Technology and Information

Computers and Electronic Devices in The Classroom

The use of computers and electronic devices in the classroom can greatly enhance teaching and empower student learning. However, there are circumstances under which the use of such devices may interfere with teaching and learning. Faculty may, at their discretion, restrict the use of computers and electronic devices in their classrooms except in the case of students whose accommodation for a documented disability includes the use of an assistive device. Restrictions include requesting that students power down their devices, stow them away, or turn them in for the duration of the class session.

Computer Network and Internet Access

The computer network is the property of the College and may be used only for legitimate College purposes. A user expressly waives any right of privacy in anything he or she creates, stores, sends, or receives using the College’s computer equipment or Internet access. A user consents to allow College personnel access to and review of all materials created, stored, sent, or received by the user through any College network or Internet connection. The College has the right to monitor and log any and all aspects of its computer system including, but not limited to, Internet sites visited by users, email traffic, chat and newsgroups, file downloads, and all communications sent and received by users. The College has the right to utilize software that makes it possible to identify and block access to Internet activities that limit computer and network resources.

Copyright Infringement

The downloading, possession, distribution, or copying of a copyrighted work—for example, a document, photograph, piece of music, or video—is an infringement of copyright unless the person downloading is properly authorized to do so by the copyright owner. Without proper authorization from the copyright owner, these activities are prohibited. All computer equipment, software, and facilities used by students and employees are proprietary to Otis College of Art and Design. Otis College reserves the right to withdraw any of the facilities privileges provided by the College if the College considers that a student’s or employee’s use of them is in any way unacceptable.

Equipment Use and Check-Out

Currently enrolled students, with a valid Otis College ID, and a completed Checkout Agreement Form may borrow equipment from any of the designated labs and shops Checkout Centers during open hours. Students are automatically assigned an account in the equipment checkout system when they register each semester. The Checkout Agreement outlines the terms and conditions of the transaction as well as the students' responsibility while using the equipment. Students are accountable for all fees, repair, and replacement costs attributed to equipment associated with their Otis College ID. Students must complete a safety seminar to use shop facility equipment and be registered with Technical Support Services. Safety programs will be given at the beginning of each term and periodically throughout the year.

Filming, Photography, and Recording Devices on Campus

Filming, photography, and recording will be permitted on the Otis College campus and other leased sites provided that such activity does not interfere with the educational, operational, and normal program functions of the College and does not pose a security or safety risk. Requests for filming, photography, and other recording devices on campus may require approval via submission of completed Exhibition and Facility Usage Contract forms.

External-Use Filming or Photography

External-use filming or photography for commercial or noncommercial purposes by private and commercial entities not affiliated with Otis College and for which Otis College will not own the copyright to the work created, requires a filed proposal to be approved by the Vice President of Information Technology and Operations oversight, with all relevant fees made payable to Otis College of Art and Design.

Internal-Use Filming or Photography

Internal-use filming or photography contracted by a Otis College personnel or department for non- commercial purposes for which Otis College owns artistic or creative control may be subject to oversight by Facilities Management unless done without interrupting normal business operations, does not require any special campus services (i.e., security, production set up, facilities assistance, etc.), and does not violate applicable fire and life safety codes.

Incidental, Non-Commercial Filming, Photography, and Other Recording Devices

No permit is required for the incidental filming or photography by Otis College faculty, staff, and students creating work to be used for non-commercial, educational, or administrative purposes provided such incidental filming, photography or recording can be done without interrupting campus programs, classes, activities, or normal business operations, does not require any special campus services (i.e., security, production set up, facilities assistance, etc.), and does not violate applicable fire and life safety codes.

In addition, no permit is required for the incidental, unobtrusive filming, photography, or recording by visitors or tourists to Otis College as long as such filming, photography, or recording is not used for commercial purposes at any time without the express written permission of the Vice President of Information Technology and Operations. The use of recording devices without the express consent of those being recorded is prohibited.

Strictly Prohibited Filming, Photography, and Recording

All filming, photography, and recording within Otis College parking structures are prohibited. In addition, all photography, video, and audio recording will not be allowed in any of the following established private areas at any time:

Bathrooms, shower areas, locker and changing rooms—areas where a reasonable person might change clothing, including private offices; Rooms used for medical, physical, or mental therapy or treatment; and entrances, exits, lobbies, and hallways to on-campus counseling centers; during the course of meetings with College administration, unless permission is granted.

Notwithstanding the aforementioned, the College reserves the right to prohibit any filming, photography, or recording on its premises or at any leased property, for any or no reason.

If filming, photography, and/or recording is related to an ADA accommodation, students should contact the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at (310) 846-2554. Employees seeking ADA accommodations should contact Human Resources at (310) 845-2597 or humanresources@otis.edu.

Intellectual Property Policy

Otis College recognizes that students, faculty, employees, contractors, administrators, and the College itself often create or contribute to innovative thought, design, and invention. Accordingly, the College has adopted an Intellectual Property Policy to equitably address these matters, thereby providing further motivation for creative expression. In general, the policy provides that those who create independently of the College reap the entire fruits of their labor, while those who create with the support of the College share the benefits of their creations with the College on a fair and just basis. Please refer to the College’s Policy on Intellectual Property Ownership for more detail. 

• Preamble
  • The creation of copyrightable and patentable works is one of the ways the College fulfills its mission of contributing to the advancement of knowledge and education. The College encourages the creation of original works as well as the free expression and exchange of ideas. This Policy is intended to embody the spirit of academic tradition, which provides intellectual property ownership to faculty and students for their scholarly and aesthetic copyrighted works, innovative invention, and design, and is otherwise consistent with the United States copyright and patent laws, which provide the College ownership of its employment-related works.
• Purpose and Scope
  • This statement sets forth the College’s Policy on copyright and patent ownership for works and inventions produced at, by, or through the College. This Policy applies to College employees (including faculty), students, and other persons or entities using College facilities or resources or acting under contract with the College for commissioned works.
• Definitions
  • For purposes of this Policy, the following definitions shall apply:
    • Copyrights: Copyrights are the intangible property rights granted by Federal statute for an original work fixed in a tangible form of expression. Copyrights provide the owner(s) with the following exclusive rights in a work: to reproduce, to prepare derivative works, to distribute by sale or otherwise, to perform publicly, and to display publicly.
    • Independent Effort: Independent Effort means creation, inquiry, investigation, design, and engineering to advance knowledge, the arts, or invention where the specific choice, content, course, and direction of the effort is determined without direct assignment or supervision by the College.
    • Intellectual Property: Intellectual Property means Copyrights and Patents.
    • License: A license is a contract in which an owner of Intellectual Property rights grants to another permission to exercise one or more of those rights.
    • Originator(s): An originator is a person who invents or produces a work by his or her own innovation, intellectual labor, and creativity. When there is more than one originator, the ownership of each originator’s contribution shall be considered separately pursuant to this Policy.
    • Patent: A patent is a right granted by the federal government to exclude others from making, using, or selling the invention or design claimed in a patent deed for a specified period of time.
    • Royalties: Royalties are payments made to an owner of Intellectual Property rights for the privilege of exercising one or more of those rights.
    • Sponsor: A sponsor is a person, organization, or agency that provides funding, equipment, or other support for the College to carry out a specified project pursuant to a written agreement. Sponsors include federal, state, local, and other governmental entities, as well as private industry, educational institutions, and private foundations.
    • College Facilities: College Facilities are buildings, equipment, and other facilities.
    • College Funds: College Funds are funds, regardless of source, that are administered under the control, responsibility, or authority of the College.
    • College Resources: College Resources are College Funds and Facilities.
    • Work: Any copyrightable expression including, without limitation, literary work (written lectures are included); musical work, including any accompanying words; dramatic work, including any accompanying music; pantomimes and choreographic work; pictorial, graphic, and sculptural work; motion pictures and other audiovisual work; sound recordings; collections and anthologies; digital artwork (still or animated); and computer software, as well as any patentable invention or design.
• Intellectual Property Ownership by Category of Work
  • Scholarly/Aesthetic Work: A Scholarly/Aesthetic Work is a work originated by a faculty member, student, or employee of the College not within the course and scope of employment and education, resulting from efforts independent of College Resources. Ownership of rights to Scholarly/Aesthetic Works shall reside with the originator, unless they are also sponsored works or contracted facilities works.
  • Personal Work: A Personal Work is a work that originates outside the course and scope of College employment and education and without the use of College Resources. Ownership of rights to Personal Works shall reside with the originator.
  • Student Work: A Student Work is a work produced by a registered student without the use of College Funds (other than Student Financial Aid), which is produced outside any College employment, and is not a sponsored, contracted facilities, or commissioned work. Ownership of rights to Student Works shall reside with the originator.
  • Sponsored Work: A Sponsored Work is a Work first produced by or through the College in the performance of a written agreement between the College and a sponsor. Ownership of rights to Sponsored Works shall be with the College.
  • Commissioned Work: A Commissioned Work is a work produced for College purposes by individuals not employed by the College or by College employees outside the scope of their regular College employment. When the College commissions for the production of a copyright work, it shall be a work-for-hire and title shall reside with the College. In all commissioned work, ownership shall be specified in a written agreement.
  • Contracted Facilities Work: A Contracted Facilities Work is a work produced by non-College personnel or College personnel acting outside the course and scope of their employment, using designated College facilities pursuant to a written agreement. Ownership of rights to Contracted Facilities Work shall be governed by the agreement permitting use of the specified College facilities. Depending on the nature of the facility, and the nature and extent of the use, the agreement may specify that ownership of resulting Intellectual Property rights rests with the College, or the College may simply be paid a fee for the use of the facility.
  • Institutional Work: Except as otherwise provided in this Policy, the College shall own all Intellectual Property rights to works made by College employees (including faculty) and students in the course and scope of their employment and education, and shall own all rights to works made with the use of College resources.
  • Rights Acquired by Assignment or Will: The College may acquire rights to Intellectual Property by assignment or will pursuant to the terms of a written agreement or testament. The terms of such agreement or testament should be consistent with this Policy and other College policies governing such acquisitions.
  • Ownership of Joint Works: Ownership of Joint Works shall be determined by separately assessing the category of work of each originator pursuant to Section IV above. Rights between joint owners shall be determined pursuant to patent or copyright law, as applicable.
• Agreement and Notification
  • Prior to any use of a College facility by non-College personnel or by College personnel outside of College employment and education, a signed agreement shall be required that specifies the disposition of Intellectual Property rights. College employees using College facilities for work outside of College employment are responsible for bringing this to the College’s attention so that an appropriate agreement for use can be negotiated.
  • Those participating in sponsored projects must have an agreement on file with the College that acknowledges the following: (a) individual and joint responsibility to produce and deliver Sponsored Works to the sponsor, as required by the terms of the sponsored project agreement and/or to the College when so requested, and (b) that ownership of Sponsored Works shall vest in the College.
• Licensing and Royalties
  • The College may assign or license its Intellectual Property rights to others. Net royalties or income received from such transactions may be shared with the originator(s) of such Works as follows:
    • Net proceeds received by the College,
    • Less: Patenting/Copyrighting and related costs. Sharing of net remaining proceeds:
      • 33 1/3 percent to the originator(s) for personal use and 66 2/3 percent to the College.
• Copyright Responsibilities and Administration

For works subject to this Policy, the College Administration is authorized to do as follows:

1. Issue guidelines, implementing procedures, and supplementary policies consistent with this Policy. These may include directives regarding licensure, disposition of royalty income, and other rights related to Intellectual Property.
2. Apply for patents, register copyrights, and, pursuant to written agreements, acquire and accept Intellectual Property rights from third parties and sell, assign, or grant licenses in the name of the College for any Intellectual Property rights.

Library Policies

Circulation privileges are available to current Otis College faculty, staff and students enrolled in full time degree programs. Certificate Students within Extension may be granted check-out privileges, but must first check eligibility with their department. To obtain privileges, Patrons must bring their Otis College ID card and complete a Library Usage Agreement. Patrons are required to present a valid Otis College ID card when requesting all library transactions. For convenience, some transactions can take place online. From the Library catalog home page, patrons are able to view account status, place holds on materials and renew eligible library materials. Specific policies regarding circulation, overdue fines and lost or damaged materials, library usage, library sanctions for conduct violations etc. are available on the Library website. In addition, although circulation privileges will not be granted to them, the Library welcomes visitors interested in serious art studies. Access is granted to visitors during specially arranged hours only.

Official Notices

College e-mail is the College’s primary means of communication with students. Students are responsible for all communication delivered to their College email address. Methods for official notice at Otis College are text messaging, Otis College email, postal mail, departmental mailboxes, and bulletin boards.