I. Purpose and Scope
This policy applies to William & Mary and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (the university). It applies to all university departments, schools, programs, and offices, which are collectively referred to herein as "units." The policy applies to employees (including faculty), students, and volunteers.
The purpose of this policy is to establish requirements and procedures for ground transportation. This policy applies to
- university vehicles - any use of university vehicles, including those controlled by departments, offices and sanctioned groups within the university community.
- Personal vehicles - University faculty, staff, students or volunteers operating a personal vehicle on university business or, to the extent described in this policy, in the course of university-related activities.
- Commercially rented vehicles used for university business or university-related activities.
"University business" means actions undertaken by university employees (including faculty and student employees) or volunteers acting within the scope of their employment or authorization. Examples of university business include running errands for a department, attending a meeting off-campus, and advisory service trips (in accordance with VIMS's mission). Examples of travel that does not constitute university business include commuting to work or driving to voluntary social events hosted by the university.
"University-related activities" for purposes of this Policy means those events, trips and activities that are
(1) organized by university faculty or staff and required or mandatory elements of the related course, activity, or program, which may include travel for academic research;
(2) organized by a recognized student organization and formally approved by a university official;
(3) field work as part of sponsored research; or
(4) directly funded by the university.
Examples of university-related activities include:
- Student Volunteer Services trips or other volunteer or public outreach programs that are under the supervision and control of the university
- required academic field trips that have on-site supervision by a university faculty or staff person
- authorized trips by recreational sport clubs.
Examples of travel that generally do not constitute either "university business" or "university-related activities" include:
- commuting to and from the university
- optional, "enrichment" field trips
- travel by students to remote locations to engage in internships, externships, practicums, or student-teaching
- attending (rather than participating in) a university athletic event and
- student organization trips that have not been specifically funded, organized or approved by the university.
If you have any questions as to whether a given trip qualifies as "university business" or a "university-related activity," please check whether your question is answered in the Guidance for Implementation of Vehicle Use Policy, or contact the [[kdfaga,university's Risk Manager]].
