References to External Websites

External Website: a web page/site that is not part of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's domain. (doe.mass.edu or doemass.org)

External Website Sponsored by DESE a DESE funded, sponsored, promoted or maintained web page/site that is not part of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's domain. (doe.mass.edu or doemass.org)

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External Website

DESE does not promote or endorse commercial products, services or websites. We are not in that business, we do not research them and thus cannot verify their effectiveness, we cannot monitor their webpages, and could easily become a clearinghouse for thousands of businesses rightly expecting equal treatment. It is inappropriate and unmanageable. By our action of posting commercial information we appear to be giving approval or endorsement of that product. Further and more seriously, their links could be connected to other, inappropriate websites. We need to prevent this damaging potential at all costs.

We may, at our discretion, link to sites owned, operated, or sponsored by the following entities:

• State, federal, and local governmental entities;
• Associations of government professionals;
• Private, nonprofit entities

We will not link to websites that:

• Are owned and operated by a commercial venture for the sole purpose of sales and or marketing;
• Are overtly sponsored or supported by a commercial venture;
• Are associated with political or advocacy groups for a political party, organization, or candidate running for office;
• Promote or exhibit hate, bias, discrimination, pornography; libelous or otherwise defamatory content;
• Promote any religion or religious viewpoint;
• Are individual or personal home pages.

It is the responsibility of a content provider to check all external links occasionally for both availability and validity.

EXAMPLES: DISALLOWED

http://www.afterschoolcatalog.com/
http://www.prufrock.com
http://www.hotmath.com
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary.htm
http://www.educationworld.com/index.shtml

EXAMPLES: ALLOWED

http://www.masscue.org/
http://www.mctf.org/
http://www.ccsso.org/
http://www.odedodea.edu/

Last Updated: October 3, 2014