Websites

In order to meet required standards and criteria, all official Rutgers websites must: 

• Include an official Rutgers logotype at the top of each webpage 
• Include the full name of the university—Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey—on each page, preferably in the footer at the bottom of the page 
• Include an easy-to-find link to rutgers.edu in the top section of the homepage. See examples. 
• Provide a link to the universitywide search function, search.rutgers.edu 
• Include a clear way to contact the responsible unit on all top-level pages 
• Include in the footer 
  • A link to the universitywide homepage—rutgers.edu 
  • The university accessibility statement: Rutgers is an equal access/equal opportunity institution. Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to direct suggestions, comments, or complaints concerning any accessibility issues with Rutgers websites to accessibility@rutgers.edu or complete the Report Accessibility Barrier / Provide Feedback Form. 
  • The university copyright:  © 20XX Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey 

All Rutgers websites must: 

• Be accurate and be updated on a regular basis   
• Content should be reviewed each semester 
• Sites should be routinely checked for broken links 
• Unpublish out-of-date content, including documents that are no longer relevant 
• Add and delete people from directories as appropriate 

Comply with the following university policies:  

• Rutgers Code of Ethics: General Conduct [PDF] 
• University Visual Identity Policy [PDF] 
• University World Wide Web Accessibility Policy [PDF] 
• Information Classification Policy [PDF] 
• Acceptable Use Policy for Information Technology Resources [PDF] 
• Policy on Endorsements, Sponsorships, and Advertising in and on University Assets and Communication Materials [PDF] 
• Donor Gift Policy [PDF] 
• Policy on Commercial and Charitable Solicitations [PDF] 
• Code of Ethics for Administrative and Professional Staff Members [PDF] 
• Conflicts of Interest – Faculty; Professional Activities Outside the University and Outside Employment for Academic Personnel [PDF] 

Annual website certification is the process through which units confirm that they have assessed their websites according to the requirements and guidelines defined in the University Web Policy and have developed a remediation plan to address any categories that do not comply with the standards defined in the policy.

The members of the Rutgers Administrative Council must annually certify the websites within their areas of responsibility. Certification is required annually for all Rutgers websites except faculty personal webpages, individual faculty research websites, websites for faculty research labs, and student club/organization websites.

The certification process will be managed through a web application developed by the Office of Information Technology. 

View the website certification training video.

There are three steps to the website certification process: 

1. Inventory
   The inventory will provide the university with a much-needed listing of websites at Rutgers. The inventory asks for information about the technology used by a website (CMS, database, programming languages) as well as information about a site’s audience and metrics (number of visitors, pageviews). If information is not available at the time of the inventory, N/A or TBD can be used so that the inventory can be completed.
    
2. Assessment
   The assessment will indicate the current state of websites at Rutgers and provide a roadmap for remediation. It asks yes/no questions that relate to the new Rutgers Website Policy such as whether the university logotype is at the top of each page, whether the site has a link to the university search function, whether it contains restricted data, and whether it has been reviewed for accessibility.
    
3. Status Report
   The status update page summarizes the assessment and includes fields for entering a remediation plan for any areas that do not comply with the new website policy.  Specific steps that will be taken can be added and updated as websites are improved. The status report also provides a method for sharing the assessment and any remediation plans with colleagues, supervisors, and the administrative council member. 

Administrative council members are responsible for selecting certification coordinators who will ensure that inventory and assessment information is entered in the database for each website within the council member’s area of responsibility. 

Certification coordinators are responsible for entering, or assigning others to enter, information about each website into the database. 

Information for the inventory and assessment database may need to be gathered from various people within an area. For instance, technical information about the website infrastructure may come from one person, while information about the content may come from a different person. 

If you have been asked to be a certification coordinator, please go to the Certification Coordinator Submission Form and provide your Name, NetID Username, Email Address, Unit. 

To find your unit, you should select the highest-level unit in your area. 

• Central administrative units should select the highest-level unit in their reporting structure (i.e., IP&O for Transportation Services). 
• Divisions/Chancellor-led administrative units should select the appropriate division. 
• Academics units should select their school or college.

A full guide to the inventory and assessment web application is available.