Internet Use Policy

The Lower Cape May Regional Board of Education believes that the Internet offers vast, diverse, and unique resources to both students and teachers. Our goal in providing this service to teachers and students is to promote educational excellence in schools by facilitating resource sharing, innovation and communication.

The Internet is an electronic highway connecting thousands of computers all over the world and millions of individual subscribers.

With access to computers and people all over the world also comes the availability of material that may not be considered to be of educational value in the context of the school setting. Therefore, the Lower Cape May Regional Board of Education has authorized the Superintendent to institute precautions that would restrict access to controversial materials.

The smooth operation of the network relies upon the proper conduct of the end users who must adhere to strict guidelines. These guidelines are provided here so that staff and students are aware of the responsibilities they are about to acquire. In general this requires efficient, ethical and legal utilization of the network resources. If any violation of the established regulations occurs, access privileges may be revoked, school disciplinary action and/or appropriate legal action may be taken.

Internet Use - Terms and Conditions

1. Acceptable Use – The purpose of the Internet, is to support research and education in and among academic institutions in the U.S. by providing access to unique resources and the opportunity for collaborative work. The use of an Internet account must be in support of education and research and consistent with the educational objectives of the Lower Cape May Regional School District. Therefore:
   • 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 commercial activities is not acceptable.
   • Use for product advertisement, personal business, or political lobbying is also prohibited.
2. Privileges – The use of the Internet is a privilege, not a right, and inappropriate use will result in a cancellation of those privileges. Each person who applies for and receives an Internet account will be in-serviced on the proper use of the network. The building administration will decide what is inappropriate use and their decision may be appealed to the superintendent. The administration of the Lower Cape May Regional School District may deny, revoke, or suspend specific user accounts based on a determination of inappropriate use.
3. Network Etiquette – You are expected to abide by the generally accepted rules of network etiquette. These include (but are not limited to) the following:
   • Be polite. Do not send or display offensive messages and/or pictures.
   • Use appropriate language. Do not swear, use vulgarities or any other inappropriate language. Illegal activities are strictly forbidden.
   • Do not reveal personal addresses or phone numbers of students or colleagues.
   • Note that electronic mail (e-mail) is not guaranteed to be private. People who operate the system do have access to all mail. Messages relating to or in support of illegal activities may be reported to the authorities.
   • Do not use the network in such a way that would disrupt the use of the network by other users.
   • All communications and information accessible via the network should be assumed to be private property.
4. Lower Cape May Regional School District makes no warranties of any kind, whether expressed or implied, for the service it is providing and will not be responsible for any damages suffered. This includes loss of data resulting from delays, nondeliveries, mis-deliveries, or service interruptions caused by its own negligence or user errors or omissions. Use of any information obtained via the Internet is at the user's own risk. Lower Cape May Regional School District specifically denies any responsibility for the accuracy or quality of information obtained through its services.
5. Security – Security on any computer system is a high priority, especially when the system involves many users.
   • When a security problem on the Internet is identified, an administrator should be immediately notified.
   • Use of another individual's account without written permission from that individual is prohibited.
   • Any user identified as a security risk or having a history of problems with other computer systems may be denied access to Internet.
6. Vandalism – Vandalism will result in cancellation of privileges. Vandalism is defined as any malicious attempt to harm or destroy data of another user, Internet, or any of the above listed agencies or other networks that are connected to the NSFNET Internet backbone. This includes, but is not limited to, the uploading or creation of computer viruses.

Any student violation of these conditions will result in disciplinary action as defined in the district's disciplinary code.