Web Governance Policy

1. Policy Purpose

This policy will allow the university to leverage its websites as effective, appealing marketing platforms that reflect the UAFS brand and encourage prospective students to apply to the university. It establishes ownership, workflows and resources that facilitate a competing, user-oriented and goal-driven web presence. This policy also provides collaborative, centralized governance for the online development, delivery and maintenance of the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith's web presence, ensuring proper training and appropriate focus on privacy, accessibility and other core site requirements.

2. Policy Statement

All University of Arkansas – Fort Smith web initiatives are guided by these three principles:

Our visitors come first
- All of our work, from content to design to allocation of resources is created with the needs of our audiences in mind.
We are consistent with the brand
- The University of Arkansas – Fort Smith brand is our reputation and should be reflected in our website’s structure, language, visuals and calls to action.
Our site is always improving
- A website is not a finished product. We are committed to continues improvement, using data-based analysis and experimentation to better meet user – and university goals.

3. Applicability

The university’s website (uafs.edu) will fall under the management and supervision of Marketing & Communications. Marketing & Communications will have decision-making authority over the function, presentation and accessibility/compliance for all branded sites as well as integrated web features and services.

UAFS’s approved content management system and its brand architecture will be used to develop all pages in the UAFS framework. No software products, plug-ins, services, embedded scripts or content will be deployed on the UAFS website without the consultation, approval and oversight of Marketing & Communications.

Official University of Arkansas – Fort Smith resources, programs and services must be hosted in the uafs.edu framework or via approved vendors. As part of the academic process, faculty or students may seek to create and host content outside the uafs.edu framework, on independent “third-party” sites. Individuals or groups looking to establish a third-party site must consult with UAFS Marketing & Communications to discuss trademark and branding implications as well as deprecation planning. The Marketing & Communications team is only able to support pages within the uafs.edu framework.

To ensure site security and a positive brand experience, all external links are subject to the approval of Marketing & Communications and can be removed at any time without notice.

3.1 Oversight, Strategy & Planning Hierarchy

Web Governance Board will be comprised of:

Vice Chancellor for University Advancement
Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management & Student Affairs
Director of Information Technology
Director of Marketing & Communication
Faculty Senate Representative
Staff Senate Representative

Responsibilities/Charge:

Broad oversight for the strategic direction of uafs.edu
Final arbitrator for decisions regarding website governance and access standards
Decisions by consensus with the Chancellor as mediator

3.1.1 Marketing and Communications Team

Primary strategic direction and support for uafs.edu and associated sites and assets is led by Marketing & Communications.

The UAFS Web Leadership Team, consisting of the director of Marketing & Communications, associate director of Strategic Communications, web administrator, UX designer/front end develop, and project manager, will provide oversight and strategic direction, review requests from academic and administrative stakeholders, and set priorities. The director of Marketing & Communications will inform the Governance Board of strategic-level projects and plans.

Additional responsibilities of the team include:

Setting website direction and policies based on best practices
Ensure site quality and content integrity as well as compliance with all legal and regulatory standards
Providing training and support to editors for use of the content-management system, website best practices and ADA compliance/accessibility
Maintaining the software, component guide, sample pages and web content style guide to ensure accuracy
Researching, evaluating and sharing best practices, industry trends and web analytics reporting
Providing primary support for uafs.edu and associated sites and assets. This includes:
- Updating site structure and navigation, including the creation of new pages. To promote a streamlined site map and a positive user experience, creating new pages will be an exclusive responsibility of the Marketing and Communications team
- Evaluating and executing requests to develop new features and templates, including changes to taxonomy, structure, branding, look and feel, navigation, styling, etc.

The web manager and UI/UX designer/front-end developer are responsible for:

Ensuring third-party CMS provider installs core CMS software and databases • Identifying and implementing server-optimization opportunities
Overseeing server-level security, and setting up, managing, and maintaining testing, development and production server environments
Administering and maintaining the web infrastructure
Installing, maintaining and upgrading additional web and database servers as needed

Marketing & Communications has access to all areas of the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith website and will edit/alter content as needed to promote effective web communications.

The university reserves the right to revise or delete content housed either on university supported web platforms and/or servers.

3.1.2 Web Advisory Committee

Comprised of key institutional stakeholders, this advisory committee provides an avenue for university stakeholders to offer input on website strategy, sharing suggestions/concerns, proposing new features and offering feedback on prioritization.

Committee constituents (Chair - TBD):

Vice Chancellor for Advancement – ex-officio member/co-sponsor
Director of Informational Technology – ex-officio member/co-sponsor
Associate Director for Strategic Communication
Director of Marketing & Communications • Marketing & Communications (all staff who have responsibility for the website)
Admissions (1 member)
Student Affairs/Campus Life (1 member)
Information Technology (1 member)
Academic Affairs/Provost (1 members)
Faculty Senate (1 member) • Staff Council (1 member)
Student Government Association (1 member)
Retention and Academic Success (1 member)
Office of the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration (1 member)

Responsibilities/Charge:

Create transparency and collaboration with regard to digital initiatives
Meet once per semester
Responsible for proposing ideas, requests, problems and concerns to Marketing & Communications throughout the year, including:
- Recommending directions and subject areas for training and support
- Proposing global changes to taxonomy, structure, branding, look and feel, navigation, styling etc.
- Exploring effectiveness, content, standards and policies for technology and editorial components

3.1.3 Information Technology

Information Technology acts as the caretaker for the web-server operations of the intranet CMS (My.uafs.edu), providing server setup, maintenance and troubleshooting. Responsible for the installation of the core intranet CMS software and databases, they also identify and implement server-optimization opportunities and are charged with server-level security. IT sets up, manages, and maintains testing, development and production server environments for My.uafs.edu.

3.1.4 Deans, Directors, and Vice Chancellors

Responsible for:

Guiding the overall strategic direction of their departments’ positioning and messaging.
Identifying a primary and secondary editor for their department
Creating original marketing and supporting content and/or collaborating with the primary editor or a designated content creator to do so.
Requesting permission changes for editors (both granting and terminating access).
Ensuring editors complete and remain up-to-date with approved CMS/ADA web compliance training.

3.1.5 Primary Content Editor

Primary Content editors are responsible for the day-to-day maintenance of their assigned websites. Their responsibilities are:

Ensuring all content, including text, photo, videos, and PDFs, whether posted by themselves or with the assistance of other editors, is in accordance with the governance guidelines and ADA compliance/web accessibility.
Editing/updating existing pages and posting news and events updates at the direction of, or in collaboration with, the department chair.
Completing and remaining up to date on approved CMS/ADA web compliance training. (See the Non-Compliance section for additional information.)
Conducting regular (minimum every six months) reviews of site content to remove/refresh outdated content. This includes updating promotional material, recapping events after they occur and ensuring all links connect to “live” pages.
Sharing ideas, requests, problems and concerns with Marketing & Communications throughout the year.
Suggesting global changes to taxonomy, structure, branding, look and feel, navigation, styling etc. to Marketing & Communications as needed

Each site must have a full-time, year-round staff member identified and trained as the primary content editor and may add secondary editors who also must be trained. Student workers, whether undergraduate or graduate, may support the primary editor after they have completed approved CMS/ADA web compliance training offered by Marketing & Communications. Students may make regular, day-to-day content changes under the supervision of the primary editor.

Due to the brand responsibilities and training associated with using the CMS properly, each university site should have just one primary and one secondary web editor.

3.1.6 UAFS Homepage Guidelines

UAFS’s homepage is a branded resource organized around the needs of prospective students. The homepage elements and their placement have been carefully designed to appeal to this core audience. They will not be altered to feature topical content, including events, news or announcements. Topical updates will only be featured via the events, news and social-media components designed explicitly for this purpose.

3.1.7 News, Events, and Displays of Social Content

The homepage’s designated news, events and social media sections will prioritize content that appeals to prospective students and embody the UAFS brand. Marketing & Communications is the designated authority for choosing news, event and embedded social media features on the homepage.

4. Policy Procedure

All content on the UAFS website must adhere to the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith web and editorial guidelines. The Marketing & Communications Team has full access to all areas of the UAFS website and has broad authority to oversee, edit and remove the content that does not comply with these policies.

4.1 Training & Education

Approved CMS training must be completed before anyone is granted access to a University of Arkansas – Fort Smith website. It is the editor’s responsibility to remain up to date on changes to the Approved CMS workflow process and to complete additional training as needed.

Marketing & Communications is responsible for leading the initial training that existing editors will be expected to complete. This may be unique to the requirements of the respective site. Ongoing training will be required at the discretion of Marketing and Communications.

Each year, Marketing & Communications will communicate the minimum training that existing editors will be expected to complete. This may be unique to the requirements of the respective specific site. Ongoing training will be required at the discretion of Marketing and Communications.

4.2.1 Accessibility

Everyone with access to the uafs.edu domain, subdomains, online tools, supporting web products and services, and mobile applications as defined in the University of Arkansas System Policy 280.1, must be familiar with and follow the standards to ensure compliance with the ADA and other accessibility regulations.

Marketing & Communications has secured use of an automated evaluation tool and there is a process by which each site is scanned for compliance. All editors MUST complete training before being provided access to the CMS.

4.2.2 Photography and Alt Text

In keeping with the University of Arkansas’s system-wide policy, UAFS is committed to ensuring our site is accessible to all users. When adding photos, the content editor must provide alternate or “alt” text so that those who are non-visual visitors and text browsers can understand the information conveyed in the pictures.

4.2.3 Video Captioning/Audio Descriptions

All videos posted on the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith web site must be captioned and ADA compliant. This applies to videos previously produced and videos independently produced. Various software tools and services are available for captioning. Any costs incurred will be the responsibility of the office/department/center in charge of the video. Any video that is not captioned will be removed from the site.

4.3 Written Content/Messaging/Branding

The University of Arkansas – Fort Smith website embraces a conversational writing style.

The University of Arkansas – Fort Smith has a templated design structure in place to provide users with a consistent, friendly, and accessible web experience. These templates have been produced in line with university branding and feature official UAFS visual marks and colors.

4.4 Metrics

The university uses Google Analytics to measure activity on the UAFS website, including page views, goal completions, link clicks and audience characteristics.

The university’s CMS provides content editors with access to real-time top-level statistics and trend data. These numbers should be used by content editors to assess the effectiveness of their websites and spur ideas for improvement.

Primary content editors who would like data points not available in the CMS dashboard can submit a request to Marketing & Communications. Upon receipt of the request, Marketing and Communications will provide additional reporting and consultation.

4.5 Visual Content and Multimedia

Images used on the website should align with UAFS brand standards and inspire prospective students to connect with the university.

When posting photos on the site, use primarily photojournalistic-style photography that captures the authentic and vibrant interactions among students, faculty and staff. Photos that are inclusive of our varied populations including gender identities, ethnic backgrounds, races and ages are encouraged.

Marketing & Communications has authority to ensure that images, photos and graphics comply with University of Arkansas – Fort Smith brand standards, are of the best quality and represent the professional image of the university.

4.5.1 Branding Photos

Marketing & Communications, working with content editors for individual units of the university, will select unit level photos to be featured on the landing pages and promotional pages for these units. These may be rotated and refreshed consistent with best practices.

In order to seek a photo change for a college or department, submit a web request through the current project management submission platform. All branding photo change request will be reviewed and approved in accordance with the Marketing & Communications brand standards and photography guidelines.

Content editors for the individual departments, offices and centers are responsible for all other photos on their pages. Editors should follow the guidelines set forth in the brand manual, as well as keep photos at 1 MB to allow for quicker page load times.

4.5.2 Faculty/Staff Photos

University Marketing and Communications will provide faculty and staff members with an up-to-date university-produced head shot upon request. This professional headshot will be uploaded to the UAFS website by University Marketing and Communications. Faculty and staff members who desire an updated head shot should contact University Marketing and Communication to schedule a time for their photography.

4.5.3 Social Media

Where applicable, departments and organizations may link to their university-specific social media channels, so long as they are in active compliance with the university social media policy.

The homepage of the website offers the only embedded social feed, linking to the university’s general channel managed by Marketing & Communications. Additional embedded social media feeds throughout the sites are not supported.

All social media platforms referenced on the website must adhere to the university social media policy. Non-compliant social channels will be removed entirely or replaced with references to the general university channels.

4.5.4 PDFs

Page owners and content editors wishing to upload pdfs to the website can submit a request to University Marketing and Communications through the ServiceNow project portal. Please attach the desired pdf within the request. University Marketing and Communication will scan the pdf to ensure it meets current accessibility standards prior to upload. The following pdf items will not be uploaded:

Documents with layout elements that cannot be created using web templates (footnotes/sidenotes/endnotes)
Custom forms with complex interactive fields that can’t be created with existing or approved UAFS services • Scans of historical documents
Documents custom designed for print publication • Documents in need of annotation and collaboration through a PDF reader
Mathematical documents
Legally restricted formats (such as U.S. tax forms)
Documents with multiple columns, figures, or illustrations
Documents longer than 20 pages

PDFs on the website must be accessible documents; non-accessible PDFs will be removed. Marketing and Communication offers consulting services for making documents accessible and has final authority regarding appropriate document formats.

4.6 Web Help/Support and Emergencies

Requests for general assistance for your site must be submitted through the current project management platform. Please allow one to two business days for a response, and at least five business days for turnaround. Any requests submitted directly to a member of the Marketing & Communications team will be directed to the project management request form.

4.6.1 Emergency Requests

In the case of a web emergency (e.g., the site is down or a prominent page on the site is producing a 404 error), please send an email to MarketingFREEuafs. For all other urgent requests, please submit a support ticket through the web request form.

Requests due to operational issues such as lack of approved CMS training, failure to plan for employee turnover or lack of a backup primary/content editor do not constitute an emergency and will be process accordingly.

4.6.2 Major Projects/Initiatives

Major projects, such as site redesigns, significant content changes, and new site launches must be completed in partnership with Marketing & Communications. Your request will be reviewed by the Marketing & Communications leadership team according to department and strategic priorities. To initiate major projects, please submit a request through the current project management platform.

4.6.3 Course Listings

To comply with official accreditation rules and regulations, all official course listings should be pulled directly from Banner through a feed maintained by the Registrar’s Office and accessed by Marketing & Communications. Generally, these course listings are found in the University Catalog. If a site is found to have descriptions that do not come from Banner, Marketing & Communications will contact and work with the content owner to ensure that all accreditation rules and regulations are met. Similarly, all academic programs – majors, graduate programs, minors and certificates – will reflect the official listing in the UAFS catalog.

4.6.4 Copyright

Copyright violation is a serious offense that comes with strict penalties for which the university itself could be held liable. It is the responsibility of the primary content editor to ensure that all of your content, including text, images, video, and music, complies with all copyright laws. Any content on the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith website that infringes on copyright will immediately be removed by Marketing & Communications, and the content owner will be notified.

Please also note that the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith is obliged and empowered by law to actively monitor the use of its own copyrighted materials and to protect them as necessary from unauthorized use, even by members of the UAFS community. Unauthorized use of the UAFS logo, for example, on student or departmental projects, even for humorous purposes, may constitute a copyright or trademark violation, particularly if such materials are made publicly available.

Please obtain prior authorization for all uses of the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith logo and other copyrighted materials in your online media.

5. Definitions

Not applicable

6. Legal and Privacy

6.1 UAFS Privacy Statement

This policy defines the official websites of the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith, addresses collection and use of information in connection with such websites, and describes under what circumstances the university may disclose such information, consistent with Ark. Code § 25-1-114. The university adheres to all applicable federal and state laws, as well as general university policies that are applicable to the use of computing resources.

6.1.1 Official University Websites

Except as noted, the information in this privacy policy applies to all official University of Arkansas – Fort Smith websites, which are defined as those administered through the university content management system, such as university colleges and schools, main departments, divisions, or other units typically reporting to or deemed official by the chancellor, provost, vice chancellors, deans, directors and/or department heads/chairs. These sites comply with the university template, graphics and Web standards as managed by Marketing & Communications. Certain official websites may have their own or supplementary privacy policies appropriate to their function or as required by law.

6.1.2 Other Websites

Within the university domain (uafs.edu) are various websites that are not maintained by the university. These unofficial sites include, but are not limited to, RSO sites, and other campus entities. This privacy policy only applies to official university websites.

6.1.3 Access Information Collected

The university, while reserving its right to monitor communications via university websites for legal, policy or business reasons, including security and functionality, will not monitor the content of communications as a matter of normal business practice. However, the fact that communication occurred (such as when a user visits a university website or utilizes university websites to search for information or submit a form), may be routinely logged as a normal business practice.

Common information logged includes, but is not limited to:

the IP address of the user’s computer • the date and time a user’s computer accessed our site
the IP address and URL of a referring website
the page the user requested from the university’s site
the information that a user’s Web browser software sends, which typically identifies the browser software and may also indicate the operating system and type of CPU used in the user’s computer
In the case of email, the sender and recipient’s email address

6.1.4 Google Analytics

Some university websites use Google Analytics, a Web analytics service provided by Google, Inc., to collect information such as URLs, internet domain and host names, browser software, date and time site visited, etc.

6.1.5 Voluntary Information

Services are provided through university websites via forms (e.g., admissions, financial aid requests, job applications), surveys, etc., where individuals are required to enter personal information in order to process the request, such as name, physical and email addresses, phone numbers, and financial data. If information requested is not entered, the services and/or requests cannot be accomplished online.

6.2 How Personal Data is Used

As a general rule, the university does not track individual visitor profiles. This data is used to analyze aggregate traffic/access information for resource management, site planning, advertising and marketing.

When personally identifiable information is entered through university websites, typically the information requested and collected is only used to provide the information or services sought by the requester, just as a person might provide such information when visiting a university office in person or submitting the information via paper, for example, an application for admission.

However, the university may also use any information gathered through university websites or exchange such information with other entities in order to carry out normal university business operations, including marketing and subcontractor services. Legal requirements concerning use and disclosure of sensitive information will be applied to information maintained with these resources to the same extent that the requirements are applied to other records kept or maintained by the university. The university does not sell information through university websites to other entities.

6.2.1 Cookies

Websites can use cookies to provide the user with tailored information from a website. A cookie is an element of data that a website can send to a browser, which may then store it on the user’s system.

Some applications may require the user to accept cookies in order for the application to work properly. Two types of cookies exist, session cookies and persistent cookies. Session cookies contain data through which the Web application the visitor is using can maintain the continuity and state of a session. Session cookies expire upon user logout, closing of the browser or timed-out sessions.

Persistent cookies contain information that may be useful across multiple sessions, such as identifying the user or other persistent attributes, and are typically not deleted. Data from cookies may be used to identify user trends and patterns, provide services and record session information. Web browsers can be configured to refuse cookies, accept cookies, disable cookies and remove cookies as needed or desired.

6.2.2 E-Commerce

The university has several sites that enable encrypted, online payments. The confidential information entered for these payment transactions is only to be used for purposes defined within/for the transaction. Some transactions are isolated from campus systems and managed by a third party.

6.2.3 Third-Party Applications and Links

University of Arkansas – Fort Smith websites contain links to third party applications and websites that may or may not be hosted on university servers. The university cannot warrant or be responsible for the privacy policies of such sites. Users are encouraged to become familiar with the privacy policies of third party or off-campus sites.

6.2.4 Security

In addition to complying with all applicable laws and regulations, the university strives to implement and maintain systems and policies to protect the confidentiality and integrity of personal information provided by users. Despite these security measures, the university does not represent or warrant that personal information will be protected against loss, misuse or alteration by third parties.

6.2.5 Disclosure of Data Collected

The university is required to comply with the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101 et seq.) and may be required to disclosure records maintained in the daily operations of the university unless such records are exempt from disclosure under federal or state law. Therefore, some data collected through university websites may be subject to disclosure upon receipt of a valid FOIA request.

Additionally, at times, the university may be legally required to disclose information collected through university websites in response to a valid subpoena or court order or to comply with a legally permitted inquiry by a governmental agency. Subject to governing law and other applicable university policies, the university reserves the right to disclose information collected on its websites to governmental authorities in connection with suspected unlawful activity or to aid an investigation into suspected unlawful activity. In addition, the university reserves the right to release information collected on university websites to appropriate governmental authorities if university officials determine, in their sole judgement, that university policies have been violated, or that release of information is necessary to protect the rights, health, safety or property of persons or the university to protect the integrity of university computer networks. Further, the university reserves the right to disclose information as university officials believe necessary to exercise the university’s legal rights, to defend against actual or potential legal claims, or as otherwise permitted or required by university policy.

The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) places additional obligations on organizations that control or process personally identifiable information about people in the European Union. Some UA activities may be covered by the GDPR, and the University has updated its policies on how it collects, stores, and processes certain types of data. Further details, as well as a description of protective measures undertaken by the University, data retention, and breach notification are available in the campus GDPR policy.

6.2.6 Non-Compliance

Primary content editors of departments/divisions/offices/centers that violate these guidelines, including security and ADA compliance violations, will receive email notification from the Marketing & Communication team with five business days to address violations.

If no attempt is made to address violations within five business days, the Dean or Director of the department/division will be contacted and will have five business days to address violations. If three or more violations occur within a six-month period, the department’s Dean or Director will be contacted by the Director of Marketing & Communications, who will develop a corrective plan of action. Continued and egregious violations will incur significant penalties, up to removal of a site or other digital property from the uafs.edu domain.

In the case of a security violation, the editor who shared a password will have access revoked and the person who used the password will not be granted access.

Marketing & Communications will make every effort to work with primary editors to address violations and assist in any necessary website updates.

6.3 Policy & Updates

Marketing & Communications reserves the right to update the governance policy and will notify editors of relevant changes that affect them.

6.4 Approval Workflow

Flowchart showing the UAFS web content submission and approval process.

6.4 Approval Workflow (Text Version)

The Content Editor enters content into the webpage and submits a CMS publish request.
The submission is reviewed to determine whether it passes the initial check.
1. If it does not pass, the page is returned to the Content Editor for correction.
If the submission passes, the page is forwarded to the Content Editor for correction.
The Page Owner reviews the content and decides whether to approve it.
1. If not approved, the page is returned to the Content Editor for revision.
If approved, the page is forwarded to Marketing and Communications for a final accessibility check.
The submission is reviewed again for compliance.
1. If it does not pass, the page is returned to the Content Editor for correction.
If the submission passes all checks, the page is immediately published.

7. Exclusions

None

Effective Date

12/10/2021

Date Last Reviewed

12/10/2021