1.
If
a faculty member writes a book or article based
on independent research using USA library resources,
a computer supplied by the University, and
other USA resources of the type used in the
ordinary course of the faculty member’s
usual activities, including customary reassigned
time for research, who owns the copyright to
that work? Who
gets to use it?
The
faculty member owns that work, as it
is a Regular Academic Work. The
publisher may require the faculty member
to assign the copyright in the work as
a condition of publication. If
allowable under a publishing agreement,
the faculty member should grant the University
rights to use the work internally (see
section 7.1).
2. If a faculty member originates an idea for an
on-line course, prepares materials for the
course, and entirely determines the course
content with no input from any USA official,
who owns the copyright to the course materials? Who
gets to use it?
If
there has been no Significant Use of University
Resources, the faculty member owns that
work and should grant the University rights to
use the work internally. If
the creation of the work required Significant
Use of University Resources, the University
owns the copyright and can grant the faculty
member rights to use, modify, transport,
etc. the work (see section 7.1 and 7.2.1).
3. If
a faculty member is directed by a USA official (e.g., department chair or dean)
to prepare materials for an on-line course based on an idea originated by the
USA official, and the content of the course is suggested in whole or in part
by the USA official, who owns the copyright to the course materials? Who
gets to use it?
The
University owns the work as a University-Assigned
work. A written agreement will be signed
by both parties in advance of creation
of the work which will specify the rights
and responsibilities of each party (see
section 7.2.3).
4. If
a faculty member prepares an on-line course
that includes parts of copyrighted works in
which the faculty member owns the copyright
(e.g., a textbook), or that includes links
to other works available over the internet
which are copyrighted works, how are the rights
of ownership in these various works determined?
The
copyright in the various works are owned
by their respective authors and/or publishers. The
faculty member must get the appropriate
permissions from the owner of each copyrighted
work in order to use those works in the
on-line course. The
on-line course, as a whole, will become
a new copyrighted work but the authors
of the incorporated works still retain
the copyright in the parts of their works
that are incorporated (see section 7.9).
5. Can
a faculty member agree to produce an on-line
course for a private company, if the work that
goes into producing the course is done on the
faculty member’s
private time (evenings, weekends, summer) and does not make greater use of
university resources than would ordinarily be made in the regular course of
the faculty member’s usual activities?
Yes,
as long as the faculty member complies
with the University’s policy on
conflict of interest and commitment (see
section 7.1).
6.
If a faculty member produces an on-line course
for which the university owns the copyright,
what rights does the faculty member have to use
that course if he or she leaves the university
to accept employment elsewhere?
The
University will grant the faculty member
rights to transport the on-line course
to another job for educational use. If
the on-line course is a University-Assisted
Work, the faculty member will continue
to share in any net revenues that might
be generated by External Use of the course
(see section 7.2.1).
7. How
does this policy apply to course materials developed by faculty for use in
the traditional classroom setting?
The
copyright in traditional classroom materials
which are considered Regular Academic
Works will be owned by the faculty member
who authored them (see section 7.1).
8. If
a faculty member creates a copyrightable
work using funds from a grant, who will own
the copyright in the work – USA, the
faculty member, or the granting agency?
The
ownership is first determined by the
specific clauses of the contract with
the granting agency. If
the contract is silent on ownership and
the work is a Regular Academic Work,
the faculty member will own the work
and the University will have no ownership
claim in that work. In
that case, the faculty member should
grant the University rights to use the
work internally (see section 7.1 and
7.6).
9. Can
an on-line course be taught without the involvement or permission of the faculty
member who developed the course?
Any
course offered on-line by the University
requires that the University and the
faculty member sign, in advance of the
offering, a written agreement which governs
the use of that work. This
agreement may grant the faculty member
a right of first refusal to teach the
course as well as ongoing rights to modify
or update the work (see section 7.2.1). If
the faculty member chooses not to teach
the course, the University is free to
request that someone else teach, modify,
and update the course as needed.
10. If
a faculty member, a staff member and a student
each contribute to the creation of a work,
who owns that work and how is it managed?
If
the creation of the work required Significant
Use of University Resources, the University
owns the copyright and can grant each creator
certain rights to use the work. If
no Significant Use of University Resources
was required to create the work, then an
assessment must be made as to whether the
work is a Regular Academic Work, an Institutional
Work, and/or a Student Work. It
is possible that all three conditions could
apply and joint ownership would be established. Such
a situation is managed by a written agreement
among all parties (see sections 7.1, 7.2
and 7.4).
