Social Media Policy

Pace’s social media culture is the following

Authentic: Pace University is committed to maintaining an authentic presence online.   All who participate must be transparent in every social media engagement.   Being authentic builds credibility and reliability among our audiences while increasing the engagement value of our online communities. 

Engaging: Pace University values social media as a way to develop an engaging presence and community online.   Provide content that promotes and encourages communication, interaction, and that will build loyalty among University audiences.   Social media is about having a conversation so it is important to develop and maintain a voice that gives sites personality and invites interaction. 

Service Oriented: Pace University recognizes social media as a channel for providing better service to our audiences.    University accounts are held to the high standards of service that Pace University works hard to provide.   Those that manage university accounts are responsible for being timely and accurate when providing service to its constituents. 

Valuable:  Pace University works to ensure that its social media presence remains valuable to its audiences.   The value of social media comes from the content and services provided online.   Every account’s goal is to generate a valuable experience for those that interact with the site.

Respectful: Respect others, their ideas, and discussions.   Remain constructive and respectful when communicating with others especially when discussing bad experiences or those disagreeing with a concept or person.    

Thoughtful:  Think before posting.   Social media content is not “private” and all users should be thoughtful in posting messages on the sites. 

The following are the classifications of social media accounts recognized by Pace University:

Main Pace University Accounts: The main accounts of Pace University are those managed by the University Social Media Team within University Relations.  These accounts are:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/paceuniversity
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/paceuniversity
- YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/paceuniversity
- Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/paceuniversity
- Foursquare: https://foursquare.com/paceuniversity

Official Pace Accounts: Accounts that have applied through University Relation’s application process become Official Pace Accounts.   These accounts will receive the resources and perks affiliated with being an Official Pace Account, which include support from the University Relations team and direct links to your sites on the Official Pace University Accounts.   To be an Official Pace Account you must be part of an organization or department within the University.   This includes academic departments, student service departments, student organizations, and administrative departments.   Each Official Pace Account must have Staff/Faculty administrators for the accounts who retain responsibility over their social media sites. 

Unofficial Accounts: Those accounts that have not applied to be Official Pace Accounts are considered to be unofficial accounts.    Those accounts that make claim to be affiliated with Pace University but are not in actuality a part of the University are unofficial accounts.  

 

All Official Pace Accounts must follow the policies listed below:

Application for Account: Official Pace Accounts and web pages must be reviewed and approved through an application process.   To apply please fill out the online form.

Strategy/Goals: Each social media account must define its strategy that includes its focus, audiences, and goals.  

Administrator Policy: Each social media account must have a responsible Staff/Faculty administrator(s) assigned to it.  The name and contact info for that administrator must be submitted along with the application for university account.

Maintain Culture: Official Pace Accounts and web pages must maintain the social media culture of the university as listed in the social media culture section. 

Branding & Identity: Pace University social media accounts must follow the social media branding guidelines for appropriately identifying accounts including branding, logos, and design.  

Unofficial Accounts:  Pace University monitors and tracks all pages that identify themselves as being affiliated with the university and that have not gone through the application process.   Pace University has the right to amend any account that affiliates itself with the University it sees necessary.   Accounts in question are subject to a review process and final determination by those managing the University’s social media presence.

Monitoring Sites: Official Pace Accounts are required to work along side the Official Pace University accounts assisting with communications to the networks’ constituents.  Account administrators must monitor the official university accounts and respond in a timely manner to any comments/questions pertaining to or directed at the administrator’s department. 

Managing Inappropriate Content: Inappropriate, offensive, injurious, and illegal content may be removed by Pace University employees identified as account administrators or at the direction of the Social Media Policy Staff.

Maintain Confidentiality: Administrators are responsible for maintaining and protecting confidential and proprietary information.   Do not post confidential or proprietary information about Pace University, students, employees, or alumni.   Employees must still follow the applicable federal requirements such as FERPA and HIPAA, as well as NCAA regulations.   Adhere to all applicable privacy and confidentiality policies.

Respect copyright and fair use:  When posting, be mindful of copyright and intellectual property rights of others and of the university.  For guidance, consult the university’s guidelines for copyright compliance.   Direct questions about fair use or copyrighted material to Pace University’s legal department. 

Terms of Service: Obey the Terms of Service of any social media platform used.

Those that participate on University social networks must:

Be Respectfull: Communication over the networks should support and foster a sense of community in which you respect others.

Post Responsibly: Those that communicate and interact with the Pace University social networks are responsible for what they write.   Pace University reserves the right to remove any content that it sees as inappropriate and retains the right to ban users when necessary.  Reasons for removing content may include but are not limited to, content that it deems threatening, obscene, a violation of intellectual property rights or privacy laws, or otherwise injurious or illegal.  

Good Judgement: Use good judgment about content and respect privacy laws.  Do not include confidential information about the University, its staff, or its students.

Appropriate Content: Post only content that is not threatening, obscene, a violation of intellectual property rights or privacy laws, or otherwise injurious or illegal.

Representing the University: Representation of your personal opinions as being endorsed by the University or any of its organizations is strictly prohibited. Pace University’s name or marks may not be used to endorse any opinion, product, private business, cause, or political candidate. 

Ownership of Content: By posting content to any social media site, the poster represents that the poster owns or otherwise has all of the rights necessary to lawfully use that content or that the use of the content is permitted by fair use.  Posters also agree that they will not knowingly provide misleading or false information, and that they will indemnify and hold the University harmless for any claims resulting from the content.