Website Policy

Please note: Updates to these policies may be made as needed. Announcements of any policy changes that take effect during the academic year will be distributed electronically. It is the responsibility of the user to remain informed of policy changes as a part of their employment duties.

1. Purpose & Introduction

• Web pages are forms of publication and communication viewable by internal and external constituents. As such, web pages and their content must abide by College policies, copyright laws and other applicable local, state and federal regulations and laws relevant to web-based pages and web platforms.

• This policy covers Elmira College websites and web platforms, guides design requirements, provides operational level oversight, and it establishes a framework for ensuring compliance for the accessibility of electronic content used in web-based platforms, particularly Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

2. Web Management & Oversight

• The Office of Communications & Marketing, in partnership with the Department of Information Technology, will be responsible for the administrative and managerial oversight of all Elmira College web sites and web based platforms.

• The Office of Communications & Marketing holds responsibility and authorization for reviewing and maintaining college web pages for accessibility, content, and clarity.

• Oversight includes compliance, policy, training, guidelines, best practices, etc. and encompasses both current and future needs.

• This partnership will oversee the appearance and operations of College websites, and will be responsible to review requests for new pages, new links, new content and new features to ensure institution-wide consistency and applicable compliance requirements including those outlined in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

• “Website Stewards” will be designated for all offices, departments, centers, etc. who request or currently have official pages within an Elmira College web platform. These stewards, in conjunction with the web partnership established in this section, will hold responsibility for the content, links, and graphics of their appropriate page(s).

• The stewards will be responsible for monitoring their sites for accuracy, compliance, and marketing as appropriate requesting change or modification as needed or required.

• All changes, modifications, new content, etc. to existing sites or to new sites must meet the approval of the appropriate Website Steward before being requested. Requests without the proper approval of an appropriate “Website Steward” may be denied or delayed.

3. Section 504 Rehabilitation Act of 1973

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 guarantees certain rights to people with disabilities. In part, it states that no otherwise qualified individual with a disability in the United States, as defined in section 705(20) of this title, shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.

• Elmira College is committed to ensuring equal access to information, programs, and activities through its web-based platforms and web pages for all constituencies.

• Adherence to this policy is a means of ensuring compliance with obligations so that people with disabilities are able to acquire the same benefits and services as their nondisabled peers, with substantially equivalent ease of use, that they are not excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or otherwise subjected to discrimination in any of the College’s programs, services, and activities delivered online, as required by Section 504 and its implementing regulations.

4. Official & Unofficial Pages

• The College recognizes the difference between official and unofficial (or personal) pages. Official pages represent the College and its programs.

• No personal web page should create the impression that it is an official College web page, or give opinions or otherwise make statements on behalf of the College.

• Sites that reference the College or those that link to the College must abide by the Elmira College Website Policy.

• Pages by students, student groups, faculty and/or staff are considered to be unofficial pages, but these sites must still be consistent with the College’s mission and brand, while also complying with College policies, procedures, regulations and other applicable regulations, standards and laws.

• All unofficial pages must carry the following disclaimer or a link to a page displaying the text:

  • Any views and opinions expressed on this page are those of the page author(s) and not necessarily those of Elmira College. Any comments on the contents of this page should be directed to the author(s).

• Official information that already exists on College pages (such as Bulletin information, descriptions of the College, etc.) may not be duplicated on personal pages. Links to relevant official information should be made instead.

5. Design

• Elmira College seeks to provide a high-quality and seamless web presence to all of our constituent communities, and so it is essential that design and content standards are applied consistently across all web pages and platforms.

• All pages should follow the College's brand identity standards. Contact the Office of Communications & Marketing for further information and guidance.

6. Audio & Video

• Videos with or without audio must match and support the College’s overall strategic message and adhere to design, brand, and all other copyright laws.

• Videos must meet the requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ensuring we provide effective communications to those with disabilities.

• Any Elmira College video posted online must abide by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 for Time-based Media. These requirements vary depending upon the video style and content. In regards to accessible video and audio, these principles should be kept in mind:

  • Any video provided must include captions and/or a text-based transcript. (ie. A course lecture)

  • Videos should be embedded or displayed in a player that can be accessed through a screen reader using keyboard commands.

  • Videos that include visual information should include audio descriptions of events.

  • Auto starting or looping audio and video is not permitted.

• Transcripts for audio files must be provided.

• Captions are mandated primarily for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers, but captions benefit multiple audiences including:

  • Non-native English speakers

  • When vocabulary is unfamiliar

  • When the speaker is using an unfamiliar dialect

  • When audio is not clear or audio is not available. This last includes instances when audio quality is poor and instances when a person cannot listen to audio because of their environment.

• Video and audio content that does not meet the requirements of ADA accessibility will not be allowed to be published.

7. Exemptions from the Policy

The following circumstances may qualify as exemptions from this policy:

• Where compliance is not technically possible or may require extraordinary measures due to the nature or intent of the information resource, application or service, a request for exemption may be made.

• Where compliance would result in a fundamental alteration of the information resource, application, or service, and not satisfy the original intent.

• Where, in the case of information resources, applications, and services that are procured through third party vendors or contractors, no alternative accessible products are available from other third party vendors or contractors.

• If the current product is not in compliance and remediation efforts are underway.

8. Violations of Policy

• The College reserves the right to deny network access to groups or individuals who ignore the aforementioned guidelines or violate College policies.

• The College also reserves the right to remove pages from the College network that have become outdated, contain an excessive number of invalid links to other sites, compromise system integrity, are non-compliant, or cause a negative impact on server or network performance.

• Web pages supported by the College network may not be used for non-College commercial purposes.

• Failure to comply with these guidelines and other college related policies would make an individual subject to disciplinary action, as described in the Student, Employee, or Faculty Handbook, and may result in a loss of College computing privileges.