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Institute for Computer
Policy and Law 2002

Policy I
Information Technologies Policy in Higher Education

Presentation by Tracy Mitrano
Cornell University

PowerPoint Slides

Definitions

  • The definition of policy in law differs from that in IT higher education.
    • Copyright, e.g...
      • Constitution
      • First copyright law of 1790
      • Policy of that law was to balance the rights of owners, in order to promote invention and enterprise, with the public domain, in the spirit of eighteenth century notions of democracy.

Definitions (2)

  • Social Policy
    • Another form of the widely used term "policy..."
    • Welfare, e.g.
      • New Deal program to take care of "deserving widows" that mostly benefited white, middle class women
      • Great Society program reshaped to accommodate "poor"

Definitions (3)

  • Social Policy
  • Welfare
    • Great Society, combined with the politics of race, class and gender of the civil rights movement, created debate about "entitlements" and "dependencies"
      • Moynihan report
    • Clinton Administration’s promise to "end welfare as we know it" with Social Responsibility, or "Welfare Reform" Act
  • How we think about and legislate specific economic/social/political/cultural/ideological issues

Definitions (4)

  • N.B.
    • The multifaceted, and multi-vectored, nature of policy in both of these usages
    • Policy always incorporates great complexity, whether it is in balancing varied, complicated and sometimes competing interests or in absorbing the needs (or desires) of the categories by which we analyze and understand society.
      • Economy, society, politics, ideology, etc.
    • Notable, because of a similarity with IT/HE usage of "policy."

Definitions (5)

  • Information technologies policies in higher education differ from both of these two previous definitions or usages of the term "policy."

Definitions (6)

  • IT in HE generally are the "laws," or rules for use of IT resources within the college or university environment.
  • Policy "reasons" or rationales may underscore the policies themselves, such as "responsible use maintains the integrity of the network," but in HE/IT we generally think of "policy" as the rules themselves.

Definitions (7)

  • N.B. the multifaceted and multi-vectored nature of policy and policy development even in this environment.

Definitions (8)

  • IT/HE Policy necessarily takes into account:
    • The law (Electronic Communications Privacy Act, FERPA)
    • Economics/Budget
    • Technology and technological advances
    • Type of university or college (public or private)
    • Governance structure of the institution
    • Policy process (centralized or decentralized)
    • Culture of the institution (tradition, leadership, and personality)

Law and Policy

  • Law
    • From Old English, meaning "to law down..."
      • Significantly denotes the floor of behavioral expectations
  • Policy
    • From Ancient Greek, "polis" which has many meanings of "citizen" and "political society."
      • Significantly connotes a higher level of expected behavior commensurate with the teaching mission of American colleges and universities.

Brief History of IT Law

  • Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986
    • Amended by the USA Patriot Act of 2001
  • Variety of contested On-Line Children Protection Acts
    • None upheld, although child pornography remains illegal whether in traditional or digital formats

Brief History of IT Law (2)

  • Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1996
    • Perhaps the most significant of them all because of its hegemonic influence over research, exchange of ideas and potentially even architecture
    • Connection with other important IP issues, such as domain name and trademark
      • ICANN: while delegated by Commerce Department, ICANN is managed independent of government.

Brief History of IT Law (3)

  • Tort Law Applications
    • E.g. Defamation, Misappropriation of Likeness, Invasion of Privacy, (state) Harassment, etc. all apply to electronic communications and digital medium
  • But N.B., unlike telecommunications:
    • No regulatory or taxation structure
    • Notwithstanding existing legislation, government does not overwhelmingly control communications (contrast content) within the Internet environment

Brief History of IT Law (4)

  • Which is why the Microsoft Monopoly case is so important
    • Since market dominates software and Internet...
      • The process of government intervention through anti-trust law is as significant as the actual conclusion
      • UCITA included!
  • Watch for potential implications of new federal law enforcement regulations that allow for roving content searches

Relationship between IT Law and Policy

  • The law unquestionably influences policy as the floor of expected behavior
  • Ethics per se is not a significant component of IT law
  • IT policy in higher education plays a negotiating role in mediating between the law and ethics of Internet usage and communication

Brief History of IT/HE Policy Hits

  • University of Michigan
    • Virginia Rezmierski and the first IT/HE policy
  • MIT
    • Greg Jackson and Tim McGovern Stop It! Program
  • Cornell University
    • Margie Hodges-Shaw and Steve Worona CPL
    • CPL web site and policy compendium

Brief History of IT/HE Policy Hits (2)

  • University of Maryland
    • Rodney Peterson and Project NEthics
  • Indiana University
    • Mark Bruhn and the Board of Trustees blessed stringent security policy
  • University of Virginia
    • Chip German and the "When I go to UVA" video

Cornell IT Policy

Cornell IT Policy (2)

  • 2002 IT Policy Initiatives
    • Mass Electronic Messaging
    • Fair Information Practices
    • Encryption of University Records and Institutional Data
    • Security Incidents Reporting
    • Security of Electronic Communication

Cornell University Policy Office

  • Originated in Finance Department to set uniform rules for travel, capital assets, accounting transactions, etc.
  • t the behest of then President Frank Rhodes, the policy office assumed the authority to formulate and issue "university policy."
  • http://www.univco.cornell.edu/policy/pop.for.html
  • Flow chart for policy process.

Centralized v. Decentralized Policy

  • Pros for Centralized Process
    • Uniformity
      • Single location for policies in web site
      • Single template
      • Single process under Formulation and Issuance of University Policy

Centralized v. Decentralized Policy (2)

  • Pros for Centralized Process:
    • Uniformity incorporates a significant degree, but not all, buy in.
    • Uniformity means not having to recreate the wheel
    • Uniform office provides informed assistance at almost every level of policy development
    • Enforceable!!

Centralized v. Decentralized Policy (3)

  • Cons for Centralized Process:
    • Uniformity means conformity
      • With all of generic potential complications of uniformity expressed through personality and politics
    • Time consuming
      • Agenda for policy office is set for Executive Policy Review Group and Policy Advisory Group
    • Formulation not entirely inclusive
      • Students and Faculty not Policy Advisory Group
      • Although represented at the Executive Advisory Group level, perhaps insufficient for needs of some policies (e.g. Responsible Use contrast Capital Assets)

IMPORTANT!

  • No two colleges/universities are going to do policy or policy process in the same way!
  • No one approach – centralized, decentralized or a hybrid model – is the "right" way.
  • Work within the parameters and people in your institution – already existing or expandable!

The Policy Process

  • Key Elements
    • Articulate the idea in an approachable format
    • Identify and vet with stakeholders/obtain "buy in"
      • May not be a single process
      • May take time
      • May take a variety of venues
        • Committees Educational Programming (UCPL)
        • Presentations One on One Meetings

The Policy Process (2)

  • Key Elements
    • Chart a flexible path (whether or not your institution sets one for you!)
      • Create your own "flow chart," but be prepared to add, subtract, improvise and accommodate
    • Focus on the process while keeping an eye on the final product
      • Open mind, open office, but not so much that the wind blows through

The Policy Process (3)

  • Key Elements
    • Focus on process while keeping an eye on the final product
      • Open mind, open office..
        • Policy Progress Web Page
          • After stake holder's review, post draft
          • Educate readers as to the process by noting next steps
          • As further changes occur explain the rationale
          • Ceremoniously maintain final product while also producing or linking to separate issuance page

The Policy Process (4)

  • Key Elements
    • Take all relevant factors into account
    • But don’t weigh any one or sum of those influential factors so heavily as to lose sight of the core concept or raison d’etre of the policy
    • Share the celebration of successes!

Conclusion

  • IT policy in higher education fills in the gap between the law and ethics of electronic communications and Internet usage.
  • As such, it reinforces and expands the teaching mission of our colleges and universities by raising the bar of behavior expectations,
  • places Internet usage in the context of citizenship and political society,
  • and teaches students more than the mechanics of a computer.

Web Sites of Interest