Web CMS User Agreement
The Website as a Strategic Tool
The Ohio University website (ohio.edu and its connected and affiliated properties and subdomains) is the primary location for external stakeholders (including prospective students and their influencers, alumni, and industry partners) to find information about university offerings and activities.
User experience with the website, as well as embedded and linked applications impact the University’s perception in the marketplace. Transactional dissonance or difficulty finding information can have negative impact on the university and overall enrollment.
As such, it is essential that information delivered on and by the Ohio University website is accurate, delivers on good user experience through best practices in web design, accessibility and functionality, and tells a cohesive and authentic story.
To meet this objective, University Communications and Marketing oversees all web design and development—as well as content creation and content governance—in partnership with communicators across the University. The Office of Information Technology ensures maintenance and successful performance of the hosting and server technology that supports the website.
Role of University Communications and Marketing
University Communications and Marketing's web team works with units requesting new websites or pages, website redesigns, site restructuring, creating strategies and space for new programs, and more. Support will include:
- Consulting on information architecture, page design and user experience. Designs will leverage existing web elements and content types.
- Designing and building key landing pages in partnership with unit communicators, including collecting coordinated photography and/or videography, and copy writing as necessary.
- Developing an analytics strategy in partnership with the site owner. If applicable, placing analytics code on the site and providing analytics reports.
- Training and resources for CMS users
CMS User Roles and Responsibilities
Web CMS websites must be sponsored by a permanent faculty or staff member, and that person agrees to take responsibility for the content and oversight of that website. This service is not available for course materials, personal use such as a personal portfolio of work, or a personal website. This service is not available to students or student organizations. The unit must designate one Site Manager for each website. Planning units are responsible to inform UCM of changes to the Authorized Users and/or Site Manager.
Site Manager
Each website group in Drupal will have one designated site manager that is the primary contact for content changes in the site. Every Site Manager will receive Publisher access. Each site can also have up to two back-up publishers and additional site editors if deemed necessary.
CMS Publishers
A user designated as "Publisher" has been granted access to publish assets to the live server. Publishers are required to be trained in the use of the Drupal CMS and must complete the Web Publisher Agreement, which explains and requires acknowledgement of the role's responsibilities. Live publishing rights are granted only after a trial period following training, the length of which remains at the discretion of UCM. There is a limit of 3 Publishers per site in order to ensure best practices are followed by well-versed users.
CMS Editors
A user designated as "Editor" has been granted access to edit assets. Edited assets will be sent to the Publisher(s) and/or Site Manager for final review before being published live. Editors are required to be trained in the use of the Drupal CMS.
CMS Student Editors
Student users of Drupal are assigned "Editor" access only and are not given live publishing access.
Templates
A branded CMS template is provided by UCM must be used for all official Ohio University websites. The branded template options provide instant identification as an Ohio website, incorporating the correct use of the Ohio University logo and official colors, and includes standardized menu designs, as well as footers with required links and legal content. Use of these templates under one content management system enhances search capabilities across all University sites and supports usability by providing consistent, simplified navigation.
Logo
Website content created by CMS users within the departments/units must adhere to identification standards governing the use of the University seal and logo as outlined in The OHIO Brand.
Supporting Documentation
Due to restrictions of responsive design and accessibility, supporting documents accessed from within Drupal that are not rendered in HTML must appear in PDF format. All PDFs must be remediated by an approved vendor to ensure accessibility.
Accessibility
Website content must meet accessibility standards as outlined in Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA (opens in a new window). These standards are part of the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), a working group of World Wide Web Consortium. Many elements built into OHIO's templates or required by the CMS facilitate this accessibility, including headings and alternate tags for image description. However, proper application involving content added by individual web editors remains the responsibility of that department/unit. Content must incorporate the correct use of heading styles, appropriate alternate text for all images (including infographics), and proper construction of tables.
PDFs linked from ohio.edu websites must be accessible, except in cases when the PDF is provided in addition to an exact copy of the information rendered in HTML. Video (both embedded and those leading to YouTube.com) must be accurately closed-captioned. Any video featured on the homepage of an academic division or Vice-Presidential office or on any page relating to the completion of critical or important transactions must also be audio-described, when appropriate.
Site Review
Ohio University websites should be reviewed as needed within a minimum period of six months to ensure that outdated information is revised or removed. UCM will conduct random page audits on a rotating schedule to ensure that all guidelines are being followed.
UCM reserves the right to remove CMS access, live publishing rights, and/or page content that violates the website policies as defined.