Below are the Terms of Service for Lewis & Clark’s digital scholarship (DS) multisite, developed during the 2016-17 academic year. Please contact us if questions.
I. Definitions
- Content Management System (CMS): A content management system (CMS) is a computer application that supports the creation and modification of digital content using a simple interface to abstract away low-level details unless required, usually supporting multiple users working in a collaborative environment (see Wikipedia).
- Lewis & Clark (L&C): Includes the Lewis & Clark College of Arts and Sciences, Law School, Graduate School of Education and Counseling, Overseas Programs, and related Administrative bodies. When distinctions need to be made among these entities, the specific names will be used. Details regarding all of the above can be found here.
- Lewis & Clark Digital Scholarship Multisite: See Multisite.
- Multisite: A multisite network is a collection of sites that all share the same WordPress installation. They can also share plugins and themes. The individual sites in the network are virtual sites in the sense that they do not have their own directories on a server, although they do have separate directories for media uploads within the shared installation, and they do have separate tables in the database. (as defined in the WordPress Codex) In the context of this document, Multisite refers to the Lewis & Clark Digital Scholarship Multisite.
- Multisite Steering Committee: Comprised of representatives from Lewis & Clark faculty, staff, and students who are responsible for developing and administering policies, procedures, and expectations for the management of the Multisite.
- Multisite Training: Referred to in this document as “training,” can indicate in-person (e.g., via SAAB tutors) and/or online (e.g., via dedicated sites) training of users, admins, and network admins. Different levels of training (which may be evidenced by badges earned) correspond to the proficiencies needed to administer the Multisite at various levels.
- Multisite Digital Resources: Includes the suite of introductory, help, documentation and training sites which have been established to orient users to and assist users with use of the Multisite. At a basic level, these sites currently include the root site, https://ds.lclark.edu; the help site, https://ds.lclark.edu/help; and the training site, https://ds.lclark.edu/learn.
- Public Digital Scholarship: Includes scholarship spanning the natural and social sciences, arts and humanities, law, education, and counseling, for which digital scholarship takes a number of forms, including the online publication of texts, media, and research, some (but not all) of which is directed toward a public audience. It may also include documentation of the research process and of collaboration and interaction among scholars and dialogue with the public.
- Subsite (or Site): A subdirectory on a multisite network which is a complete site with its own subdomain address, eg: ds.lclark.edu/overseas. Participants on the Multisite can, if given permission to serve as Site Administrators, develop their own subsites and conduct most digital scholarship activity on their own subsites.
- WordPress: WordPress is a free and open-source content management system (CMS) based on PHP and MySQL. WordPress is installed on a web server, which either is part of an Internet hosting service or is a network host itself; the first case may be on a service like WordPress.com, for example, and the second case is a computer running the software package supplied via WordPress.org.
II. Participating Entities
- Participating Entities include users, site administrators, network administrators, and support/oversight.
- Users include all those with a Lewis & Clark username authorized to read, post, and/or comment on sites. Users must participate using their L&C username. Specific categories of Users include:
- Students include those currently registered for at least one course at Lewis & Clark (including the College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate School of Education and Counseling, or Law School).
- Former Students may continue to participate in the Multisite for one calendar year following their last date of enrollment. At that time, their content may be archived (see below).
- Faculty includes all tenured, tenure track, and non-tenure track teaching faculty of the three schools.
- Staff includes all persons employed at Lewis & Clark.
- Site Administrators are Users who have administrative access to a site as well as add content to the site; the most common example involves student scholarly sites. Site Administrators may also be responsible for training Users under their direct supervision (e.g., faculty who supervise students whose content is part of a class or overseas program, faculty and staff who supervise residents of a Living Learning Community who contribute to a site). Site Administrators determine who may access a site and at which levels. Site Administrators are responsible for taking appropriate action to ensure that all content made available on their site complies with the Terms of Service.
- Network Administrators are Users who have access to edit, archive, and manage all sites within the Multisite. Network Administrators can install and update themes and plugins, and approve other Users to the Multisite. Network Administrator access is granted under supervision of the Multisite Steering Committee and as technical needs arise.
- Eligibility for Establishing and Administering a Site
- A Site Administrator must be a User who is completing sufficient training on the digital tools necessary to conduct high quality digital scholarship.
- Student Site Administrators must have oversight from a faculty or staff member who is a Site Administrator. Such might include a professor for a class, staff supervisor, or academic advisor.
- Site Administrators are permitted and designated one individual site tied to their lclark username. Some Users may also participate in a group site (e.g., a student who has a site for their ENVS major and also participates in the Overseas site during an overseas program).
- Process for Establishing and Administering a Site
- Proposals from eligible Site Administrators will be routinely considered by their oversight academic program, and/or the Multisite Steering Committee. A batch proposal may be reviewed if multiple Users will be administrating sites as part of their scholarship, for example as a condition of their enrollment in a specific academic program. Proposals may also be for ongoing use by particular academic programs. A successful site proposal will include the following:
- a description of the site purpose that demonstrates that digital scholarship is its primary intent,
- a named site administrator who has completed the necessary training,
- a plan for training and support for site users and/or student site administrators,
- a template and/or design requirements for the site, and
- a plan for building and maintaining the site.
- Proposals from eligible Site Administrators will be routinely considered by their oversight academic program, and/or the Multisite Steering Committee. A batch proposal may be reviewed if multiple Users will be administrating sites as part of their scholarship, for example as a condition of their enrollment in a specific academic program. Proposals may also be for ongoing use by particular academic programs. A successful site proposal will include the following:
III. User Rights and Responsibilities
A. Proper Use
- Multisite content is expected to reflect the educational purpose of the Lewis & Clark community: to know the traditions of the liberal arts, to test their boundaries through ongoing exploration, and to hand on to successive generations the tools and discoveries of this quest. By these means the institution pursues the aims of all liberal learning: to seek knowledge for its own sake and to prepare for civic leadership.
- The Digital Scholarship Multisite exists for the development and online publication of the academic and intellectual exercises of Lewis & Clark community members. Sites on the Multisite and allowable posts on these sites must adopt scholarship as their primary intent as evaluated by the Multisite Steering Committee. Related to this criterion are applicable laws and policies, including appropriate use of social media, to which users in this institutionally-managed environment must also adhere.
- By opening a Multisite account or participating in Multisite activities, the User commits to the highest educational and ethical standards of our community. The Multisite is a publication in electronic form; as such, all content and activities are subject to all Lewis & Clark policies, as well as all applicable local, state, and federal laws, specifically those that govern copyrighted material, photographic images, sound prints, confidential information, and libelous remarks. It is the responsibility of each User to adhere to these policies and laws, and of each Site Administrator to monitor and report potential violations on their site of such to the Multisite Steering Committee; this Site Administrator duty does not remove primary responsibility from each User.
B. Misuse
- Publication of material that violates licensing or contractual agreements, copyright or other laws, or college regulations or policies is prohibited.
- With rigorous commitment to academic integrity, material published on the Multisite which is not appropriately attributed is strictly prohibited and may be promptly removed and subject to disciplinary action.
- Sites may not be used for commercial purposes.
- For further details, please review the institution’s Responsible Use of Technology Resources Policy, located here: http://www.lclark.edu/live/profiles/3669-responsible-use-of-technology-resources-policy
C. Accountability for Content
- Users are responsible for all content they post and activities they engage in on the Multisite.
- In the event that content or activities are reported that may represent prohibited conduct, the Multisite Steering Committee reserves the right to temporarily deactivate a User’s account and remove published content pending review of the report and resolution. While content may be made unavailable to the public, such materials will not be deleted unless the resolution identified indicates that deletion is an appropriate outcome for the actions in question.
- Reports of prohibited conduct by a student following the process described in #2 above will be resolved by the Multisite Steering Committee in collaboration with the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities.
- Reports of prohibited conduct by staff or faculty will be resolved by the Multisite Steering Committee, in collaboration with Human Resources, and in consultation with a supervisor.
- Multisite content contributed by former students or former employees continues to be subject to the same policies and procedures outlined for their former status as either student, faculty, or staff.
D. Privacy and the Use of Personal Data
- As outlined in the DS Multisite Privacy Policy
E. Freedom of Expression and Inquiry
- As outlined in the Freedom of Expression and Academic Inquiry Policy
F. Payment and Subscription
- Use of the Multisite is provided free of charge for currently enrolled students, faculty, and staff. As the Multisite is not to be used for business or advertising purposes, no money should be exchanged related to Multisite activities.
G. Opt-out Policy and Account Termination
- Users have the ability to remove their own content at any time, though Lewis & Clark may retain a copy of all content for archival and research purposes. A User may initiate contact with the Multisite Steering Committee if they wish to request that content be removed from online publication and archival records. Such requests will be evaluated on a case by case basis in consultation with the user in question.
- Former students, staff, and faculty may continue to participate in the DS Multisite for one calendar year following their last date of enrollment or employment. At that time, their content may be archived.
H. Archive Policy
- Archiving occurs at the discretion of the Multisite Steering Committee on a secure server currently administered by L&C Information Technology. An archived site may retain less functionality than the original site.
IV. Disclaimer/Limitation of Liability
Our Services are provided “as is.” Lewis & Clark and its suppliers and licensors hereby disclaim all warranties of any kind, express or implied, including, without limitation, the warranties of fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. Neither Lewis & Clark nor its suppliers and licensors, makes any warranty that our Services will be error free or that access thereto will be continuous or uninterrupted. You understand that you download from, or otherwise obtain content or services through, our Services at your own discretion and risk.
In no event will Lewis & Clark, or its suppliers or licensors, be liable with respect to any subject matter of this Agreement under any contract, negligence, strict liability or other legal or equitable theory for: (i) any special, incidental or consequential damages; (ii) the cost of procurement for substitute products or services; or (iii) for interruption of use or loss or corruption of data. Lewis & Clark shall have no liability for any failure or delay due to matters beyond their reasonable control.
V. Modifications
Lewis & Clark reserves the right to modify the Terms of Service at any time. Terms of Service are reviewed on an ongoing basis by the Multisite Steering Committee. The User shall be responsible for reviewing and becoming familiar with any such modifications. Use of the Service by the User following such notification constitutes the User’s acceptance of the terms and conditions of changes as modified.
Revised on March 30, 2017