ALCTS Board Approves Web Site Policy

During the ALA Annual meeting in Toronto, June 2003, the ALCTS Board approved a new association Web site policy. Drafted by the Publications Committee, the policy addresses the Web site's purpose, its design and management, and its legalities. The policy also clarifies the association's intention to host its Web-based work products on ALA servers rather than those of other institutions. Exceptions to ALA-based hosting can be made through explicit agreement with the ALCTS office.

"The policy is intentionally general," explained Publications Committee chair Genevieve S. Owens. "It gives the ALCTS office managing editorial control of all Web site content and responsibility for the site's legal protection and design." The policy will serve as a foundation for further work by the Publications Committee. In the coming year, the committee and ALCTS Web Editor Margaret Rhody will define the different types of Web publications on the site and clarify the functional expectations of those publications. "We know our members want and need to be able to use the Web site for association business and to communicate with the profession as a whole," notes Owens. "This basic policy and the supporting material we are creating will help all of us approach the site with common understandings of the way it can and does work."

ALCTS Web Site Policy

The ALCTS Web site is an instrument of communication managed by the ALCTS office with assistance from ALCTS units. The site furthers the ALCTS mission and is updated regularly. It complies with the policies of the American Library Association and U.S. copyright law.

The ALCTS office is responsible for the legal protection and design of the Web site. ALCTS owns all rights to content on the ALCTS Web site except where explicitly stated otherwise. The office also retains the right to edit Web site content and republish it in part or its entirety, in other formats.

All ALCTS Web content adheres to the prevailing style, display, layout, and coding used by the ALCTS staff Webmaster. Linking within and from the ALCTS Web site must be relevant to the work of ALCTS or its units. The ALCTS Executive Director maintains managing editorial control of all Web site content.

ALA servers host all the Web-based work products of the Association and its units. ALCTS does not permit the hosting of its work products on other institutions' servers, except by explicit agreement with the ALCTS office.

Adopted by the ALCTS Board
ALA Annual Meeting, Toronto
June 23, 2003