Social Media Policy

To promote a positive social media community, Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) reserves the right to remove posts/content that are defamatory or use abusive language towards MWCC, the community, and/or other users.

General Social Media Guidelines

Maintain Confidentiality

Do not post confidential or proprietary information about MWCC or other individuals. Follow federal policies and requirements, such as HIPAA and FERPA.

Maintain Privacy

Do not discuss or post photos of individuals on social media without their permission. If you would not present the content in a public forum, do not post on social media.

Respect College Time & Property

MWCC employees can use social media if approved by their supervisor, use is directly related to MWCC goals, and they are in compliance with MWCC policies. Personal social media use should be done on personal time and on personal devices. Use of MWCC branding or photos on personal social media accounts is prohibited.

Do No Harm

Your posts should not be harmful to yourself, others or MWCC whether you are using social media for MWCC-related or personal purposes. Content that promotes or depicts illegal activity, is threatening or harassing, includes obscenities, or defames a person, group or organization is prohibited and will be documented and removed.

Understand Your Personal Responsibility

You are personally responsible for the content you publish on social media, blogs, or any other form of user-generated content. Be mindful that what you publish will be public, exist for a long period of time, and may be redistributed throughout the internet.Comply with all Copyright laws and only post information to which you own the rights. (This includes music, art, literary works, photos, text, video, etc.).

Maintain Transparency

Be honest about who you are without sharing sensitive information that could be used to steal your identity (address, phone number, etc.). If you identify yourself as an MWCC employee on your personal social media, please be clear that you are sharing your views as an individual, not as a representative of the College.

Correct Mistakes

Be up-front and quick to correct a mistake. If you go back and edit a previous post, make it clear that you’ve done so.

Be Respectful

It is important to be constructive and respectful while interacting with others at all times. This includes when discussing a bad experience or disagreement. MWCC employees are expected to interact on social media with the same respect required when interacting with college guests, students, and employees in-person. If you would not be comfortable reading about or defending your actions in a Boston Globe interview, do not post that content.

Be a Valued Member

Make sure the content you contribute to any social media site is valuable to its community. Domineering conversations and self-promotion is viewed negatively and can lead to you being banned from groups, pages, blogs, etc. MWCC reserves the right, but assumes no obligation to remove content that is not related to official college business and consistent with the college’s mission. We do not permit messages selling products or promoting commercial or other private for-profit ventures.

Consider Your Audiences

Social media often spans traditional boundaries between professional and personal relationships. Use privacy settings to restrict personal information to otherwise public sites. Carefully and thoughtfully choose the photos and information you share as well as your profile photo or avatar.

Know Your Medium

Make sure you know how each social media platform is used. Just as you would not use a screwdriver to hammer a nail, be sure to know the tool and how to best use it. Be aware that MWCC uses each platform strategically for specific audiences (see “Official College Social Media Accounts” on subsequent pages for further information).

Think Before You Post

There is no such thing as a “private” social media account. Photos and comments can be forwarded, copied, and screenshot. Archival systems save information even if you delete a post. If you feel angry or passionate about a subject, it is wise to delay posting until you are calm and clear-headed. Only post content that you would be comfortable sharing with the general public (peers, coworkers, current and future employers, etc.)

Warnings and Banned Users

If any user does not fall in compliance with these guidelines, we have the right to remove their content. Upon doing so, we will message the individual, if possible, letting them know their post was deleted and why. If the same individual falls out of compliance again, we will ban the user from our page.

VIEW THE FULL GUIDELINES DOCUMENT

Additional Helpful Information