Social Media

Tennessee Tech Guidelines for Social Media Participation

Thank you for being a part of Tennessee Tech University's social media community. Tech's official social media accounts are administered and moderated by the Office of Communications & Marketing. OCM also serves as a resource to departments and units who wish to establish a presence of their own in the social media sphere.

 

Community Standards

While campus units must abide by the guidelines listed here, those who engage with university content on social media platforms are also held to the university’s community standards for social media engagement:

We respect the opinions of our community and encourage engagement on social media. University social media accounts are limited public forums, and the university has the right to set the limitations for how those can be used. While removing content from university accounts is rare, we reserve the right to remove things that contain personal attacks, business advertisements, factually inaccurate information or inappropriate language or images. We may also remove comments or posts that are repetitive or irrelevant.

 

Guidelines

Pursuant to Tech policy, in order to use institutional branding and establish a social media presence on behalf of the university, you must:

• All social media accounts must be created by the Office of Communications & Marketing, who will then grant access to the following:
  
  • • • The Office of Communications & Marketing
      • Tennessee Tech employees from the requesting unit/department 
      • Vice President or Dean of the requesting unit
• All social media accounts must have a minimum of two employees of the requesting unit/department with administrative rights to the accounts. 
  • • • One of the account administrators must be a permanent full-time employee
• Establish and maintain a written social media strategy that outlines:
  • • • Platforms you will use
      • Audiences for each platform
      • Content types and sources
      • Plans for managing, posting and monitoring account activity
      • Goals for your accounts
• Account Activity & Maintenance
  • • • University-affiliated social media accounts are expected to remain active and engaged. The Office of Communications & Marketing reserves the right to deactivate accounts that show no posting activity for more than six months. 
      • Before any account is deactivated, the Office of Communications & Marketing will work with the unit or department to assess goals, capacity and opportunities to increase activity and engagement. Our goal is to support accounts in remaining relevant, accurate and reflective of an active campus community. 
• Represent Tennessee Tech
  • • • In all instances where the university name is abbreviated, use Tennessee Tech or TN Tech, never TTU
      • Use appropriate university colors, logos and branding elements available in the marketing toolkit
      • Use the profile photo template provided by OCM on all accounts unless given specific permission to use another image
      • Use the page name and handle formula set by OCM to facilitate consistent branding across university accounts
• Be Professional
  • • • Follow all existing university policies related to social media and web use
      • Do not post confidential or proprietary information 
      • Employees using social media on behalf of the university still must follow all applicable federal requirements such as FERPA and HIPAA, as well as NCAA regulations
      • Adhere to all applicable university privacy and confidentiality policies
      • Employees who share confidential information do so at the risk of disciplinary action or termination
      • Respect copyright laws - Do not use graphics or images that you do not own or do not have written permission to use
• Engage Respectfully
  • • • Contact the Office of Communications & Marketing before deleting any user posts or comments for any reason 
      • Comments cannot be deleted from social media posts unless they contain statements or images that violate the established community standards listed within these guidelines or applicable Tech policy – justification for deleting comments is rare and must be considered carefully
      • Respond to and make adjustments to any errors posted to your account quickly and respectfully
      • If you choose to modify an earlier post, make it clear you have done so

Best Practices

• Engage with the audience if prompted. That means responding to questions, comments and misunderstandings that may result from your content.
• We suggest adopting a tone that fits with the following adjectives:
  • • • Friendly
      • Intelligent
      • Goal-driven
      • Innovative
      • Supportive
      • Humble
      • Collaborative
      • Committed
• When crafting content for your pages, consider the university brand story, describing Tech in terms of “Genuine Community,” “Transformative Experiences,” and “Your Opportunity.” Also consider the words “Bold,” Fearless,” “Confident” and “Kind” when describing students and the campus community.
• Keep in mind that a social media presence is more informal than, for example, a departmental web page.
• Always be helpful in responding to messages and comments. Never leave a question unanswered just because it isn’t for you. Always try to direct those who reach out to the proper office for assistance, providing contact information for the office or individual on campus who can help.
• Encourage users with concerns to engage with you in direct messages or offline. Providing a phone number or email address to connect and walk through concerns in detail directly is best.
• Social media should be worked into your overall communication plan. Social media is not a stand-alone, create-and-forget solution to your communications and marketing challenges and may not be a replacement for a university website or traditional viewbook.
• Use your best judgment; if someone posts something inflammatory, threatening, or otherwise seriously concerning, notify the proper authorities on campus and notify the Office of Communications & Marketing before taking any action.
• Tag other university accounts in your posts, when it makes sense, to help build a more connected university community. Consider using hashtags used by the main university accounts.
• Stay informed on changes and new features on social media platforms. Campus social media managers gather monthly to share ideas, collaborate and talk about current topics related to social media. These monthly gathering are informal and open to all interested individuals on campus involved in social media. 
• Have a strategy for what your content will include, who will manage your accounts and how you will feed your creation. Accounts should always include content around recruitment, retention and Tech’s distinctiveness. The Office of Communications & Marketing is always available to assist with creation and consultation for social media strategy.

• Tennessee Tech University on TikTok

  TikTok remains one of the most widely-used social media platforms among high school and college-aged audiences, making it a valuable tool for connecting with prospective students and engaging current ones. Maintaining an official university presence on TikTok allows Tennessee Tech University to share authentic stories, highlight campus life and promote academic and student success in ways that resonate with younger audiences.
  
  By operating a single, centrally-managed account through approved, non-university networks, Tennessee Tech can ensure compliance with state regulations while responsibly leveraging this influential communication channel.
  
  Tech's Office of Communications and Marketing maintains the university's official TikTok presence to enhance student engagement, recruitment and storytelling while remaining fully complaint with Tennessee state law regarding the use of TikTok on university networks.
  
  Consistent with guidance from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and in alignment with similar models used by other public universities in the state, the university will operate its TikTok account exclusively through a university-owned cellphone on the Verizon wireless network, which is not connected to state or campus networks.
  
  The TikTok account will be managed solely by the Office of Communications & Marketing, which will ensure that all activity adheres to applicable state law, institutional policy and brand standards. No other colleges, departments, or university offices will be authorized to create or maintain university-affiliated TikTok accounts. 
  
  Governance and Compliance Framework for University TikTok Use

  1. Access And Device Control
     • TikTok may be accessed only through an identified university-owned mobile device that:
       • Operates on a non-state network (Verizon).
       • Is purchased and maintained with university funds.
       • Is documented and inventoried with Information Technology Services (ITS).
     • The device must not connect to university Wi-Fi or VPN at any time.
  2. Authorized Users
     • Access is limited to designated employees within the Office of Communications & Marketing.
     • An access log will document:
       • Employee names and roles.
       • Dates of authorization and removal.
       • Apps installed on the device.
  3. Content Oversight
     • All content must align with university brand standards and messaging priorities.
     • Posts will focus on student engagement, recruitment and institutional storytelling. 
     • Major content plans will be reviewed by the Director of Brand Communications and the Associate Vice President for Communications & Marketing. 
  4. Legal and IT Documentation
     • Documentation will be shared with ITS and University Counsel for ongoing review and compliance.
     • Device access log and application inventory will be included in annual internal audit documentation. 
     • Strictly accessing TikTok in this limited capacity will mitigate risk of potential unauthorized data collection.
  5. Restrictions on Departmental Accounts
     • Due to state guidance restricting the use of TikTok on university-owned networks, Tennessee Tech employees and departments will not create or manage university-affiliated TikTok accounts.
     • The university's official TikTok presence will be managed through approved channels using non-university networks to ensure compliance with state regulations. This approach helps protect employees and the institution while maintaining opportunities to engage audiences appropriately within the law.
     • College's, departments and offices across campus who wish to engage with audiences on TikTok can consider working in collaboration with the Office of Communications and Marketing to have content posted on their behalf to the primary TikTok account. Such content would need to be reviewed for alignment with the university's primary strategy for TikTok and would only be posted at the discretion of the Office of Communication and Marketing.
  6. Ad Purchases
     • All TikTok advertising must be purchased and managed through the university's official marketing agency of record under the same governance rules.
  7. Crisis or Policy Review
     • Should state or federal laws change regarding TikTok or similar platforms, the account will be immediately paused pending review by University Counsel and ITS.

• Tennessee Tech University Use of University Brand on Personal Accounts 

  Using brand materials only on official accounts protects the integrity of the university's image while also ensuring employees aren't unintentionally held responsible for representing the institution online.

  Only social media accounts created and maintained with the requirements of the Tennessee Tech Social Media Policy (Policy No. 1130) may use the Tennessee Tech logos, seals, wordmarks or official graphics.

  University branding should never be used on any social media account not intended for official university business and should never be used for:

  • • • Personal social media profiles 

      • Cover/header images

      • Personal posts, photos, or videos

      • Personal websites or blogs

  The university's name, university-branded templates and design assets meant for official communication may not be used for personal expression. 

  These guidelines around use of the university's brand on social media are intended to avoid any suggestion that the University endorses employees' personal views or online activity, is affiliated with their personal projects or ventures, or has reviewed or approved their content. 

  Employees may list their job title and Tennessee Tech affiliation in personal bios but must use caution to follow guidelines and make clear that any views expressed are not those of Tennessee Tech and the employee is not stating any view in their capacity as a Tennessee Tech employee. Example: "Assistant Professor at Tennessee Tech University. Opinions are my own." Automatically generated employer logos on social media platforms (e.g., LinkedIn, Facebook) are permitted. Because these graphics are applied by the platform and not by the employee, they do not constitute personal use of university brand materials. Otherwise, individuals should not intentionally use university branding in this way.

  Employees should not use personal social media accounts to act in their professional capacity as a university employee.

  Unauthorized use of university trademarks will result in a request for removal and could result in the social media account in question being reported to the corresponding platform for trademark violations. Continued misuse may lead to additional administrative action and could result in disciplinary action as appropriate within the university's Code of Conduct (Policy No. 600). 

View Policy No. 1103: University Social Media