MAMC Faculty and Student Social Media Guidelines

As associates of Adler University, faculty and students of the MAMC degree program must operate in compliance with the School’s official Social Media Policy.  The policy in its entirety is copied below for MAMC faculty and students, and can be accessed by faculty in the faculty handbook.   The following is an addendum to this policy with more specific references to how MAMC faculty and students may incorporate the use of social media throughout the MAMC curriculum. 

Studying and practicing the use of social media will be a significant curriculum component in the MAMC program of Adler University.  As result, MAMC courses may uniquely incorporate social media activities throughout the curriculum as we practice theories and the execution of media projects.   

Some activities may incorporate social media activities outside of Ember.   In such cases, a review of the proposed activity shall be conducted by the Program Director to assist in determining risks, necessary precautions or the rare need, for example, to secure participation consent or, articulate a disclaimer – a more widely practiced act of precaution in public communication spaces.  

In order to implement portions of the MAMC curriculum, students and faculty will need to accept connection requests from one-another.  For this reason, we strongly advise each faculty and student to create a MAMC related profile; though not required.   

As MAMC activities may involve contact with the public (non-Adler students or employees), faculty and students must act in a manner that always respects and never exploits the public or each other, or any assumed power inherent in such contact.

As with the School’s policy for the use of social media, any violation of the policy or guidelines pertained in this addendum may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of student or faculty status.

From Faculty Handbook for Adler University:

Faculty and Staff Social Media Guidelines

Social Media outlets provide useful channels for increasing the speed with which information is disseminated, as well as expanding the potential audience which can be reached. However, as with all technologies, it is important that to recognize the potential for unforeseen, or unintended consequences. 
In order to temper any potential risks, this document is designed to guide faculty, staff, and other authorized users in the use of social media at Adler University.

Definition

Social Media is defined as any electronic tool that allows for social, interactive, and connective communication and learning, allowing for but not limited to: 

• Video and photo sharing (YouTube, Slideshare, Flickr, Vimeo),
• Social Networking (MySpace, Facebook, Ning, Twitter, LinkedIn, Foursquare)
• Blogging,
• Micro-blogging (Twitter, Tumblr,) including "following" and "subscribing" to feeds         Use of a Wiki,
• Instant messaging,
• Use of Short Message Service (texting), and    Web conferencing (FaceTime, Skype). 

Context

Interacting with people online is no different than interacting with individuals face-to-face. Therefore, Adler employees are expected to maintain the respect, dignity, and professionalism that is consistent with our mission and beliefs, and act with concern for the online safety and protection of students, the School, and themselves.

Guidelines for Social Media Usage:

When using social media it is important to remember that your profiles are public domain and that this information can be accessed if certain precautions are not taken:

• Understand that you are accountable for your postings and other electronic communications that are job-related — particularly online activities conducted with a school email address, or while using school property, networks or resources, or with students, co-workers and School partners, or while discussing school-related activities.
• The creation and maintenance of “professional” social media accounts (i.e. LinkedIn or Facebook profiles used expressly for work related activities) can help maintain the boundary between our personal and professional lives, and result in a reduction of the risks inherent in online social media usage. 
• Whether using “professional” or “personal” (i.e. LinkedIn or Facebook profiles used for recreational or personal networks) profiles, employees are responsible for recognizing that:
  1. Your ability to serve as a positive role model for students and as a representative of the School is a critical aspect of your employment; social media activities may be visible to current, past, or prospective students, parents, colleagues, and community members; and accordingly, you must exercise discretion when using social media (even for personal communication) when those communications can reflect on your role at the School.
  2. Uneven power dynamics exist between teacher and student; employees must act in a manner that always respects and never exploits the power inherent in these relationships.
  3. The school has an official presence on various social media sites, under the control of the Department of Institutional Advancement & the Marketing Department; as such, employees may not engage in official marketing through their personal social media accounts without the express approval of the appropriate department director. (i.e. an employee creates an alumni page for the School on their personal blog.)
  4. Class related activities facilitated online should be conducted through the established online learning environment in Moodle which is associated with each course. 

Recommendations Regarding Employee Social Media Usage:

• Student social media relationships
  1. Employees (i.e. Staff, Faculty, and Adjunct Faculty) of Adler University are strongly discouraged from "friending" or accepting friendship requests within the context of “personal” social media sites from or with current and enrolled students at Adler University. “Professional” profiles on sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook should be used instead. 
• Co-worker social media relationships
  1. Employees should use good judgment when making and/or accepting connections to or from colleagues.
  2. All employees are strongly encouraged to use caution when making “friend” or “connection” requests of their supervisors or subordinates due to the potential for both parties to feel pressured to accept the request, potentially impacting the work relationship (as well as raising conflict of interest, unequal treatment, discrimination, or similar concerns).
• Non-school-related social media relationships
  1. Social media channels and the information contained in those profiles do not represent private information. This information can be accessed by potential students or Adler partners if certain precautions are not taken. You are responsible for protecting the access to your information. 
  2. Remind other members of your social network of your position as an educator whose profile may be accessed by students and other members of the school community. Please ask them to monitor their posts to your network accordingly.
• Posted content
1. Exercise care with personal profile data and posted content to insure that this information does not reflect poorly on your ability to serve as a professional or otherwise create a conflict of interest.
2. Privacy settings: Inherent in social media technology is the capability to limit access to profiles and posted content. Employees are encouraged to check their privacy settings on a regular basis to ensure that they are revealing only what they wish to and only to those they wish to reveal it.
3. Time on social sites: In no case may use of social media interfere with or impede your duties or your responsibilities to the School or our students.
4. All confidential information must be protected and disclosed only pursuant to School policy or as otherwise required by law. No social media posts may communicate any confidential information.
• Use of logos, trademarks, and intellectual property:
1. Employees are not permitted to use the school’s logo, trademarks, official photographs, or any other intellectual property of proprietary materials in any postings to social media without the written consent of the Marketing Department. 

Adherence to Social Media Policy Guidelines 

As employees of Adler University, all faculty and staff members are expected to maintain the same level of professionalism and appropriate conduct online as would be expected in live, face-to-face interactions, when operating in a professional capacity (i.e. interacting with students, co-workers, or other partners of the School). Conduct deemed  inappropriate (including but not limited to inappropriate relationships with students, interactions in violation of the School’s code of conduct or those of the individual’s professional association etc.) will result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.