Blacklick Valley School District has created email accounts for all students in grades 7‐12 to allow for collaborative sharing using Google Apps for Education. These accounts will be used for school related projects both in school and outside of school to allow students to have direct contact with their teachers as well as their classmates.  These accounts, through the Google Apps for Education, provide each student with email, online document access, a calendar, and Google sites (which allow students to create websites both independently and collaboratively).

The National Educational Technology Standards for all students in grades K-12 stress the importance of collaboration and communication among students locally as well as on a global level.  These accounts will allow students to demonstrate mastery of those standards as well as providing collaborative tools to students and teachers once these accounts are assigned.

For any student ages 14 and under, school districts must receive parent/guardian permission before students can be given permission to post or share any information online.  Therefore no student will be given access to the Google Apps for Education account without parental or guardian approval.  If a parent/guardian does not wish for their student to have email permission, the student will still have access to the other features of Google Apps for Education, including the online documents, calendar, and sites through the Google Apps domain link: www.google.com/a/bvvikings.org.  The naming convention for all accounts will be districtusername@bvvikings.org whether or not the email function is allowed.  For example a student in the graduating class of 2016 with the name Benjamin Franklin would have an account like this: 16BFranklin@bvvikings.org.

As with any educational endeavor, a strong partnership with families is essential to a successful experience. Therefore, not only are we asking your permission to provide this account to your child, but we would like to share the password so that you may participate in how your child uses this technological tool. Once the permission slip is returned, we will send a letter or an email with the password and instructions on how to access the account. Please fill out and return the permission slip to the high school office by September 15th.

Google Apps for Education found on the domain name bvvikings.org

Blacklick Valley School District encourages the use of student email as an effective and efficient way to improve communication between students, teachers and administrators. The primary purpose of student email is to support teaching and learning.  This email account is housed on a Google mail server, thereby also giving a student access to Google Docs.

Google Docs

Google Docs provides word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation software that is very similar to MS Office but is completely online, accessible from any location with internet access.  This account also allows teachers and students to share files with one another that can be edited by more than one person at the same time or simply allow another person the right to view that file without editing privileges.

Google Online Calendar

The Google Online Calendar provides students the ability to organize their schedule and daily activities to help with time management skills and overall personal organization.  The students can create several different calendars to suit different objectives.  They can also share calendars and/or events with other students, student groups and their teachers to help them stay focused and on track with their daily activities and assignments.

Google Sites

Google Sites provides access to a location for students to create free websites either individually or collaboratively with other students.  These sites can showcase a class project, a club or school activity, or their student accomplishments in the form of a portfolio showing projects from different classes or years at BVSD.  Google Sites allows students to link files they have created and stored in their Google Docs account as well.

Google Apps. Guidelines

1.      Official Email Address All students in grades 6‐12 will be assigned a username@bvvikings.org student email account. This account will be considered the student's official BVSD email address until such time as the student is no longer enrolled with the Blacklick Valley School District.

2.      Prohibited Conduct Student email may not be used in the following ways:

·         Unlawful activities

·         Commercial purposes

·         Personal financial gain

·         False identity in email communications

·         Misrepresentation of the Blacklick Valley School District

·         Interference with BVSD technology operations through:

o   electronic chain letters

o   unsolicited electronic communications

o   disruption of electronic communications

3.      Access Restriction Access to and use of student email is considered a privilege accorded at the discretion of the Blacklick Valley School District. The District maintains the right to immediately withdraw the access and use of student email when there is reason to believe that violations of law or District policies have occurred. In such cases, the alleged violation will be referred to the Building Principal for further investigation and adjudication.

4.      Security Blacklick Valley School District cannot and does not guarantee the security of electronic files located on the Google Mail system. Although Google does have a powerful content filter in place, the District cannot assure that users will not be exposed to unsolicited information.

5.      Privacy The general right of privacy will be extended to the extent possible in the electronic environment. Blacklick Valley School District and all electronic users should treat electronically stored information in individuals' files as confidential and private. However, users of student email are strictly prohibited from accessing files and information other than their own. The District reserves the right to access the username@bvvikings.org Google Mail system, including current and archival files of user accounts when there is reasonable suspicion that unacceptable use has occurred.