This policy governs the publication of and commentary on social media by employees of Crossings Christian School and all related or subordinate organizations (“CCS”), volunteers acting as representatives of CCS and students currently enrolled at CCS. For the purposes of this policy, social media means any facility for online publication and commentary, including without limitation blogs, wiki’s, social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube. This policy is in addition to and complements any existing or future policies regarding the use of technology, computers, e-mail and the internet.

CCS staff, volunteers and students are free to publish or comment via social media in accordance with this policy. CCS staff, volunteers and students are subject to this policy to the extent they identify themselves as CCS staff, volunteers and students (other than as an incidental mention of place of employment in social media on topics unrelated to CCS).

Before engaging in work related social media, employees must obtain the permission of the Development Office.

Notwithstanding the previous section, this policy applies to all uses of social media, including personal, by persons who are associated with CCS who are board members, administrators, teachers, staff, volunteers or students, as their position with CCS would be well known within the community.

Publication and commentary on social media carries similar obligations to any other kind of publication or commentary.

All uses of social media must follow the same ethical standards that CCS staff, volunteers and students must otherwise follow.

Setting up CCS Related Social Media Accounts

Assistance in setting up social media accounts and their settings can be obtained from CCS’s Development Office.

Social media identities, logon ID’s and user names may not use CCS’s name without prior approval from the Director of Development.

Your CCS profile on social media sites must be consistent with your profile on the CCS website or other CCS publications. Profile information may be obtained from the Director of Development.

Official CCS photographs must be used for your profile photograph. CCS photographs can be obtained from the Development Office.

Don’t Tell Secrets

It’s perfectly acceptable to talk about your work and school and have a dialog with the community, but it’s not okay to publish confidential information. Confidential information includes but is not limited to, grades, disciplinary actions, information shared in confidence between staff and student or between staff and parent, unpublished financial or operational details and any personal information that we do not have explicit permission to share. We must respect the wishes and privacy of our families regarding the confidentiality of their student’s lives. We must also be mindful of the viral nature of the internet and the destruction that can occur in people’s lives when personal information is inappropriately put on the internet.

Protect your own privacy

Privacy settings on social media platforms should be set to allow anyone to see profile information similar to what would be on the CCS website. Other privacy settings that might allow others to post information or see information that is personal should be set to limit access. Be mindful of posting information that you would not want the public to see.

Be Honest

Do not use social media anonymously, using pseudonyms or false screen names. We believe in transparency and honesty. Use your real name, be clear who you are, and identify that you are associated with CCS. Nothing gains you notice in social media more than honesty – or dishonesty. Do not say anything that is dishonest, untrue, or misleading. If you have a vested interest in something you are discussing, point it out. But also be smart about protecting yourself and your privacy. What you publish will be around for a long time, so consider the content carefully and also be cautious about disclosing personal details.

Respect copyright laws

It is critical that you show proper respect for the laws governing copyright and fair use or fair dealing of copyrighted material owned by others, including CCS’s own copyrights and brands. You should never quote more than short excerpts of someone else’s work, and always attribute such work to the original author/source. It is good general practice to link to others’ work rather than reproduce it.

Respect your audience, CCS, and your coworkers

The public in general, and CCS’s staff and family’s, reflect a diverse set of customs, values and points of view. Don’t say anything contradictory or in conflict with CCS values. Don’t be afraid to be yourself, but do so respectfully. This includes not only the obvious (no ethnic slurs, offensive comments, defamatory comments, personal insults, obscenity, etc.) but also proper consideration of privacy and of topics that may be considered objectionable or inflammatory – such as politics and religion. Use your best judgment and be sure to make it clear that the views and opinions expressed are yours alone and do not represent the official views of CCS.

Protect CCS Staff, Students and Families

Students, families or staff members should not be cited or obviously referenced without their approval. Never identify a student, family or staff member by name without permission and never discuss confidential details of a family or student. It is acceptable to discuss general details about kinds of projects and to use non-identifying pseudonyms for someone (e.g., “a student in my class”, “a colleague”) so long as the information provided does not violate any non-disclosure agreements that may be in place with the student or make it easy for someone to identify the student or family. Social media is not the place to “conduct business” with a student or their family.

Controversial Issues

If you see misrepresentations made about CCS in the media, you may point that out. Always do so with respect and with the facts. If you speak about others, make sure what you say is factual and that it does not disparage that party. Avoid arguments. Brawls may earn traffic, but nobody wins in the end. Don’t try to settle scores or goad others into inflammatory debates. Make sure what you are saying is factually correct.

Be the first to respond to your own mistakes

If you make an error, be up front about your mistake and correct it quickly. If you choose to modify an earlier post, make it clear that you have done so. If someone accuses you of posting something improper (such as their copyrighted material or a defamatory comment about them), deal with it quickly – better to remove it immediately to lessen the possibility of a legal action.

Think About Consequences

For example, consider what might happen if a CCS staff person is in a meeting with a student or prospective family, and they pull out a print-out of your social media content and says “This person at CCS says the headmaster sucks.”

Saying “I’m not sure I agree with the choice the Headmaster made, but I will support him.” is fine; saying “The Headmaster sucks” is risky, amateurish and unacceptable.

Once again, it’s all about judgment: using social media to trash or embarrass CCS, our students and families, or your co-workers, is dangerous and ill-advised.

Disclaimers

Many social media users include a prominent disclaimer saying who they work for, but that they’re not speaking officially. This is good practice and is encouraged, but don’t count on it to avoid trouble – it may not have much legal effect.

Wherever practical, you must use a disclaimer saying that while you work for CCS, anything you publish is your personal opinion, and not necessarily the opinions of CCS.

The Development Office can provide you with applicable disclaimer language and assist with determining where and how to use that.

Don’t forget your day job.

Make sure that social media does not interfere with your job or commitments to CCS and our students.

Social Media Tips

The following tips are not mandatory, but will contribute to successful use of social media.

The best way to be interesting, stay out of trouble, and have fun is to write about what you know. There is a good chance of being embarrassed by a real expert, or of being boring if you write about topics you are not knowledgeable about.

Quality matters. Use a spell-checker. If you’re not design-oriented, ask someone who is whether your blog or other social media presence looks decent, and take their advice on how to improve it.

The speed of being able to publish your thoughts is both a great feature and a great downfall of social media. The time to edit or reflect must be self-imposed. If in doubt over a post, tweet or entry, or if something does not feel right, either let it sit and look at it again before publishing it, or ask someone else to look at it first.

Enforcement

Policy violations will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination for cause.