WORLD WIDE WEB PAGE DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES             October, 2002




The availability of Internet access in all Buffalo City Schools provides an educational opportunity to
contribute to the Buffalo City School District’s “Web Page” on the World Wide Web. This electronic
publication provides a means of two-way communication for the purposes of sharing information about
school curriculum and instruction, school-authorized activities, and other information relating to the
Buffalo City School District and its mission.



PAGE DEVELOPMENT

District staff members as well as students working under the supervision of certified teachers, may create
Web pages to be considered for addition to the school/program Web site. Developers of Web pages
intended for publication on the District Web server need to meet the guidelines and responsibilities
outlined herein and in the current version of Technical Standards available from the Information
Technology Office (808 City Hall).



RESPONSIBILITY

The building principal’s designee is responsible for adding pages to the building/program home page that
meet the guidelines for content and format.

Individual staff members who author Web pages and teachers, supervising students who are authorizing
Web pages are responsible for ensuring that their pages meet the guidelines for content and format
specified in these guidelines and that all links are functional, up-to-date and linked correctly to their
school/site pages.

Building principals are responsible for being knowledgeable about the content of their building/program
Web page. The Superintendent of designee will have final authority over issues related to the content of
all pages that are part of the District Web site.



CONTENT STANDARDS

subject matter   – All subject matter on Buffalo City School District Web pages and their links must
relate to curriculum and instruction, school-authorized activities, or information about the Buffalo City
School District or its mission. Staff or student work may be published only as it relates to a class project,
course or other school-related activity. Neither students, staff, nor other individuals may use the District’s
Web pages to provide access to personal home pages.

quality  – All work must be free of any spelling or grammatical errors. Documents may not contain
objectionable material or link to objectionable material.


student safeguards    – The District has chosen to establish these guidelines for publishing material on
the District Web page because of the undefined and worldwide nature of the internet audience and an
interest in protecting students.

    Documents may include only the first name and initial of a student’s last name (or only
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    the initials of the first and last name) unless the student’s parent or guardian has given
    express written and dated permission to use a student’s full name.

    Documents may not include a student’s phone number or address or the names of other
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    family members or friends.

    Published e-mail addresses are restricted to staff members or to a general group e-mail
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    address whose arriving mail is forwarded to a staff member.

    No pictures of students (video or still) or audio clips will be published without express
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    written and dated permission from the student’s parent or guardian.

    No original student work will be published without written and dated permission from the
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    student’s parent or guardian.

    Any e-mail address links, survey-response links, or other direct-response content may be
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    made to staff e-mail addresses only, not student e-mail addresses. Student e-mail
    addresses should not appear on any District hosted Web page.


School Board policies and issues  – All documents on the Buffalo City School District Web site must
conform to School Board Policies and regulations as well as established school guidelines. Relevant
Board issues include the following:

    Electronic transmission of materials is a form of copying. As specified in copyright
  •
    policies, no unlawful copies of copyrighted materials may be knowingly produced on or
    transmitted via the District’s equipment including its Web server. Any violation of any
    applicable laws protecting copyright is solely the responsibility of the user.

    Any links on District Web pages to sites that are not specifically curriculum related
  •
    should be limited to information about other youth activities, agencies, or organizations
    that are known to be exclusively devoted to community interests or child welfare, are
    non-profit and nondiscriminatory, and may not include entities whose primary purpose is
    commercial advertising or political advertising.

    All communications via the District Web pages will comply with the Buffalo City School
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    District Acceptable Use Policies, #7314 and #6470, and all other applicable policies.

TECHNICAL STANDARDS

In the interest of maintaining a consistent identity, professional appearance, and ease of use and
maintenance, technical standards are established for all Buffalo City School District Web pages. The
office of information technology (808 City Hall) maintains the current version of technical standards.
Some general guidelines include the following:

    The District Web server will host school Web pages.
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    All Web documents should be created in an off-line environment. The individual staff
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    member developing Web pages and individual teachers supervising student who are
    developing pages will edit the pages, test the pages for accurate links, ensure that the
    pages meet the standards for content, technical organization and structure, and assume
    responsibility for updating the links as needed.

    District-created Web pages may not contain any student e-mail addresses. Survey-
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    response links, or other direct-response content, may be made to staff e-mail address
    only.

    When completed, pages that meet the guidelines for content and for technical
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    organization and structure outlined in this policy will be uploaded and reviewed. Upon
    satisfactory review they will be published to the District Web site.


Each Web page added to the District Web site must contain certain common elements:

    At the bottom of the page, there must be the date of the last updated of the page.
  •

    At the bottom of the page, there must be a link that returns the user to the appropriate
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    points in the District pages. This would normally be a return to the District home page.

    Care should be used in creating pages with reasonable load times to prevent user
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    frustration.

    Pages may not contain links to other pages that are not yet completed unless linked page
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    contains information that states “is currently under construction”, etc.


These guidelines will be evaluated and updated as needed in response to the changing nature of
technology and its applications in the Buffalo City School District.