Title: Policy for Personal Social Media Accounts
Approved by: Board of Trustees, University President
Date approved: October 2014
Effective date: January 2015
Responsible Official: Vice President, University Marketing and Communications
Responsible University Office: University Marketing and Communications
Revision History: N/A
Related legislation and University policies: N/A
Review Period: 5 Years
Date of Last Review: January 2015
Relates to: Faculty, Staff, Students
Employees’ incidental use of social media in the workplace is permissible as long as their supervisor determines such use does not interfere with operations or productivity, or violate official policies set by their department or the university. Case Western Reserve reserves the right to monitor the use of its computer systems, and disciplinary or other action may be taken if an employee’s online activity is deemed to violate any of the above-listed criteria. These include but are not limited to university policies regarding employment that address misconduct and unacceptable behavior.
Sharing University News
Individuals are encouraged to share university news via social media platforms. However, when personally posting about or responding to university-related content, be upfront about your identity. Disclose your affiliation. Clearly state your role and your goals in posting the news. But also do not make any statement that suggests you are speaking on behalf of the university.
Sharing Your Opinion
If posting personal comments on an account through which you mention an affiliation with the university, please state that you’re voicing a personal opinion, not representing Case Western Reserve University, its administration or any other community members. For example, if you want to tweet regularly about higher education news and affiliate yourself with Case Western Reserve, you could put in your bio that the views and thoughts expressed are your own and do not reflect the views of CWRU.
Individuals always should use good taste, common sense and a professional tone when participating in an online discussion—especially those regarding the university.
What Do We See?
Case Western Reserve does not monitor individual social media presences unless required by legal or other university policy. In the event the university becomes aware of an interaction that violates university policies, the university reserves the right to take appropriate action.