According to the Vanderbilt University Community Creed, Vanderbilt students strive to promote a culture of civility grounded in open, respectful, and neighborly interactions. This value extends beyond the Vanderbilt physical campus and into the digital environment where community members learn, work, and interact daily. This digital environment includes classroom learning platforms and social media platforms used for communication, including email, Zoom, Yik Yak, Twitter, GroupMe, Instagram, Greek Rank, Reddit, Tik Tok, Fizz, etc.
As defined by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), digital citizens “recognize the rights, responsibilities and opportunities of living, learning and working in an interconnected digital world, and they act and model in ways that are safe, legal and ethical.” To this end, the University has developed the Digital Citizenship Guidelines below in order to complement the Community Creed and help create, promote, and sustain a digital environment that is civil and respectful while demonstrating an openness to engage in productive conversations and online exchanges that acknowledge and value difference of opinion in a respectful way. While using technology and operating in the digital environment, Vanderbilt students are expected to abide by these guidelines, as well as the policies and regulations delineated in the Student Handbook, which apply to all students enrolled at Vanderbilt.
The Digital Citizenship Guidelines are not considered a University policy. Behaviors that do not align with the Digital Citizenship Guidelines can be reported to the University using the General Incident Reporting Form. Reported behaviors will be assessed for potential policy violations. In order to ensure the safety and security of individuals and the community at large, as well as access to educational activities, any conduct that may constitute a direct threat to self or others or may contribute to a hostile environment on campus may be subject to other University policies.
Digital Citizenship Guidelines
Consider how your interactions may or may not be furthering a community climate of openness/neighborly/ respectful interactions:
Treating others with respect.
Refrain from offensive name-calling, using hateful language, sending intimidating messages, engaging in unsolicited or unwanted contact with others, or publicly disclosing someone else’s personal information (i.e., doxxing). Additionally, always consider whether you have appropriate consent before using, reposting, or sharing the images of or content created by others.
Being mindful of statements you make related to your safety and the safety of others.
Utilizing technology resources and devices thoughtfully and responsibly.
When communicating and interacting with others in the digital environment, refrain from reckless behaviors, including spoofing, creating fake profiles or generating content from an account that does not accurately reflect who is posting, messaging en masse, or sharing passwords.
Understanding, respecting, and abiding by the rights and obligations of using and sharing intellectual property.
As a reflection of Vanderbilt’s academic mission and learning environment, properly cite and adhere to copyright laws in and outside of the classroom.
Being a helpful bystander.
Maintaining a respectful community is everyone's responsibility. Help stop the spread of misinformation by verifying content with reputable sources before sharing with others, utilizing the host platform’s reporting and safety features so that degrading and/or harmful content can be flagged, reviewed, and/or removed, and refraining from liking, sharing, or commenting on malicious or harmful information that has been posted about others.
Personal Safety Tips
As a user of technological resources and devices, there are several steps you can take to protect yourself and mitigate risks in the digital environment including:
- Fully exploring and utilizing the privacy settings on your email, social media, and other online accounts to control who has access to you and your information.
- Utilizing the host platform’s reporting and safety features so that malicious and harmful content can be flagged, reviewed, and/or removed.
- Asking the offender to stop and then avoiding or ignoring further engagement with the person or the person’s content.
- Being aware of phishing and scam emails and taking care to verify messages before responding to messages, opening any links, or disclosing personal and identifying information.
- Preserving all evidence if you are the victim of harassment, including messages, emails, comments, postings, etc. If you would rather not continue to see these messages, consider allowing a trusted friend to handle this task for you.
Freedom of Expression in the Digital Environment
As an institution of higher learning dedicated to research, teaching, and service, Vanderbilt is firmly committed to academic freedom and freedom of expression and will maintain the conditions of freedom of inquiry, thought, and discussion on campus and in the digital environment. For more information, please refer to the Freedom of Expression policy.
Resources
Resources, including options to report abuse or misuse of a system directly to a third-party social media platform, can be found in the Resources for Students who Experience Misconduct section of the Student Handbook.