HIT: Web page guidlines

[MaryEllen Roche <mroche@MAIL.SCOTTSDALE.ORG>]

Here is a compilation of responses I received after asking about
publishing student photos or names on school web pages.

Thanks so much to all who responded.

We've been grappling with this ourselves.  So far, what we've been doing is
using only first names and last initials.  Most of our pictures of students
are of groups without individual names listed (team pictures, etc).  The
only
place full names have appeared are in the news/press releases and in the
BOE
minutes.

In New South Wales state laws prevent students being identified on the
internet through  the school connection. We can publish pictures of
students but cannot identify them. For the same reason we must restrict
email for students and ban them from chat and newsgroups.

As per names, we print names of awards, officers of clubs etc. but in
no way are the names associated with any pictures.

We post some pictures but only very large group shots where faces are
not really identifiable.  Other pictures of students are posted with
their faces blurred.  Pictures of teachers and other staff may be
posted with their permission.

This is not a district policy but rather a building set of
guidelines.  While I am webmaster, we will not vary from these
guidelines.


   Our school district is doing a web page and setting it up now. We were
told that as public employees,under the law, they could use our school
pictures and school name and telephone number.This was after many teachers
signed a petition that they did not want their pictures on the school web
page. They cannot give out personal addresses and telephone numbers. They
can print your school email address,however.  I do not know if this is the
law everywhere or just in Texas.


We just set up guidelines this year.  Hopefully we won't have to fine tune
them for a while.  Parents have to sign a permission slip for student
pictures, art work, etc.  Full names will be given for art work and first
names only, if at all for pictures.  These forms will have to filled out
for each individual page the student may be involved in.  Art, band, golf,
etc.  all need to have separate permission forms.


My district (17,000 students) had a task force (the new term
here for committee) just for this very issue.  We discussed chat room,
web server support, and publishing guidelines.  We now have as part of
our permission form that must be signed by parents, students must have
permission to have their work or name or pictures published on the
school web page.  We are still the final stages of our decision making.
I think we decided on first names only for elementary and pictures can
be published.  We will not publish student email addresses nor snail
mail addresses or phone numbers.  Decisions pretty much followed our
publishing guidelines for school newsletters, etc.

We have had this discussion in several of my classes.  I think the
consensus is to either put no pictures or names an the website OR to put
group pictures and no names.  Most of the schools represented required (of
course) signed release forms from the parent.


Our district has had many discussions about this topic.  It has been
decided
by our administration that when we want to put a photo on the web page a
permission slip will go home to each child in the photo. We will be using
only the children's first name.  If the parents says "no" then we will not
use
the photo.  Some times parents are hiding from an abusive spouse or someone
else and allowing a photo on the web page could cause a problem.
Of course, the newspaper lists first and last names of honor roll
kids.....him.

Mary Ellen Roche
Media Specialist
Cochise Elementary School
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
mroche@mail.scottsdale.org

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