Thomas College Web Site Policies

The Thomas College web site has grown considerably in the last few years and continues to be a very important information distribution area of the College as well as the primary first impression many people get of our College. Our web site covers almost all areas of our College and is updated on a regular basis by staff who are the most familiar with their area of information using their collective creative abilities.

President's Council has charged the Director of Public Relations and the Vice President for IT Services to be responsible for the overall Thomas College Internet web site. Several aspects are important for a web site to accomplish its intended purpose including:

1. A consistent "look and feel"
2. Correct spelling and grammatical use
3. Accuracy
4. Not using copyrighted material without permission

To ensure that Thomas College has the best web site we can all make it, several policies must be followed. We have designed these policies not to limit creativeness, but to enhance our web site for all our customers.

When maintaining your area of the College web site, the following design standards need to be followed:

1. All information must be kept up-to-date or must be removed from the web site. Historical information (marked as such) is excluded from this policy.
2. All links to non-Thomas College sites should be marked as such so others will not be confused. These links are the most likely to not work on occasion since we have no ability to control other sites.
3. All links on our site must be working or removed.
4. For consistency and ease in navigation around our site, each Thomas College web page must use the standard 800 x 600 inner template.
5. All printed material (catalogs, handbooks, brochures, advertisements) must have a web equivalent. Scanning services by IT Services help desk staff are available in room 124. Scanners are available in various locations.
6. The College's primary colors of black, red, and white should be used when possible.
7. Pages must be easy to read on all client computers and web browsers.
8. The bottom of each page must include a statement showing who maintains the page with a link to that person's email address to allow people to contact the source of the information.
9. All pictures must have text (ALT) tags associated with them for those not able to see pictures. Awareness of other web accessibility issues is helpful.

Policy updated: 6/3/03