IT Accounts Policy
Table of Contents
II. IT Account Duration - Disabling and Removal
III. Definitions
IV. Revisions
I. IT Account Issuance
At DePauw, Information Technology (IT) accounts allow employees, students, and other authorized persons as described in this document to gain access to DePauw electronic communication facilities and other University IT resources. These accounts include email, network shared files (e.g., I, U, and P drives), e-Services, Moodle, computer lab access, Oracle E-Business Suite, Libraries, and a number of other applications.
University IT accounts are intended to be used primarily for official University business, including employee and student academic pursuits, and employee administrative, personnel and/or business matters. Policies about the use of IT accounts are governed by the University Electronic Communications and Acceptable Use Policy.
By convention, an account name assigned to an individual is derived using the assignee’s full formal name (e.g., josephsmith or janebdoe). Exceptions to this convention are rare and must be approved by the University Administrator as noted.
A. Faculty and Staff Members
At the start of employment, each employee is assigned a unique IT account username associated exclusively with that person which provides access to electronic resources needed to carry out his/her job duties.
The Director of Human Resources or the Chief Information Officer must approve exceptions to the account naming convention.
B. Students
Each student is assigned a unique IT account username associated exclusively with that person which provides access to electronic resources needed to carry out his/her academic pursuits.
By convention, a student account name is derived using a combination of the student’s graduating class year and his/her full formal name (e.g., josephsmith_2011 or janebdoe_2014). (An Alpha Student account is derived using the assignee’s full formal name.) The Registrar or Vice President for Academic Affairs must approve exceptions to this convention.
C. Contingent Workers
A contingent worker may be assigned IT accounts as needed to perform duties associated with his/her formal relationship with the University, as approved by a University Vice President or the Chief Information Officer.
D. Guests and Others
Guest Faculty Scholars
A guest faculty scholar may be assigned IT accounts, including email, as designated by the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Visiting Summer Research Students
A visiting summer research student may be assigned IT accounts, including email, as requested by a University faculty or staff sponsor and approved by the Vice President for Academic Affairs or the Chief Information Officer.
Temporary Summer Student Employees
A temporary summer student employee will be assigned an e-Services IT account and may be assigned other IT accounts as needed to perform duties associated with his/her job duties, as requested by his/her supervising department and approved by a University Vice President or the Chief Information Officer.
Employee Family Members
Spouses, partners, and other members of employees’ families with no official academic or employment relationship to the University are not eligible to receive University IT accounts.
Workshop Accounts
Temporary guest IT accounts may be created for an event such as a workshop, conference or camp to enable non-University participants to gain access to selected electronic resources such as computer labs or network shared drives. Typically, these accounts will not include email. These accounts will be created at the request of a University faculty or staff sponsor of the person/group holding the guest account(s), as approved by a University Vice President or the Chief Information Officer.
E. University Departments, Programs and Groups
A University department, program or other group may be issued a special group email account (e.g., ‘helpdesk@depauw.edu,’ ‘alumnioffice@depauw.edu,’ ‘alphapsiomega@depauw.edu,’ etc.) as requested by a University employee sponsor and approved by the Chief Information Officer. Each such account is assigned to a designated faculty or staff sponsor who is responsible for managing the account. A student group requesting this type of account is required to have a faculty or staff sponsor to whom the account will be assigned.
II. IT Account Duration - Disabling and Removal
A. Faculty and Staff Members
Faculty Members
A non-retiring faculty member separating from the University will retain his/her email account access for one semester following his/her last teaching semester at which point his/her email account will be disabled and the contents removed. Access to all other IT accounts will be disabled immediately upon his/her separation from employment.
Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date designated by the Vice President for Academic Affairs or the Director of Human Resources, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
All Staff Members
Access to all accounts of a non-retiring staff member separating from the University will be disabled immediately following his/her last day of service.
Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date requested by the supervising department director and approved by the Director of Human Resources, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
Auto-Reply Notification
A separated employee whose accounts have been disabled may have an auto reply on his/her email account stating the person "is no longer with the University" and providing an email address where University business information can be sent and an email address for future personal correspondence with the separated employee (if requested by the separated employee). The auto reply will remain in effect until the account is removed.
B. Emeriti and Retirees
Emeriti
A retiring faculty member (emeritus) will retain his/her email, e-Services access (with the role of ‘retiree’ or ‘emeritus’), and IT account access necessary to enable authorized Library use. Access to all other IT accounts will be disabled immediately upon his/her last day of service.
Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date designated by the Vice President for Academic Affairs or the Director of Human Resources, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
Teaching Emeriti
A retired or emeritus faculty member who is appointed as a “Senior Professor” or similar role by the Vice President for Academic Affairs will be assigned IT account access needed to support his/her teaching and scholarship activities for the duration of his/her appointment.
Retiring Staff Members
A retiring staff member will retain his/her email, e-Services access (with the role of ‘retiree’), and IT account access necessary to enable authorized Library use. Where possible, these accounts will be tagged to identify the person’s ‘retiree’ status. Access to all other IT accounts will be disabled immediately upon his/her last day of service.
Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date requested by the supervising department director and approved by the Director of Human Resources, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
Re-Employed Retired Staff Members
A retired staff member who is employed in any part-time or full-time role as designated by Human Resources will be assigned IT account access needed to carry out his/her work activities for the duration of his/her active employment appointment.
Deceased Retirees
Upon notification of a retired employee’s death, his/her remaining IT accounts will be disabled. Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date designated by the Director of Human Resources, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
C. Students
Graduating Students
All IT accounts of graduating students will be disabled and removed on December 31 during the fall term following graduation.
Withdrawing Students
All IT accounts of a student who withdraws from the University or who is an “Unofficial Graduate” will be disabled and removed as directed by the Registrar.
Alpha Students
IT accounts of Alpha Students who are no longer enrolled at the University will be disabled and removed as directed by the Registrar.
D. Contingent Workers
Contingent Workers
Access to IT accounts of a contingent worker separating from the University will be disabled immediately upon his/her separation from the University. In those instances where account information should be preserved, the accounts will remain disabled for 90 days or until a date designated by the Director of Human Resources, the Chief Information Officer, or a University Vice President, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
Auto-Reply Notification
A separated contingent worker whose accounts have been disabled may have an auto reply on his/her email account stating the person "is no longer with the University" and providing an email address where University business information can be sent. The auto reply will remain in effect until the account is removed.
E. Guests and Others
Guest Faculty Scholars
IT accounts of a guest faculty scholar will be disabled and removed immediately upon the end of his/her appointment as designated by the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Visiting Summer Research Students and Summer Student Employees
IT accounts of visiting summer research students and temporary summer student employees will be disabled and removed immediately following their last day of service.
Workshop Accounts
Guest accounts created for an event such as a workshop, conference or camp will be disabled and removed immediately after the event has concluded, when directed by the University faculty or staff sponsor of the person/group holding the guest account(s), or within 30 days after the event conclusion, whichever is shorter.
F. University Departments, Programs, and Groups
A special group email account will be disabled and removed when requested by the University department, program, or group to which it is assigned.
G. Account holders for whom the University orders termination of access
The University reserves the right to terminate any IT account holder’s access without notice in the case of his/her violation of the Electronic Communications and Acceptable Use Policy or any other University policy, termination of employment or other formal relationship with the University, expulsion, or any other situation in which University Officials deem that continued access by that individual may place either the University or the individual at risk.
In instances where the University orders that access to IT accounts of a faculty member, student, staff member or other IT account holder be terminated, the accounts will be disabled immediately. Account information will be preserved in the disabled accounts for 90 days or until a date designated by the Director of Human Resources or a University Vice President, whichever is longer. After that time the accounts will be removed.
III. Definitions
Employee: Employee means any and all full- and part-time, temporary and regular University employees including, but not limited to faculty members, administrators, instructors, staff members, and classified personnel who have been authorized to use DePauw electronic communication facilities.
Student: Student means any student who has paid a deposit or is currently enrolled in the University.
Guest or Contingent Worker: Guest or Contingent Worker means any person not directly designated as an employee or student, but who has been authorized to use the electronic communication facilities.
Retiree or Emeritus Employee: Retiree or Emeritus Employee means any official retiree or emeritus faculty member as defined by the criteria specified in the University Retirement Policy.
Guest Faculty Scholar: Guest Faculty Scholar means any person designated as such by the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Disable Account: When an IT account is disabled, the information in the account is preserved but access to the online resource is denied when a person enters the account credentials.
Remove Account: When an IT account is removed, any information stored in that account is deleted from the online resource.
Information associated with the account that is considered exclusive to that account holder (e.g., email and personal network file storage such as a P drive) is deleted when the account is removed.
Information associated with the account that is stored independently and to which the account had been granted access privilege (e.g., shared network file storage such as I and U drives, e-Services, etc.) remains intact. In Moodle, when an account is deleted, Moodle 'gradebook' information associated with the account is deleted, but other information remains intact.
IV. Revisions
April 8, 2018 – Changed date for disabling graduating students from October 31 to December 31.
Latest Update: 17-Feb-2023