Guidelines

Account administrators are responsible for monitoring content for accuracy and acceptability; protecting confidential information and intellectual property rights of others and the university; monitoring and removing content that is illegal, obscene, defamatory, harassing, discriminatory, threatening, infringing on the intellectual property rights of others, or an invasion of privacy; and obtaining the consent of all involved parties prior to distribution or publication of recordings, photos, images, videos, text, slideshow presentations, artwork and advertisements. Account administrators should also ensure their content is in compliance with all federal and state laws, including HIPAA and FERPA, and university policies.

We recommend that all social media accounts be linked to an email address that is accessible by more than one employee. Please ensure login information is available to at least two employees to prevent any access issues. If the employee managing a social media account leaves the university, it is their responsibility to designate a new account administrator and contact the social media specialist in the UCCS communications department with that update.

All UCCS social media accounts must follow our branding guidelines for visual consistency. Profile pictures and cover images should use official UCCS logos or approved department logos that align with university branding guidelines. Please ensure all posts are in line with the UCCS color and typography standards. In writing posts, use a tone that reflects professionalism and inclusivity of UCCS. Posts should be engaging but respectful, prioritizing educational, inspirational and community-driven language.

• Social media accounts must comply with copyright and intellectual property laws. When posting online material that includes direct or paraphrased content, always include citations and provide a link or tag to the original material, if possible.
• Copyright: https://www.uccs.edu/copyright-information
• Information Technology Security: Policy: 700-003
• Privacy statement: https://www.uccs.edu/privacystatement

During a campus crisis, emergency or closure, university accounts should only share information by reposting messages from the main UCCS accounts or UCCS Police accounts.

• Freedom of expression, as guaranteed under the First Amendment, and academic freedom, as defined by the Laws of the Regents, while distinctly separate concepts, are central to CU's academic mission and underlie our community values. This site outlines our steadfast commitment to freedom of expression and academic freedom and highlights relevant policies, programs and events: https://www.uccs.edu/freeexpression
• Posts, comments and messages left by other users that are protected by the First Amendment may not be deleted and users cannot be blocked. Profile administrators may refer social media activity that is inconsistent with the platform’s guidelines or terms of service to the applicable social media platform and/or authorities for appropriate action.
• Account administrators may respond to comments and direct messages at their own discretion. If you choose to respond to a comment or message, please do so in a timely and polite manner with a positive tone. If you have a question about how to respond to a comment or message, please reach out to social@uccs.edu. Always remember that anything posted online cannot be permanently deleted.

Please see our page on Generative AI here

Social media accounts are only useful when their content is regularly updated. Account administrators should work with their content providers to ensure that content remains current and useful.

While UCCS does not limit the private use of social media, it is important to realize that the same laws, professional expectations, and guidelines for interacting with students, parents, alumni, donors, media, and other university constituents apply online as in person.