West Liberty University Higher Education Opportunity Act Compliance Information

The Higher Education Opportunity Act includes provisions to reduce the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing.  These provisions include requirements that:

• Institutions make an annual disclosure that informs students that the illegal distribution of copyrighted materials may subject them to criminal and civil penalties and describes the steps that institutions will take to detect and punish illegal distribution of copyrighted materials.
• Institutions certify to the Secretary of Education that they have developed plans to “effectively combat” the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted material.
• Institutions, “to the extent practicable,” offer alternatives to illegal file sharing.
• Institutions identify procedures for periodically reviewing the effectiveness of the plans to combat the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials.

Annual Disclosure
WLU respects the intellectual property rights of others and expects students, faculty, and staff to do the same.  To inform our community, West Liberty University has taken the following steps:

• A computer policy has been posted on our website for University Network Users.
• Periodically, students, faculty, and staff will receive informative emails regarding copyright infringement.

Plans to Effectively Combat Unauthorized Use of Copyrighted Material
Currently as part of its compliance with the federal copyright law, West Liberty University employs OpenDNS web content filtering and security services.

Alternatives to Illegal File Sharing
Educause maintains a comprehensive list of Legal Downloading Resources.  WLU encourages our users to take advantage of these legitimate sources.

Reviewing Effectiveness
WLU will annually review the policy and procedures and revise them as necessary to remain in compliance.  To date, OpenDNS is proving to be a reliable and effective resource for enforcement of this policy.