Name game
Sun, Sep03, 2006 - Category: Foundation
Did Ave Maria University break U.S. Department of
Commerce regulations governing the use of .edu domain
names?
University's use of domain name appears to be
outside Dept. of Commerce requirements
In September 2006, typing "avemaria.edu" into a web browser automatically took you to the Ave Maria University (Florida) website (http://www.naples.avemaria.edu/index.asp). The problem is that "avemaria.edu" is not registered to Ave Maria University but rather a wholly separate institution, with its own Board of Trustees, payroll, student enrollment, etc - Ave Maria College (Michigan).
The domain registration read (on Sept 1, 2006)
********
Domain Name: AVEMARIA.EDU
Registrant:
Ave Maria College
300 West Forest Ave.
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
Administrative Contact:
Marc R. Magos
IT Manager/Systems Administrator
Ave Maria College
300 West Forest Ave
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
(734) XXX-XXXX
XXX@avemaria.edu
Technical Contact:
Marc R. Magos
IT Manager / Systems Administrator
Ave Maria College
300 W. Forest
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
(734) XXX-XXXX
XXX@avemaria.edu
Name Servers:
NS1.BIZ.RR.COM
NS2.BIZ.RR.COM
Domain record activated: 15-May-2000
Domain record last updated: 27-Jul-2006
Domain expires: 31-Jul-2007
********
The .edu domain names, as regulated by the U.S. Department of Commerce, cannot be shared or transfered between independent academic institutions (see below). In fact, the University appears to have been illegally using the .edu domain name for both web and email communication since at least 2003 when the University had no accreditation and no degree-granting status (both of which have been required by the Dept. of Commerce since 2001). This problem was reported to Ave Maria administration by at least one employee, but was ignored. If AMU had been any other institution (i.e. if AMU did not have Monaghan/AMF as its primary donor), AMU would have been forced to make application to, and pay, the Dept. of Commerce for a unique .edu domain name; under the rules, AMU should not have used any .edu domain name until 2005 when AMU was granted pre-accreditation status. Thus, AMU appeared to the public as a seemingly accredited school since at least 2003, and did not have to follow Department of Commerce regulations and use either a .org (i.e. Southern Catholic College (http://www.southerncatholic.org) or .com (i.e. Wyoming Catholic College (http://www.wyomingcatholiccollege.com) domain name until accreditation was earned.
excerpt from .edu domain name regulations:
(bold added for emphasis only)
********
Policy Information
On October 29, 2001, the U.S. Department of Commerce awarded a five-year Cooperative Agreement to EDUCAUSE to manage the .edu top-level domain. On February 2, 2006, the cooperative agreement was extended for an additional five years. That agreement and subsequent amendments set forward policies for managing the domain, including policies governing what institutions are eligible for names in the .edu domain. In particular:
* All institutions holding names as of October 29, 2001 in the .edu domain will be allowed to keep them without regard to institutional eligibility requirements at this time.
* Institutions that do not already hold a name in the .edu domain are eligible to receive one if they are post-secondary institutions that are institutionally accredited, i.e., the entire institution and not just particular programs, by agencies on the U.S. Department of Education's list of Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies (see recognized accrediting bodies). These include both "Regional Institutional Accrediting Agencies" and "National Institutional and Specialized Accrediting Bodies." Note that institutional accreditation is required for .edu eligibility; program accreditation is not sufficient.
* Only a single name in the .edu domain will be assigned to any given institution.
Amendment 6
On July 25, 2003, Amendment 6 to the Cooperative Agreement clarified and changed several important policies applicable to the .edu top-level domain:
* Names in the .edu top-level domain, regardless of when issued, may not be transferred in any way by the Registrant to any other entity.
* Transferring" includes selling, trading, leasing, assigning, or any other means of transferring.
* Names in the .edu top-level domain that are not grandfathered must reasonably represent the name of the Registrant, may not be deployed to identify any organization other than the Registrant, and may not be "generic names."
* Registrants in violation of these policies will be notified by EDUCAUSE in writing. Violations not corrected in 45 days will result in removal of the registration of the .edu name.
* EDUCAUSE will conduct a six-month study of .edu names not in compliance with current policies and will make recommendations to the Department of Commerce with respect to bringing such registrations into compliance.
In September 2006, typing "avemaria.edu" into a web browser automatically took you to the Ave Maria University (Florida) website (http://www.naples.avemaria.edu/index.asp). The problem is that "avemaria.edu" is not registered to Ave Maria University but rather a wholly separate institution, with its own Board of Trustees, payroll, student enrollment, etc - Ave Maria College (Michigan).
The domain registration read (on Sept 1, 2006)
********
Domain Name: AVEMARIA.EDU
Registrant:
Ave Maria College
300 West Forest Ave.
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
Administrative Contact:
Marc R. Magos
IT Manager/Systems Administrator
Ave Maria College
300 West Forest Ave
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
(734) XXX-XXXX
XXX@avemaria.edu
Technical Contact:
Marc R. Magos
IT Manager / Systems Administrator
Ave Maria College
300 W. Forest
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
UNITED STATES
(734) XXX-XXXX
XXX@avemaria.edu
Name Servers:
NS1.BIZ.RR.COM
NS2.BIZ.RR.COM
Domain record activated: 15-May-2000
Domain record last updated: 27-Jul-2006
Domain expires: 31-Jul-2007
********
The .edu domain names, as regulated by the U.S. Department of Commerce, cannot be shared or transfered between independent academic institutions (see below). In fact, the University appears to have been illegally using the .edu domain name for both web and email communication since at least 2003 when the University had no accreditation and no degree-granting status (both of which have been required by the Dept. of Commerce since 2001). This problem was reported to Ave Maria administration by at least one employee, but was ignored. If AMU had been any other institution (i.e. if AMU did not have Monaghan/AMF as its primary donor), AMU would have been forced to make application to, and pay, the Dept. of Commerce for a unique .edu domain name; under the rules, AMU should not have used any .edu domain name until 2005 when AMU was granted pre-accreditation status. Thus, AMU appeared to the public as a seemingly accredited school since at least 2003, and did not have to follow Department of Commerce regulations and use either a .org (i.e. Southern Catholic College (http://www.southerncatholic.org) or .com (i.e. Wyoming Catholic College (http://www.wyomingcatholiccollege.com) domain name until accreditation was earned.
excerpt from .edu domain name regulations:
(bold added for emphasis only)
********
Policy Information
On October 29, 2001, the U.S. Department of Commerce awarded a five-year Cooperative Agreement to EDUCAUSE to manage the .edu top-level domain. On February 2, 2006, the cooperative agreement was extended for an additional five years. That agreement and subsequent amendments set forward policies for managing the domain, including policies governing what institutions are eligible for names in the .edu domain. In particular:
* All institutions holding names as of October 29, 2001 in the .edu domain will be allowed to keep them without regard to institutional eligibility requirements at this time.
* Institutions that do not already hold a name in the .edu domain are eligible to receive one if they are post-secondary institutions that are institutionally accredited, i.e., the entire institution and not just particular programs, by agencies on the U.S. Department of Education's list of Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies (see recognized accrediting bodies). These include both "Regional Institutional Accrediting Agencies" and "National Institutional and Specialized Accrediting Bodies." Note that institutional accreditation is required for .edu eligibility; program accreditation is not sufficient.
* Only a single name in the .edu domain will be assigned to any given institution.
Amendment 6
On July 25, 2003, Amendment 6 to the Cooperative Agreement clarified and changed several important policies applicable to the .edu top-level domain:
* Names in the .edu top-level domain, regardless of when issued, may not be transferred in any way by the Registrant to any other entity.
* Transferring" includes selling, trading, leasing, assigning, or any other means of transferring.
* Names in the .edu top-level domain that are not grandfathered must reasonably represent the name of the Registrant, may not be deployed to identify any organization other than the Registrant, and may not be "generic names."
* Registrants in violation of these policies will be notified by EDUCAUSE in writing. Violations not corrected in 45 days will result in removal of the registration of the .edu name.
* EDUCAUSE will conduct a six-month study of .edu names not in compliance with current policies and will make recommendations to the Department of Commerce with respect to bringing such registrations into compliance.