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'''Policies''' are the foundational principles of the site. They should not be confused with [[VassarWiki:Guidelines|guidelines]], which are records of community consensus.
{{Proposal}}


== Be bold! ==
'''Policies''' are foundational principles of VassarWiki that contributors should always follow. Like everything on the wiki, they are established by community consensus.


Contributions generally do not require prior approval, so be bold! If someone finds an issue with your edit, it can be reverted and discussed on a chat page. Though not required, it's encouraged that you understand VassarWiki policy and any relevant guidelines before editing.  
== Build and respect consensus ==
'''Disputes over content should be resolved through consensus-building on the relevant talk page.''' While voting can be utilized, it should not act as a replacement for discussion.  


== Source your edits on encyclopedia pages ==
If you disagree with the outcome of a dispute, please respect the community's decision and move on. At the same time, consensus can change; discussions can be reopened if the facts have changed or if sufficient time has passed to shift community opinion.


All content on encyclopedia pages must be sourced. By sourcing your edits, you help the project be tethered to reality, as well as help readers find resources. Sources fall into three categories, listed in decreasing authority:
While a dispute is ongoing, the page in question should remain at the ''status quo ante bellum''.<ref>Latin for "status quo before the conflict"</ref> If waiting for a discussion to play out is especially untenable (e.g. the content presents a legal issue), please [[VassarWiki:Reports|report]] the page and it will be dealt with by an [[VassarWiki:Administrators|administrator]]. Reverting back and forth, known as ''edit warring'', is not tolerated (even if you're right).


# Reliable publications like external newspapers/journals, The Miscellany News, and official Vassar websites
== Leave a trail ==
# Public statements by VSA-recognized student organizations
'''It should be clear where content came from.'''
# Current or past Vassar individuals (including you!)


Content on profiles does not need to be sourced, as the user is presumed to be the source. Please sign all messages on chat pages with "[[User:Ewelchmorgan|Ewelchmorgan]] ([[User talk:Ewelchmorgan|talk]]) 02:06, 29 March 2026 (UTC)".
Source content with inline references<ref>Like this one!</ref> whenever possible.<ref group="help">To produce references with the Visual Editor, click the "Cite" button. On the Source Editor, click the book with a ribbon or write the reference content within <code><nowiki><ref></nowiki></code> </ref> Acceptable sources include reliable external publications, public statements from groups, or first-hand accounts from community members (including yourself). Citations don't have to be in any citation style, but you should hyperlink to relevant VassarWiki pages or external websites when possible.


=== Don't steal ===
Sign all your messages on talk pages.<ref group="help">The Visual Editor does this for you automatically on talk pages. When in the Source Editor, you can add your signature with four tildes (<code>~</code>).</ref>


All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain. If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, please link to it in an "External links" section. All contributions made on VassarWiki is released under the [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License].
For each contribution you make, write a short edit summary when prompted; this helps readers navigate page histories.
== Don't steal ==
{{See also|VassarWiki:Disclaimer}}
'''All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain.'''


=== Don't censor information you don't like ===
If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, provide a hyperlink to it. By contributing to VassarWiki, you agree to release your contribution under the [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License].
VassarWiki is not censored.  


As a result of this principle, negativity towards any subject is allowed. On encyclopedia pages, negative information must be from a neutral point of view, verified by sources of types 1 or 2.  
If another resource (e.g. Wikipedia, Vassar Encyclopedia) provides a comprehensive overview of a subject, link to it rather than mirroring its content.


Content concerning living people is held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.  
== Don't censor ==
'''VassarWiki is not censored.''' As a result of this principle, negativity towards any subject is allowed. Like all content, negative content should be sourced and written from a neutral point of view on encyclopedia pages. Information about living people is held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.
== Respect privacy ==
{{See also|VassarWiki:Privacy policy}}
'''Respect other people's privacy when including information.'''


=== Don't be a jerk ===
Identifying information of living individuals should not be included unless at least one of three criteria are met:


Please be respectful and civil. Harassment, defamation, and privacy violations are not tolerated. Nonconstructive edits will be removed, and responsible editors may be permanently or temporarily suspended from editing VassarWiki.
# the information is unambiguously public and of nontrivial encyclopedic value (e.g. the name of a speaker at Commencement)
# the individual provides explicit permission for that context (e.g. they contribute the identifying information themself)
# the inclusion would result in little social consequence (e.g. the individual and their cohort are dead)


=== Resolve disputes through building consensus ===
When none of these criteria apply, requests for the removal of identifying information must be fulfilled.


Disputes over content should be discussed on the respective talk page and ''resolved through consensus''. While voting can be utilized, it should not act as a replacement for discussion.  
== Be a good person ==
'''Be respectful and civil on VassarWiki.''' Assume that other editors are here in good faith to improve the project, unless there is clear evidence to the contrary. Harassment, defamation, and privacy violations are not tolerated. Deliberately nonconstructive edits will be quickly removed, and responsible users may be suspended from editing VassarWiki.  


Where there is a dispute and a consensus hasn't yet formed or cannot form, the page should remain at the ''status quo ante bellum''. If this is for some reason especially untenable, please report the page and it will be dealt with by an administrator. Edit warring (reverting back and forth) is not tolerated (even if you're right).
== See also ==


If a dispute doesn't go your way, respect the decision. VassarWiki relies on consensus.
* [[VassarWiki:Guidelines]], best practices developed by consensus
* [[VassarWiki:Privacy policy]]
 
== Notes ==
<references />
 
=== Help ===
<references group="help" />

Latest revision as of 04:52, 6 August 2026

📝
This project page is a proposal open for community discussion.

Policies are foundational principles of VassarWiki that contributors should always follow. Like everything on the wiki, they are established by community consensus.

Build and respect consensus

Disputes over content should be resolved through consensus-building on the relevant talk page. While voting can be utilized, it should not act as a replacement for discussion.

If you disagree with the outcome of a dispute, please respect the community's decision and move on. At the same time, consensus can change; discussions can be reopened if the facts have changed or if sufficient time has passed to shift community opinion.

While a dispute is ongoing, the page in question should remain at the status quo ante bellum.[1] If waiting for a discussion to play out is especially untenable (e.g. the content presents a legal issue), please report the page and it will be dealt with by an administrator. Reverting back and forth, known as edit warring, is not tolerated (even if you're right).

Leave a trail

It should be clear where content came from.

Source content with inline references[2] whenever possible.[help 1] Acceptable sources include reliable external publications, public statements from groups, or first-hand accounts from community members (including yourself). Citations don't have to be in any citation style, but you should hyperlink to relevant VassarWiki pages or external websites when possible.

Sign all your messages on talk pages.[help 2]

For each contribution you make, write a short edit summary when prompted; this helps readers navigate page histories.

Don't steal

All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain.

If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, provide a hyperlink to it. By contributing to VassarWiki, you agree to release your contribution under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

If another resource (e.g. Wikipedia, Vassar Encyclopedia) provides a comprehensive overview of a subject, link to it rather than mirroring its content.

Don't censor

VassarWiki is not censored. As a result of this principle, negativity towards any subject is allowed. Like all content, negative content should be sourced and written from a neutral point of view on encyclopedia pages. Information about living people is held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.

Respect privacy

Respect other people's privacy when including information.

Identifying information of living individuals should not be included unless at least one of three criteria are met:

  1. the information is unambiguously public and of nontrivial encyclopedic value (e.g. the name of a speaker at Commencement)
  2. the individual provides explicit permission for that context (e.g. they contribute the identifying information themself)
  3. the inclusion would result in little social consequence (e.g. the individual and their cohort are dead)

When none of these criteria apply, requests for the removal of identifying information must be fulfilled.

Be a good person

Be respectful and civil on VassarWiki. Assume that other editors are here in good faith to improve the project, unless there is clear evidence to the contrary. Harassment, defamation, and privacy violations are not tolerated. Deliberately nonconstructive edits will be quickly removed, and responsible users may be suspended from editing VassarWiki.

See also

Notes

  1. Latin for "status quo before the conflict"
  2. Like this one!

Help

  1. To produce references with the Visual Editor, click the "Cite" button. On the Source Editor, click the book with a ribbon or write the reference content within <ref>
  2. The Visual Editor does this for you automatically on talk pages. When in the Source Editor, you can add your signature with four tildes (~).