Purpose
These guidelines provide faculty with directions on how and when it is appropriate to link from a university website (or other official university web resource) to personal web content. In general, linking to outside content from University Web pages should be minimal and all content linked to must relate directly to a faculty member’s work for WSU. The intent is to balance:
- Compliance with university IT use policies (see Executive Policy 4 – Electronic Communications Policy) and university and state ethics requirements (see Executive Policy 45 – University Ethics Policy and RCW 42.52), with
- The academic and professional need for faculty to highlight their work, scholarship, and creative contributions in ways that enhance student learning, faculty reputation and productivity, and the visibility of the university.
University IT resources (including websites, servers, and official communication channels) are state resources. They must not be used for personal financial gain, political activity, or non-university business. WSU faculty have additional ethical responsibilities as set forth in the Faculty Manual.
In general, faculty may link to external content where it has a clear academic or professional connection to their university role—such as showcasing scholarly publications, artistic portfolios, performances, or research outcomes that contribute to teaching, learning, or the university’s reputation.
All linked content must be consistent with the university’s commitment to maintaining a learning and working environment free from discrimination and harassment and in compliance with state and federal laws. Faculty personal websites linked from university platforms must not create or contribute to a hostile environment or result in substantial disruption of university operations.
Permissible Linking
Faculty may link from their university faculty profile, email signature, course page, or other official site to:
- A professional portfolio or personal academic webpage that primarily showcases scholarly, creative, or professional work;
- External repositories of scholarship (e.g., Google Scholar, ResearchGate, etc.);
- Publications, recordings, exhibitions, or other outputs relevant to their academic discipline;
- Professional association websites, conference pages, or academic collaborators; or
- Galleries, museums, arenas, or other venues that are exhibiting scholarly, creative, or professional work; however, it is recommended that faculty err on the side of caution and not include links to sites where professional work may be purchased or sold.
Departments and faculty are required to include the following disclaimer when linking to a faculty member’s personal external website: “This link leads to an external website that is not hosted by the university. The views and content expressed are those of the faculty member and do not represent the official positions of the university.”
Restricted or Prohibited Linking
Faculty may not use university websites to link to:
- Personal blogs, social media accounts, or websites that contain non-academic or personal content (e.g., family updates, lifestyle commentary, political activism/lobbying, unrelated hobbies);
- Commercial websites which may result in personal financial gain (e.g., personal Etsy stores, self-operated merch shops, personal consulting business pages);
- Content that could reasonably be perceived as an endorsement of commercial products or services unrelated to the faculty member’s academic role; or
- Political advocacy or campaign sites.
For example, it would not be appropriate to link to a website page with academic work, if that page also includes links to commercial options or personal social media. If an existing faculty website contains both academic/professional content and personal or commercial content, faculty should separate out the academic/professional content and create a stand-alone site dedicated to professional work that can be linked from the university site.
Responsibility for Compliance
WSU does not monitor faculty personal websites but will respond to complaints or notices of violations. It is the responsibility of the faculty to ensure compliance with these guidelines. Complaints about faculty personal website content that is linked to a WSU site can be submitted to the relevant department chair. Faculty who do not comply with these guidelines for sites linked from WSU sites may face disciplinary sanctions and could also face personal sanctions from the Washington Executive Ethics Board.
Please note, these guidelines are specific to faculty professional speech linked to from a WSU website. Faculty still retain other speech protections (see Faculty Speech for more information). Faculty should be aware that any material they link to, and potentially their overall web and social media content, could be reviewed by outside funding entities.