Ferrum College Copyright Policy
Ferrum College complies with copyright laws regarding the exclusive rights of materials by copyright owners. All employees and students of Ferrum College are expected to adhere to federal copyright laws. The College educates the campus community on issues related to copyright use, and takes measures to limit unlawful uses of copyrighted materials.
While we fully respect the exclusive rights that copyright holders have, we as a not-for-profit educational institution value our rights to fair use of materials as outlined in the law. These include certain educational exemptions for fair use, classroom and online teaching, and circulation of library materials. We recognize that we must review all four factors outlined in Section 107 of the Copyright Act, in order to assess whether a use falls within the fair use exemption. These include:
1.) The purpose and character of the use
2.) The nature of the copyrighted work
3.) The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole
4.) The effect of the use upon the potential market for, or value of, the copyrighted work (U.S. Copyright Office, 2012).
Members of our community who wish to use copyrighted materials outside of the parameters of fair use or other educational copyright exemptions are encouraged to contact the copyright holder for permission. For information regarding student violations of this policy: see Academic Violations section within the Student Handbook.