Rule 3362-5-12 | Media, social media, and web sites.
(A) Overview
(1) Shawnee state university is committed to sharing timely, accurate, and consistent information with its various audiences, including current and prospective students, parents and families, alumni and friends, neighbors and the community through whatever practical means are relevant and available, including media sources, social media sites, and websites.
(2) The chief communications officer serves as the official university spokesperson, is responsible for internal and external crisis communications, and will coordinate designation of appropriate sources regarding specific areas of operational information or subject matter expertise.
(3) The chief communications officer is the official source of information to campus, to the media, and to the public.
(4) The university communications department manages Shawnee state university's official web site and social media channels and is responsible for all non-enrollment-related content thereon.
(5) The chief enrollment officer is responsible for all admissions, enrollment, and retention messaging, marketing, advertising, and promotion content on the Shawnee state university's official web site and social media channels.
(B) Dissemination of information to media sources
(1) All official university information (events, program news, general news items, information concerning crisis situations) for dissemination to the media will be coordinated through the university communications department.
(2) The university communications department is responsible for developing a process that ensures university information is routinely shared with the public, including faculty and staff personal achievements.
(C) Creation and management of social media sites
(1) The university communications department is responsible for monitoring and managing all digital and social media platforms that officially represent Shawnee state university as an institution to ensure appropriateness of content and brand alignment. Sites officially representing SSU departments, programs, and/or services may be managed at the department level, with approval by and coordination with the university communications department.
(2) Users are encouraged to respectfully share their opinions and comment freely about topics posted on all official Shawnee state university social media platforms. Shawnee state does not discriminate against any views, but reserves the right to remove comments determined by university communications to contain nudity, obscenities, or hate speech; threaten to harm individuals, groups, or organizations; represent advertisements, solicitation of funds, or spam; constitute or encourage illegal activity; infringe upon someone's rights; contain private information; or are multiple off-topic or repetitive posts.
(D) Creation and management of web sites
(1) University communications is responsible for managing Shawnee state university's web presence, which includes the official shawnee.edu site, as well as all official university affiliated or representative websites (e.g. athletics), whether developed and maintained by third-party vendors, university departments, or campus affiliates. All official university websites must be approved by university communications.
(2) All official university websites shall be managed within the campus web content management system, unless exemption is granted by university communications. The web content management system will provide templates for required information, enable incorporation of university branding, and facilitate site maintenance, while providing for centralized management and support. Except as described in this policy, all university offices are required to utilize the campus web content management system for developing and maintaining their respective web sites.
(3) Permission may be granted by university communications to develop and maintain pages outside of the web content management system based on the nature and requirements of the site, technical limitations, ability for ongoing and consistent management of the site, and/or that relationship of the unit to the university.
(4) University offices are responsible to ensure that their web pages within the campus web content management system, as well as those outside the system but officially connected to shawnee.edu, meet standards of accessibility conforming to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, compliance with copyright and trademark laws, university web guidelines, and university branding guidelines.
(5) University offices are responsible to ensure that sites containing, soliciting, or collecting protected or personal data pertaining to students comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) and university policy 3.04, "Student Education Records Privacy and Release."
(6) Commercial advertising on www.shawnee.edu is prohibited. Websites hosted under official university domains may not advertise or promote private individuals, firms, or corporations, or imply in any manner that Shawnee state university endorses or favors any specific commercial product, commodity or service.
(7) Sponsorship acknowledgments and/or links to outside commercial sites for sponsorship purposes for any university related event must have prior approval from the chief advancement officer. Images, logos, graphics or text used to denote sponsorship affiliations or links to commercial sites may not in any way imply that the university is endorsing a product, service or company. Collection of money online must be coordinated through the office of development.
(E) Emergency information
(1) The chief of staff and chief communications officer are responsible for coordinating crisis communications with other appropriate university officials, including the department of public safety, depending on the nature and type of crisis or situation.
(2) The chief of staff, chief communications officer, and the department of public safety, in coordination with university communications, are responsible for developing a procedure for disseminating emergency notifications in the event of school closings or crisis.
(F) Guidelines
Guidelines related to the dissemination of information to the media, management of university social media sites, and the construction of official university web sites shall be established and posted on the university communications web pageat: http://www.shawnee.edu
Last updated May 1, 2026 at 8:09 AM
Supplemental Information