Social Guidelines

Purpose of PC’s Social Media Sites

Expand PC’s online presence to provide timely, accurate and relevant information to students, parents, faculty and the community. We want our social content to be engaging and to have communication with our community.

ONLY OFFICIAL PHOENIX COLLEGE DEPARTMENTS CAN ESTABLISH A FACEBOOK OR INSTAGRAM PAGE. This is to adhere to the MCCCD social media compliance standards.
 

Before Establishing a College Social Media Site Please Consider

Social Media: The purpose of PC’s Social Media Sites is to expand PC’s online presence to provide timely, accurate and relevant information to students, parents, alumni, faculty, staff and the community. We want PC’s social content to be engaging!  In addition to flagship accounts (managed by PC’s Marketing Department), Phoenix College is represented by a number of sub accounts already in existence including athletic teams, student support services, and the Office of Student Life. All sub-accounts should reflect PC’s brand, mission, vision, and values as well as serve as a resource of information for students.

  • Creating and maintaining a successful social media sub account is a significant commitment. In addition to planning, creating and posting content several times a week per channel, all sub account managers will need to monitor for comments and direct messages in a timely manner. For these reasons, we do not encourage the creation of additional Phoenix College branded social media sub accounts. However, if your department decides it is necessary to create an affiliated account, there are several steps that need to be taken immediately. 

  • You must have, at minimum, two full-time PC employees with administrator access, and give login information to PC’s Marketing Department. 

  • You must make sure to use appropriate assets - logos, copyright-free photos, wordmarks, etc. These can be obtained from Institutional Advancement. 

  • Meet with PC Marketing and provide 2+ months of content for review to determine how this potential new page fits into the overall messaging strategy for the college and possess a unique brand voice. This helps to determine if there is enough content to warrant a new social media channel and if your team has the capacity to manage the proposed social media platform. 
     

Official College Social Media Site Information

We do not encourage the creation of additional Phoenix College branded social media sites.   
Social Media Content Guidelines

  • Branding: All accounts (flagship or affiliate) represent Phoenix College and will adhere to PC’s branding guidelines including appropriate logos, wordmarks, and overall tone. 

  • Copyright: Nearly all photos, music, and video have copyrights. It is vital that all accounts follow all applicable laws and regulations as relates to use of music, video, and photos on each social media platform. If you are unsure if a photo or video can be placed on social media, please contact PC Marketing.

  • Photo Release: All students featured prominently in photos on a social media channel (or any marketing material) MUST have a MCCCD signed photo release. It is best practice to obtain a signed photo release if a photo is taken in a place that carries with it the expectation of privacy (i.e. a classroom, club meeting, etc). Photos taken with a wide lens during an event with no featured students are generally acceptable.

  • Student Population: Keep the PC culture and student body in mind when featuring student photos and developing content. 

  • Accessibility: Avoid posting text-heavy graphics and PDFs to social channels as they are not easily read by screen readers. Make sure all videos are properly captioned. 

  • Managing Content: Social Media is subject to applicable public laws, including the Freedom of Information Act; therefore there are steps to follow to manage questionable content.

  • Negative (but not objectionable comment): Do not delete the comment but attempt to take any further conversation off-line with clear responses such as “Thank you for sharing your concern, we’ll DM you to discuss how we can help” OR “Thank you for your concern, we’ll pass this message along to [Department]”.

  • Obscene, Defamatory, Offensive, Comments: Take a screenshot of the comment with date and time to preserve it as a public record. Send an email to PC Marketing with the screenshot and pertinent information.  You may then delete the comment.

  • Threatening Comment or Inciting Violence: Contact PC Police/Security via e-mail by sharing a screenshot of the message and copy PC marketing. Do not delete comments until authorized to do so by PC Police/Security.

NOTE:  PC official pages have a combined 23,000 followers (+34k on LinkedIn) that the marketing team has been growing since 2009. In comparison, a Wellness Maricopa page that has existed since 2011 (but isn't the primary function of any one person's job) has only 400 followers.  If you/your team is going to go through the effort and work of locating and creating stories on students, it should be presented to the largest audience.

Emergency and Crisis Situations

Follow the college’s leadership in crisis situations. If the college’s official page posts a message it may be shared on subsequent pages. If a situation occurs and it is not posted to the college’s main accounts please remain silent.

Posting Tips

  • Keep it Social.
  • Be Human
  • Be Genuine.
  • Provide useful timely information.
  • Post and Tweet often.
  • Contribute to the conversation beyond promotions.
  • Monitor and cross-promote other PC sites.
  • Ways to promote include posting links, tagging, liking, favoriting and subscribing to PC’s sites.

Learn more information about each social media platform with our strategy documents. 

Photo Release Forms Required

It is the photographer’s responsibility to ensure photo permission is provided by everyone photographed OR THE PHOTOS MAY NOT BE USED.

Any identifiable individuals in posted photos must sign approved District release forms. Release forms are the responsibility of the posting department and should be kept on file permanently according to the Records Retention Schedule issued by the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records Division. Release forms may be accessed on the forms-logos-maps page.

Copyright

Content on social media sites is subject to copyright laws. Any reproductions, adaptations or communications without written permission of the copyright owner may not be posted.

Terms of Use

By posting content, users agree to comply with the terms and conditions of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Phoenix College, and Maricopa County Community College District Social Media Guidelines. In particular, the user represents, warrants and agrees that no content submitted, posted transmitted or shared by the user will infringe upon the rights of any third party, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, privacy; or contain defamatory, discriminatory or otherwise unlawful material.

Phoenix College reserves the right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content and remove or ban fans at its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.

To review MCCCD’s Social Media regulations, click HERE.

User Notification

All social media site content posted by Phoenix College and site users is considered to be a public record and is subject to public records management practices as stipulated in ARS 41- 1346(A)(1) and ARS 41-1346(D).

Records Management

Any PC department initiating and maintaining a PC social media site is responsible for consistent records management compliance as stipulated in ARS 41-1346(A)(1) and ARS 41-1346(D).

User-generated Content and Disclaimer

Phoenix College accepts no responsibility or liability for any data, text, software, music, sound, photographs, images, video, messages, or any other content or materials whatsoever generated by users that publicly post. Every PC social Media Site must make an effort to display or link to the following disclaimer. It is recommended this disclaimer be posted on the Info page or in Notes for Facebook and it is recommended a link be placed in the profile for Twitter pages.

Disclaimer for Content on Linked Sites

Phoenix College accepts no liability or responsibility whatsoever for the content or material of any target site linked from this page.

DISCLAIMER:

All information published online by PC is subject to change without notice. PC is not responsible for errors or damages of any kind resulting from access to its Internet resources or use of the information contained therein. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information presented as factual; however, errors may exist.

Users are directed to counter check facts when considering their use in other applications. PC is not responsible for the content or functionality of any technology resource not owned by the institution.

The statements, comments, or opinions expressed by users through the use of Maricopa's technology resources are those of their respective authors, who are solely responsible for them and do not necessarily represent the views of the Maricopa County Community College District.

Objectionable Content

Objectionable content publicly posted in a format of data, text, software, music, sound, photographs, images, video messages or any other materials whatsoever (“Content”) generated by users (“the Users”) on PC social media sites includes:

  • Copyrighted material
  • Threatening language
  • Nudity, pornography
  • Fake, impostor profile
  • Racist or hate speech
  • Cyber harassment or cyberbullying
  • Unwanted contact
  • Profanity

Removal Process

  • When a fan posts a copyrighted or objectionable comment it should be removed.
  • Every effort should be made to notify the fan with an explanation as to why the post was removed.
  • The incident should be logged for reference.
  • If violations should continue to occur, consideration should be made to block the fan from the page.

 

Title II Web Accessibility Guidelines

1. Official Use of Social Media

Official MCCCD social media accounts are defined as:

  • Social media accounts that display the branding and/or name of a college or the District, including departments, programs, or other MCCCD-related activities.
  • Social media accounts that are being managed and maintained by someone employed by the District as part of their official role.
  • Social media accounts that share information about the system or a college, program, or department as directed by the institution.

Student club accounts are not official MCCCD social media channels. These accounts must clearly state in their bio or profile description that they are “Student-run and not an official account of Maricopa Community Colleges.”

Official MCCCD social media accounts represent the institution in an official capacity and must:

  • Be approved and registered through the District Marketing and Communications Office or through the individual college marketing and communications office.
  • Use only official branding, naming conventions, and appropriate contact information.
  • Be managed by trained personnel authorized to post on behalf of a college, department, or program.
  • Comply with MCCCD policies, Title II accessibility standards, and public records laws.

Personal or affiliated accounts operated by employees or students are not considered official and may not represent or speak on behalf of MCCCD. For more information about public statements, please visit our Public Statement Guidelines.

2. Content Accessibility Checklist

All creators must verify accessibility before posting their content.

Text and Language

  • Write in plain, clear language; avoid jargon, acronyms, and abbreviations unless fully spelled out at first use.
  • Use CamelCase for hashtags (#FirstGenStudents).
  • Limit the usage of emojis, as screen readers cannot accurately convey emojis. If emojis are used, include a text description of the emoji.
  • All acronyms and abbreviations should be spelled out when first referenced, if their usage is unavoidable. Screen reader programs do not always accurately communicate acronyms and abbreviations to their audience, so it is best to limit the usage of acronyms and abbreviations.

Images and Graphics

  • Images must include a caption or alt text that explains the image's context. In addition, the image contrast ratio should be at least 4:5:1. However, if large-scale text is used, the contrast ratio should be at least 3:1.
  • Avoid text-heavy graphics; ensure on-screen text is legible.
  • Limit the use of GIFs, as screen reader programs cannot convey them. If a GIF is utilized, ensure the appropriate contrast ratio of 4:5:1 is used, and include alt-text to describe the GIF.
  • Avoid flashing content or looping animations that could trigger photosensitivity.

Videos and Audio

  • Provide accurate captions including dialogue, speaker identification, and relevant sounds.
  • Include descriptive transcripts for audio content.
  • Avoid auto-generated captions without review for accuracy.
  • Captions should not obstruct relevant information in the video.
  • Most social media platforms allow you to add captions manually. It may be easier to upload videos to YouTube and share the link across multiple platforms due to the ease of captioning on YouTube.