This policy applies to faculty and staff. The Student Handbook contains the corresponding policy for students.

It is the responsibility of each member of the community to use the services provided by the College’s campus network and computing systems appropriately and in compliance with all college, town, county, state, and federal laws and regulations. This policy covers all persons accessing a computer, telecommunications or network resource at Wheaton College, including the campus data network, electronic mail, file sharing, printing, world-wide web services, telephone services and cable television. College computing systems are college resources and may be provided to employees for business purposes. Computers and the information contained on them are the property of the college and may accessed by college officials at any time.

College policy and relevant laws apply to use of the college’s network and computing services. Actions that are unacceptable in the college community are also unacceptable on the network, computing systems and other electronic services, including:

  • Harassment in any form.
  • Failure to respect the rights and property of others.
  • Forgery or other misrepresentation of one’s identity.
  • Distribution of copyrighted materials without the permission of the copyright owner.


In addition, these policies specific to Wheaton’s network and electronic services apply:

  • College systems, networks and electronic services may only be used for legal purposes and to access only those systems, software, and data for which the user is authorized.
  • College systems, networks and electronic services are provided only for uses consistent with the academic mission of the institution. They may not be used for private commercial or partisan political purposes, for personal gain, for unsolicited advertising, nor in any way that jeopardizes the college’s tax-exempt status. College facilities may not be used to provide Wheaton network, Internet access, cable TV or telephone service to anyone outside of the Wheaton community for any purpose. The college’s conflict of interest and consulting/outside employment policies also apply.
  • College facilities may not be used in ways that violate the privacy rights of individuals, the college’s confidentiality policy or related laws.
  • Information resources licensed by the college for the use of its students, faculty or staff may not be retransmitted outside of the college community. Examples include Project Muse, Encyclopedia Britannica (On-Line), site-licensed software, and commercial cable television service.
  • Network, cable TV and telephone services and wiring may not be modified or extended beyond the area of their intended use. This applies to all wiring, hardware and in-room jacks.
  • Computer users may not assign an IP number to their machines. IP numbers are assigned dynamically. Manually assigning an IP number to one’s machine may disrupt the network access of another user. Users with special needs may request a permanent IP number from the Director of Technology Infrastructure.
  • Electronic mail is a College resource and is provided as a college-related communications tool. Employees with legitimate business purposes may have the need to view your electronic mail messages. It is also possible that others may view your messages inadvertently, and there is no guarantee of privacy for an electronic mail message.
  • The campus network is a shared resource. Therefore, network uses or applications which inhibit or interfere with the use of the network by others are not permitted (For example, applications which use an unusually high portion of network bandwidth for extended periods of time, thus inhibiting the use of the network by others, are not permitted).
  • Users are required to know and obey the specific policies established for the systems and networks they access. They have a responsibility to stay informed of changes and adapt as needed.
  • Administrators of the network, computer systems and other electronic services have the responsibility to protect the rights of users, to set policies consistent with those rights, and to publicize those policies to their users. They have authority to control or refuse access to the network or other services to anyone who violates these policies or threatens the rights of other users.

Employee violations of the Acceptable Use Policy will be treated as violations of college policy and may result in disciplinary action. Prosecution under state and federal laws may also apply.