Approved by the Board of Trustees of Rockland Community College on November 30, 2016.

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to ensure that RCC is compliant with the provisions of the US Federal Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) regarding the verification of student identity in distance learning. RCC uses a secure login and pass code method to comply with the Act.

Verification

Personal identifiable information obtained by the College when students are admitted or register for classes is the foundation for Student Identity Verification.  Students receive their unique Student IDs, logins, and password information through the mail, or in person if photo ID is presented to the appropriate staff member. If students do not receive or misplace this information, they are required to present photo ID to Records & Registration or Admissions to have their passwords reset.

At the initial login, students are required to change their password and create security questions that are used in the event that a password reset becomes necessary. Prior to gaining access to any protected information on the RCC systems, students must be authenticated by the College’s myRCC Single Sign On system using his/her username (RCC email account name) and password.

Authentication for use of Blackboard, RCC’s course management system, is through a single sign-on connection to myRCC and the RCC verification servers.

Student Responsibility

Students are responsible for maintaining the security of usernames, passwords, and any other access credentials assigned to them. Users are responsible for any and all use of their account.

The Student Code of Conduct explicitly prohibits all forms of cheating, plagiarism, and academic dishonesty. Additionally, the Computer Usage Policy establishes rules and prohibitions that define acceptable use of RCC computing systems and clearly outlines user responsibilities. Failure to read and comply with College guidelines, requirements, and regulations will not exempt users from responsibility.