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Tidewater Council "Guidelines" on unit Web sites
We recommend all of the following:
A. The person operating your Web Site, should be a registered volunteer leader with the Boy Scouts of America. If not, then an employee of the chartering organization. Persons registered with Scouting are given mandatory background checks.
B. The unit own its domain name...for example: www.tidewaterbsa.com is owned by the Tidewater Council using a service to protect it from being hacked.
C. A unit web site should contain no links to any site that sells any products or advertises any products. The sole exceptions would be the Tidewater Council and of course the chartering organization. Especially important to note is what happens when you cannot control the advertising content and something that is not conducive to a good Scouting atmosphere is portrayed.
D. Doing a web site takes a lot of time and our hope is that if a unit chooses to put a web site up, that the contact information be correct and current. The web site should be checked weekly for correctness. Individuals contacting people at a unit should be able to find people that are currently involved with that unit. The major problem with the vast majority of all unit web sites is old, stale, and non current contact information.
Please note that the Tidewater Council is not linking any units in adherence to a national council policy on linking to unit web sites. We thank you for your understanding of this sensitive Youth Protection and Service to all parties in or seeking to do business with Scouting.
These guidelines were approved by the Tidewater Council Executive Board on March 15, 2000, upon recommendation of the Council Marketing Committee. They are adapted from policy established by the BSA Electronics Publishing Division for council Web sites. These guidelines have been amended by a higher national recommendation and have been so updated on October 15, 2008.
No unit web sites may be linked to the official Tidewater Council web site.
The following is our policy now for unit's wishing to have a unit web site. Please note that you must still secure permission from your chartered organization before starting an official or unofficial unit web site.
- The appropriate unit leadership must have control over the content of the unit's official web site (i.e. the unit committee, uniformed leadership and chartered partner representative). If youth members are involved, they must be under the direct supervision of adults who have control of all content.
- The content of the unit site must be appropriate to the Scouting movement and consistent with the Scout Law.
- A unit site shall not contain any links directly to any site that contains material that is not appropriate to the Scouting movement.
- A unit web site should not contain full names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses or other identifying information about youth members.
- No unit site should contain bulletin boards or chat rooms that make it possible for youth members to communicate with others through the site.
- A unit site should consider the safety and privacy of members by obtaining permissions to release information about or identifying images of any specific person.
- Preferably, a unit site should not contain any advertisements or commercial endorsements, except for the organization providing the site service if it’s provided for free or at discount. If a site does contain advertising, care should be taken to make certain that none of the advertising is inconsistent with the purposes of Scouting.
- A standard money-earning application must be filed with the council before any merchandise is offered for sale on a unit web site. No merchandise can be sold through a unit web site using electronic fund transfers.
- A unit site must abide by all laws regarding copyrights, trademarks and other intellectual property.
- A unit site must include the name of the unit's chartered partner, contact information for the unit committee and an e-mail contact address for reaching the person managing the site, so visitors can report any problems or concerns.
- A unit web site should never be made to appear more official than it is. The page should not represent itself as an official publication of the council or national organization of Boy Scouts of America, not even to casual readers.
- A unit may place pictures on their web site and identify the youth. If permission is secured, then one can place the full name or abbreviation of the youth with the photo. If a youth member has his picture taken by a newspaper, it will most likely go up on the newspaper's web site, and contain their full name. Pictures of youth have earned unusual awards or high honors comes to mind.
Lastly, please note this final say. A unit can do whatever they want to do with their unit web site within reason including not following "some" of the above guidelines. However, remember that the web site actually needs to belong to your chartered partner, have their permission, etc. In many cases the chartered organization will not want to get involved with the day to day permission of doing things with your web site. Clearly, the main goal is to agree with your chartered partner about what your web site is going to communicate,.
