Individual departments and administrative units may define additional "conditions of use" for the areas under their supervision. Any such additional conditions must be consistent with this overall policy but may include more detailed guidelines and, where necessary and appropriate, additional restrictions as formulated by the College president.

• Computer programs and files are confidential unless they have explicitly been made available to other authorized users. Unauthorized copying, renaming, modifying, examining, or deleting computer files belonging to someone else on a shared directory is unacceptable. Files users prefer to keep confidential should be stored in another location.
• College information technology staff may access user files when necessary for the maintenance of computing facilities. When performing maintenance, every effort will be made to insure the privacy of users' files.
• The College cannot guarantee the privacy or confidentiality of any computer-based communication. Therefore, the College requests that all users of computer-based communication using College systems refrain from sending or receiving confidential or private information as a routine procedure.
• The College reserves the right to inspect, copy, store, and disclose the contents of computer-based communication at any time. It will only do so when it is believed to be appropriate to prevent or correct improper use, to satisfy a legal obligation, or to maintain proper operation of computer systems.
• The College cannot be responsible for the loss of information from misuse, malfunction or contamination. While the College will make every effort to insure the integrity of all computing resources and information stored thereon, users are strongly advised to make frequent backups of their information.

User Conduct

• Users have the responsibility to be familiar with this Information Technology Resource Policy and any related policies and procedures published by those who supervise the use of the equipment and facilites.
• Violation of these policies and procedures, or any College policy or regulation, may result in limitation or suspension of the user’s privileges and may also result in additional disciplinary actions.