Bullis School Social Media Guidelines & Policies by Bullis School

BULLIS SCHOOL

SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES & POLICIES For Employees, Coaches, Students, and Bullis Representatives

The Bullis Social Media Guidelines and Policies (POLICY) is to address various aspects of proper social media use by BULLIS School (BULLIS) employees, coaches, students, and community members who engage in social media activity and/or use BULLIS social media accounts (ACCOUNT or ACCOUNTS) about or on behalf of BULLIS.

Questions? Contact social_media@bullis.org

BULLIS SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES & POLICIES

For Employees, Coaches, Students, and Bullis Representatives

The Bullis Mission, Vision, and Values set the foundation and tone for the Bullis brand.

ABOUT BULLIS Our Mission Bullis School provides a rich intellectual experience that inspires students to be critical thinkers, lifelong learners, and impactful global citizens. Our student-centered community embraces diversity, honors integrity, and fosters belonging. Meaningful opportunities in academics, arts, athletics, and service stimulate individual and collective growth and enhance joy.

Our Vision Students thrive in their pursuit of self-discovery, broaden their horizons, and ultimately transform our world.

Our Values Caring — Challenging — Community

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TABLE OF CONTENTS ABOUT BULLIS

Our Mission

Our Vision

Our Values

STATEMENT AND SCOPE

APPROVED SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS AND PLATFORMS

BULLIS’S SIX SOCIAL MEDIA PRINCIPLES

1 - Be Kind

2 - Protect Privacy

Student Privacy Policy

3 - Be Upfront

4 - Be Positive

5 - Be Responsible

6 - Follow Policies and the Law

GENERAL GUIDELINES & TIPS

RELATED POLICIES AND CONSEQUENCE OF VIOLATION

ACCOUNT OWNERSHIP

ACCOUNT REQUIREMENTS

New and Existing Accounts

Handles and Usernames

Password and Emails

TAGGING/TAGS

QUESTIONABLE OR INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT

PUBLIC RELATIONS(PR)/MEDIA CRISIS

BULLIS FACULTY & COACHES

BULLIS STUDENTS

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

MODIFICATIONS

NEED HELP? CONTACT US

POLICY UPDATES

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STATEMENT AND SCOPE The Bullis Social Media Guidelines and Policies (POLICY) is to address various aspects of proper social media use by BULLIS School (BULLIS) employees, coaches, students, and community members who engage in social media activity and/or use BULLIS social media accounts (ACCOUNT or ACCOUNTS) about or on behalf of BULLIS. Social media creates opportunities to champion the BULLIS brand and for personal expression, but it also creates risks and responsibilities. At BULLIS, we believe the strength of social media is its ability to foster deep, meaningful relationships with our community. We use social media platforms to connect with prospective families, current families, students, and alumni. The content may include but is not limited to, promotional materials, educational content, and school activities, amongst others. BULLIS takes social media seriously. Faculty, coaches, and students must show respect and follow this POLICY.

APPROVED SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS AND PLATFORMS Bullis has six (6) official and approved ACCOUNT categories on five (5) social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube, outlined as follows: 1. Bullis School (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube) 2. Bullis Arts (Instagram): Includes all Visual and Performing Arts programs. 3. Bullis Athletics (Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube): Includes all Athletics programs and individual teams. 4. Bullis Student Life (Instagram): Includes all student clubs and activities. 5. Bullis Alumni (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter) 6. Bullis Events (Instagram) Note: Account platforms not approved by BULLIS include but are not limited to SnapChap, TikTok, Pinterest, WhatsApp, WeChat, and Telegram. Using the approved ACCOUNTS will allow us to; ● Adhere to our policy on student and faculty privacy and safety. ● Maintain the Bullis brand. ● Support our mission, vision, values, and Strategic Plan. ● Offer consistent and quality content all year round. ● Increase followers and engagement.

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● Provide fair opportunities and expanded coverage for all. ● Utilize fewer faculty and reduce the time required to manage and monitor the accounts.

BULLIS’S SIX SOCIAL MEDIA PRINCIPLES As an employee, coach, student, and representative of BULLIS, you are required to adhere to the six social media principles listed below. Additionally, if you engage in social media as part of your role or otherwise discuss BULLIS on social media, you are required to take the BULLIS Branded Social Media Training (BBSMT); however, we encourage all faculty to take this training to learn more about social media best practices.

1 - Be Kind A. Consistent with our Code of Conduct, every BULLIS employee, student, coach, and community member must be respectful to others when conducting business on behalf of BULLIS or when they identify or could be identified as a BULLIS employee, coach, or student. How you say something can matter as much as what you say. B. While we value privacy and diverse perspectives across our school, BULLIS has zero tolerance for racism, bigotry, misogyny, bullying, discrimination, express or implied threats of harassment or physical harm, and hate speech. Posting this type of content will result in immediate disciplinary action.

2 - Protect Privacy

Student Privacy Policy Bullis is committed to protecting the privacy of our current students and their families. Throughout the year, Bullis will take photos and videos of students and student work during classroom activities and events, as well as at school-sponsored activities that may occur off-site. These images, videos, and student work may be published for marketing or other purposes, including, but not limited to, articles, presentations, the Bullis website, Bullis social media sites, videos, press releases, and other possible mediums. With limited exceptions, Bullis will identify students in photos or videos, or when attributing student work, by their first name and the first initial of their last name. Exceptions to this policy include, but are not limited to, digital and printed materials associated with momentous occasions such as performances, awards, special recognition ceremonies, and live-streamed

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events. Additionally, last names may be featured in digital and print publications, including Bullis Magazine, that are housed on this site. Bullis will never post or otherwise publish confidential or protected information about its students, employees, or other community members under, but not limited to, the Family Educational Right and Privacy Act (FERPA), Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), and Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). As a parent/guardian, you choose how your child’s image and name may be disclosed by Bullis. If you do not want your child’s name and/or image being released for use for any of the above-mentioned purposes, you can choose to opt-out. To opt-out, please email communications@bullis.org. Permission to release your child’s first name and first initial of their last name and/or your child’s image, along with named exceptions, is presumed unless the parent/guardian opts out. A. School and personal ACCOUNTS should be kept separate. It is against our student safety and privacy policy to post any photos, names, or information about BULLIS students on your personal social media ACCOUNTS. B. Never post or otherwise publish confidential or protected information about BULLIS, its students, or its employees. Doing so may cause damage to that person, to your reputation and relationships, and to BULLIS, and could even result in lawsuits. C. To ensure the safety of our students and our community, BULLIS will never post or release information that is considered private and confidential. Private and confidential information includes posting conversations, personal schedules, addresses, phone numbers, or any other personal information without noted consent. D. Do not post students' full names; be sure to remove full last names on any visuals, including but not limited to slides, presentations, images, screenshots, or other illustrations. Use the students' last initial and class year (ex: Sammy S. ‘30). E. Never tag a student’s social media ACCOUNT in a post. Doing so violates our student safety and privacy policy to tag any BULLIS student in posts, comments, photos, stories, or any other forum. F. Don’t post anything that will identify where you live, for example, photos showing your home address, street signs, or papers containing identifiable information. G. Students, faculty, coaches, and representatives should similarly respect each other’s confidential information in addition to BULLIS’s brand, trademarked, and copyrighted material.

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3 - Be Upfront A. Being upfront means being truthful, transparent, and proud about your relationship to BULLIS. B. If you are posting from a personal ACCOUNT about your work at BULLIS specifically or about related news, identify that you are part of BULLIS with the hashtag #IAmBULLIS. Place your hashtag so it’s easy to find. C. Do not create ACCOUNTS with “BULLIS” in the handle name. For example: “yourname_bullis” or “yourname@bullis” or “yourname.bullis”. D. Do not impersonate or pretend to be someone else, particularly when representing BULLIS.

4 - Be Positive A. Be authentic and honest. Use conversational language. Don’t forget to show genuine excitement and interest in what you are saying and what they are saying. B. Make sure that when posting about BULLIS that you focus on the positive impact of BULLIS. C. Engaging in ridicule, mockery, or scorn is not keeping with fair competition or respect, and it violates BULLIS’s code of conduct. Please do not criticize peers, our competitors, partners, or BULLIS. D. Comments should always be fair and balanced, using only public information. E. Do not like or interact with any posts or content that violates this POLICY.

5 - Be Responsible A. Make sure you're engaging in social media conversations the right way. B. Always remember that anything posted on social media can go viral or be screenshotted, reshared, or reposted, as there is very little privacy protection for anything shared on social media, no matter what your privacy settings may be. C. Do not post content including, but not limited to, text, images, and music that contains or portrays vulgarity, profanity, explicit language, nudity or sexual content, violence, guns, drugs, alcohol, hate speech, bullying, harassment, politics, discrimination, personal business promotion, or negative opinions about the school. Doing so will result in immediate disciplinary action. D. Avoid posting content containing legal conclusions, intellectual property belonging to other companies, or defamatory or inflammatory language.

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E. Your communications should reflect your area of expertise, particularly if you are communicating with a parent or community member about or on behalf of BULLIS. If something occurs outside your expertise, you are expected to share this information with the appropriate faculty member for awareness and to respond if needed. F. All faculty are encouraged to speak about the school and share news and information, but only authorized spokespeople may speak on behalf of BULLIS and issue official school responses.

6 - Follow Policies and the Law A. Follow our Social Media Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. B. Observe laws on copyright, trademarks, plagiarism, and fair use. To avoid violating trademark, copyright, or publicity rights, do not post images or other content without the consent of those who own or appear in the media. C. When you quote others, be sure to credit them. D. You are also personally responsible for complying with any terms of the social media platform you are using. These terms differ across platforms and can include detailed community standards. You should familiarize yourself with the terms and standards for each platform you use.

GENERAL GUIDELINES & TIPS 1. Remember, you are representing BULLIS. Always portray BULLIS in a positive light. Make us proud! 2. If you’re not sure you should post it, then don’t. 3. Be cautious when posting. What goes on the Internet stays on the Internet. 4. Respect everyone’s privacy and confidentiality. 5. Do not post students' full names. 6. Never tag a student in a post. 7. Don’t post anything that will identify where you live. 8. Do not post content that violates this POLICY or any other BULLIS policies. 9. Bullis’s Communications team has the right to edit or delete posts/stories and, if necessary, revoke access to an ACCOUNT or suspend an ACCOUNT. 10. Be kind and have fun.

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RELATED POLICIES AND CONSEQUENCE OF VIOLATION As a BULLIS employee, coach, student, or community member, you are expected to adhere to this POLICY when engaging on social media platforms, including but not limited to, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, WeChat, YouTube, Flickr, Twitch, blogs, wikis, or any other tool or service that facilitates interactions over the Internet. This POLICY supplements other BULLIS policies and standards, including the BULLIS Code of Conduct and Employee Handbook. If your post violates a BULLIS policy in another forum, it will also violate it on social media. Employees, students, coaches, and representatives of Bullis who violate this or other BULLIS policies may be subject to disciplinary action. You should assume that anything you do on social media could be viewed by a colleague, supervisor, parent, student, competitor, supporter, or potential parent. Your activity on social media reflects on BULLIS and can impact the work environment.

ACCOUNT OWNERSHIP If you participate in social media activities as part of your job at BULLIS on an ACCOUNT created for that purpose, that ACCOUNT is considered the property of BULLIS. It remains so if you leave the school — meaning you will not attempt to change the password or the ACCOUNT name, create a similar sounding ACCOUNT, or assert any ownership of the ACCOUNT or the contacts and connections you have gained through the ACCOUNT. Any materials produced for or posted on the ACCOUNT will remain BULLIS property.

ACCOUNT REQUIREMENTS ● All social media ACCOUNTS, new and existing, must be approved by the Communications team. ● All ACCOUNTS must be created by the Communications team. BULLIS students, coaches, community members, or faculty, other than the Communications team, may not create BULLIS branded ACCOUNTS. ● ACCOUNTS are approved or not approved based on several factors, including, but not limited to, alignment with our branding, mission, vision, values, and strategic plan. ● The Communications team must have access to all BULLIS ACCOUNTS. ○ All BULLIS social media managers must immediately email the login to an existing BULLIS branded ACCOUNT to the Communications team at social_media@bullis.org or it will be submitted to the social platform to be

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removed. ACCOUNTS will include BULLIS branding that is provided by the Communications team. ACCOUNTS will be set up as a business ACCOUNT. ACCOUNTS must have a link in bio, description, or other specified areas, to the BULLIS website www.bullis.org. ACCOUNTS must display BULLIS’s main address and contact info in the bio/description, if applicable. ○ 10601 Falls Rd, Potomac, MD 20854 ○ info@bullis.org (or an appropriate bullis.org email for the account) ○ 301-299-8500 BULLIS ACCOUNT users, administrators, and managers, including faculty, coaches, and students, must take the BULLIS Branded Social Media Training (BBSMT) before being given access or use. A BULLIS faculty member must supervise student managers. The assigned faculty member is responsible for monitoring that ACCOUNT at all times.

New and Existing Accounts 1. Only BULLIS employees/faculty, with the approval of their division or department head, may submit a request to manage a BULLIS ACCOUNT (someone who oversees the student club, team, department, project, etc.) 2. Once the Communications team receives this request, we will evaluate and determine if the ACCOUNT is approved or not approved. 3. If the ACCOUNT is approved, the Communications team will; a. Assign the requester as an ACCOUNT manager. b. Provide the ACCOUNT manager BULLIS Branded Social Media Training (BBSMT) before being given access or use to the ACCOUNT. c. Set up the new ACCOUNT or assign an existing BULLIS ACCOUNT to the requester. d. Provide the requester login credentials to the ACCOUNT only after BBSMT training is completed and passed. 4. BULLIS students may not request, set up, or be the sole administrator of any BULLIS ACCOUNT. a. Upper School students may contribute to BULLIS ACCOUNTS; however, these ACCOUNTS must be administered and overseen by a BULLIS faculty member. It is the responsibility of that faculty member to monitor the ACCOUNT at all times. i. If an Upper School student would like to contribute to an ACCOUNT, they must get written approval from the Head or Assistant Head of Upper School.

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ii.

The faculty member/manager assigned to that ACCOUNT must email the full name and class year of the student(s) along with the written approval of the division head to the Communications team. iii. Before receiving access to the ACCOUNT, students must take the BULLIS Branded Social Media Training (BBSMT). iv. Upon successful completion of BBSMT, the Communications team will give access to the student(s). b. Note: Lower and Middle School students may not have access to or manage any BULLIS ACCOUNTS.

Handles and Usernames Please do not change the username/handle of any BULLIS ACCOUNTS. If you need assistance, please contact social_media@bullis.org.

Password and Emails ● Do not share passwords to ACCOUNTS with anyone unless approved by the Communications team. ● Do not change the password or email address assigned to the ACCOUNT. ● Contact the Communications team, social_media@bullis.org, if a password or email needs to be changed or recovered.

TAGGING/TAGS Tags allow social media users to engage an individual, business, or entity with a social profile when they mention them in a post or comment. Tagging current BULLIS students in posts, comments, photos, stories, or other forums is not allowed and violates our student safety and privacy policy. Any ACCOUNT that tags a BULLIS student will be immediately suspended.

QUESTIONABLE OR INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT ● If you see something shared related to BULLIS that is questionable or shouldn't be happening, please inform the Communications team at social_media@bullis.org. ● Follow this POLICY, including Bullis's Six Social Media Principles, when posting content on any BULLIS ACCOUNT.

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PUBLIC RELATIONS(PR)/MEDIA CRISIS If there is a public relations (PR) or media crisis, follow these guidelines: ● Let the Communications team manage the breaking news and tackle public relations. ● If you see something defamatory to BULLIS, immediately contact the Communications team at social_media@bullis.org (Meredith Wade, Director of Administration; Mark Riffee, Director of Communications; and Wendy Wheeler, Digital & Brand Marketing Strategist). ● Do not post, comment, or interact with any media crisis- or public relations-type posts. ● Do not use social media to make a statement relating to any PR or media crisis.

BULLIS FACULTY & COACHES As an employee or coach of BULLIS, you are expected to act professionally on social media and abide by all terms of this POLICY. Any violations of this POLICY will result in disciplinary action. ● Do not post photos of current students on your personal social media ACCOUNT(s). ● School and personal ACCOUNTS should be kept separate. It is against our student safety and privacy policy to post any photos, names, or information about current BULLIS students on your personal social media ACCOUNTS. ● If a photo of your child includes other BULLIS students, do not post it on your personal ACCOUNTS without permission from all parent(s)/guardian(s). ● Do not post student names or tag BULLIS student accounts. ● Do not accept current BULLIS students as “friends” on personal social media sites.

BULLIS STUDENTS As a student of BULLIS, you are welcome to participate in interactions with the school online. You are expected to employ responsible behavior and abide by all terms of this POLICY. Any violations of this POLICY or disrespect to BULLIS, your peers, faculty, coaches, community members, or others will result in disciplinary action.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS How can I submit information to be posted on social media? There are two ways to submit information to be posted on social media. 1. Google Form: Fill out the Bullis Social Media Post Request form

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2. Email: Email news to news@bullis.org for review and posting by the Communications team on the Bullis main ACCOUNTS. Be sure to include a photo(s), full names of individuals in the photo(s), the class year of students, and a brief description of no more than 500 characters (280 characters or less, if possible). Should I keep my school ACCOUNTS and my personal ACCOUNTS separate? Yes! School and personal ACCOUNTS should be kept separate. It is against our student safety and privacy policy to post any photos, names, or information about current BULLIS students on your personal social media ACCOUNTS. I have posted about students on my personal ACCOUNT(S). What should I do? Any posts that you have created that include current students' faces, names, tags, and any other identifying information that violates this POLICY should be removed. Why should I not post about students on my personal ACCOUNT(S)? It is against our student safety and privacy policy to post any photos, names, or information about current BULLIS students on your personal social media ACCOUNTS. Doing so may result in legal ramifications for BULLIS and/or you. Can I share posts from official BULLIS ACCOUNTS? Absolutely! Sharing school social media posts to your personal social media ACCOUNT (i.e., re-Tweeting, Facebook sharing, Instagram reposting citing original content, etc.) is acceptable and encouraged if it is something of interest to you. I have always used my personal ACCOUNT as a BULLIS ACCOUNT. What should I do? The Communications team has not approved personal accounts as official BULLIS ACCOUNTS. Please contact the Communications team immediately to discuss this. Also, if your personal ACCOUNT says “Official Bullis account…” and displays the BULLIS logo or any other trademarked content, please remove it.

MODIFICATIONS Bullis may revise this POLICY at any time without notice. Any modifications to these terms shall be effective as of the date posted. We encourage you to periodically review these terms. This POLICY will also be reviewed once per year. BULLIS will provide faculty, employees, coaches, students, and community members with access to a copy, and the POLICY will also reside on our website https://www.bullis.org/social-media-terms-of-use#policy.

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NEED HELP? CONTACT US If you encounter questions or issues on social media, contact Wendy Wheeler at social_media@bullis.org for support.

POLICY UPDATES 2022-09-22: Section: PUBLIC RELATIONS(PR)/MEDIA CRISIS - Updated contact information. 2022-09-23: Section: ANNUAL REVIEW changed to MODIFICATIONS. Added “Bullis may revise this POLICY at any time without notice. Any modifications to these terms shall be effective as of the date posted. We encourage you to periodically review these terms.” Section: 2 - Protect Privacy, item D. 2022-12-02: Section: ACCOUNT REQUIREMENTS - Added email to send login/access to BULLIS branded ACCOUNTS. 2023-02-03: Section: 2 - Protect Privacy, updated. 2023-02-03: Section: Passwords and Emails. Do not share passwords to ACCOUNTS with anyone; added unless approved by the Communications team. 2023-02-23: Updated Section: Student Privacy Policy to include the opt-out process. 2023-03-20: Added Section: Approved Social Media Accounts and Platforms, based on Upper School assembly presentation on December 12, 2022, and January 2023 social media consolidation process. 2023-03-21: Removed “Division and department ACCOUNTS will be determined by the division and department heads along with the Communications team.” 2023-12-04: Section: 2 - Protect Privacy - Student Privacy Policy, updated exceptions.

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