As a KUMC Faculty, Staff or Student, what are my rights and obligations concerning copyright compliance?
The University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC) requires its faculty, staff, and students to comply with the United States Copyright Act. Faculty, staff and students shall download, possess, or store only lawfully acquired copyrighted materials and use, adapt, distribute, or perform them only in ways consistent with the Copyright Act, associated case law, the Fair Use principle, and the intellectual property rights of others. Please view the University of Kansas Medical Center Policy and Guidelines. All faculty and staff should consult with the Copyright Compliance office prior to posting new material to assure copyright compliance. Please view the University of Kansas Medical Center Copyright Compliance website for assistance with understanding, interpreting and complying with the copyright law.
How do I obtain copyright clearance for materials I am using in my online course?
Submit a bibliography and completed copyright cover form to the KUMC Copyright and Document Delivery Office. We obtain permissions, post copyright protected materials on your behalf, and notify you when they are ready.
As a KUMC Faculty, Staff, or Student, do I have rights to make copies of others' articles, chapters from text books or other writings?
Yes, these rights are within the Fair Use guidelines. Works protected by copyright may be used for educational, research or scholarly purposes either with the permission of the copyright owner, or through the Fair Use provisions of the copyright law. As a state-supported, non-profit, educational institution, KUMC faculty, staff and students generally have Fair Use rights to reproduce copies of materials for personal use in keeping with the following four factors:
the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;
the nature of the copyrighted work (i.e., can the work be excerpted or must it be used whole);
the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work
Additionally, works protected by copyright may be used for teaching purposes either with the permission of the copyright owner, or through the Fair Use provisions of the copyright law. As a state-supported, non-profit, educational institution, KUMC faculty generally have Fair Use rights to reproduce copies of materials for the classroom. Multiple copying of copyrighted materials for classroom use is permissible when:
Can KUMC Faculty, Staff or Students distribute others' readings or images for which ownership is unknown and permissions not sought?
Fair Use may apply if KUMC can show due diligence. In cases where the ownership of text or images is obscure and not easily identifiable, and thus the time frame needed to distribute the material prohibits the lengthy permissions seeking process, Fair Use may be relied upon. For readings and images containing readily identifiable rights holders which have permissions-seeking systems in place, permissions must be sought and granted before the materials can be distributed. If you are with the University of Kansas Medical Center, please call, 913-588-5073, or email for assistance.
As a KUMC Faculty or Staff, what are my rights and obligations concerning the TEACH Act?
The Technology, Education, and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act is a full revision of Section 110(2) of the U.S. Copyright Act and became law in late 2002. TEACH addresses the use of digital content in distance education and makes significant distinctions between face-to-face classroom teaching and distance education. If you are displaying or performing the works of others in a distance setting, you must either comply with the TEACH Act or follow Fair Use guidelines.
Follow these websites for more details about the TEACH ACT