Web Policies

Personal websites for faculty, staff, and students as well as student organization website are handled through WebFiles.

For assistance with University of Richmond blogs or with academic technologies, contact the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology.

Due to common problems associated with outsourcing Web development (increased cost, lack of system integration, unpredictable support, etc.), all campus units are required to gain approval from the Director of Web and Editorial Strategy prior to contracting with external organizations to develop or host websites.

University websites are not to be used for storing or archiving old webpages and files, particularly those whose content is time-sensitive.

All campus units are required to review and update content at least once per semester. One primary goal of this review is to remove such outdated content from the site.

If a department needs to reference past content as part of the current site, the site owner should create new content that provides proper context and reference to the information rather than simply leaving outdated pages or files in their original form.

The University may periodically require the relocation or removal of such outdated content to adhere to this policy and best practices.

Before a site is relocated or removed, the site owner or primary content contributor will be contacted and informed of the reason for the change. In many cases, old Web pages can easily be deleted with no impact. In those cases where the site owner or primary content contributor feels that the site must remain active, s/he must submit a request to the Director of Web and Editorial Strategy and include the following information:

1. Current use of the site information
2. Primary site audience
3. Requested archival location/method
4. Justification for HTML formatted pages
5. Google Analytic data (if available)

Based on this information, we will make a recommendation on the best archival location for the information. Recommendations may include: transforming the information into PDF files, moving the information to a personal Web account or moving the information to Blackboard to support a specific course. Other options also may be considered.

Individual campus units are required to comply with all federal copyright laws. Text, images, music, and video may not be placed on the University of Richmond website unless proper copyright permission is obtained. In addition, campus units are responsible for obtaining official releases from students, faculty, staff, speakers, etc. if photos are taken.

Note: All images in the University Communications Digital Asset Management System have the proper copyright and release credentials.

Commercial or revenue generating advertising for third-party organizations is not permitted on any University websites without the written authorization of the Web Steering Committee.

All information on the Web server is searchable, and thus should be assumed visible to the public. Confidential information must not be uploaded to University websites.

Collection of sensitive information, including but not limited to social security numbers, credit card information, and other personally identifiable information, is prohibited.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (commonly referred to as FERPA or the Buckley Amendment) is designed to protect the confidentiality of student records. Before posting any student information to a website, first refer to the University’s complete FERPA policy and ensure that your site complies with all FERPA requirements.