Student Code of Conduct 2018-19

official access, should not use e-mail to “spam” others, and should not release worms or viruses or other
destructive codes into the system. Students must obey local, state, and federal laws (copyright and other
intellectual property laws), and must not use the College information system to pursue any personal business or
use the name of Fisher College to suggest a College endorsement. Most importantly, the College information
system must not be used to harass anyone or make repeated unwelcome contacts with others. Consistent with the
College Policies on Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment, Students must not display material that is explicitly
sexual or offensive. By using the College’s computers, you acknowledge agreement with the Computer Policy. For
further details on the Computer Policy, please contact the Department of Information Technology.
Advisory regarding internet sites and other blogs
Fisher College does not as a matter of policy routinely monitor internet sites (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter,
blogs, etc). However, if a Student uses such sites and blogs to express sentiments or activities that are unlawful
and /or violate the policies of the College, and such practice is brought to an administrator’s concern, then the
College will review the sites and the material posted therein. After reviewing the material, the administrator will
then address that practice with the Student and determine whether it violates the Student Code of Conduct and
requires disciplinary action. For a Student, the incident will be addressed by the Student Conduct Process.
Additionally, please be advised that you might be jeopardizing your personal safety and/or your future career
prospects by posting personal and/or questionable material on your sites and blogs.
Nationwide there has been an increase in the number of phishing and online scams targeting College students. Do
not give out your personal information, passwords or banking information to anyone. Also be mindful of scams in
which individuals may ask you to wire money or make deposits for apartments that you have not physically visited.
If you have a question regarding the legitimacy of something you are being asked to do please contact Campus
Security at 617-236-8880.
Copyright Compliance
Copyright law protects the rights of anyone who creates or holds the rights to created content, including art,
music, written material, movies and software. The unauthorized copying or distribution of any material created by
anyone other than yourself may constitute copyright infringement, which is a violation of federal law and College
Policy. These prohibitions include using the College network for sharing music, video, or software without
copyright holder permission, whether through peer to peer programs (uploading or downloading) or other means.
Fisher College’s Technology Policy requires all members of the College community to comply with copyright laws
and the provisions of the licensing agreements that apply to software.
The College imposes significant sanctions for infringing activities, including College Probation and loss of network
access. In addition, under the Copyright Act, anyone infringing a copyrighted work may be liable for statutory
damages up to $30,000 for each work (i.e. song or movie) infringed and, if willful infringement is proven, that
amount may be increased up to $150,000. An infringer may also be liable for the attorney’s fees of the copyright
owner. In certain cases, an infringer may also be subject to criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment.
In recent years, associations including the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the Motion Picture
Association of America have served thousands of subpoenas on colleges and universities seeking to obtain the
identities of individuals who have allegedly infringed the copyright of their members through peer to peer file
sharing. Fisher College is required to comply with lawfully issued subpoenas, and students have had to pay
significant sums of money to settle copyright claims in order to avoid further liability.
A number of legal alternatives, authorized by copyright owners, exist for acquiring music and other online content
including ITunes, Amazon and even Walmart.com. Fisher College encourages you to make use of these services.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas, data, illustrations, or statements of another person or source, and
presenting them as one's own. Each student is responsible for learning and using proper methods of paraphrasing
and footnoting, quotation, and other forms of citation, to ensure that the original author, speaker, illustrator, or
source of the material used is clearly acknowledged.
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