The Office of Communications took over administrative control of the MyDeis Facebook pages and passed on the pages’ moderator powers to the class senators. 

The Admissions Office had previously monitored the MyDeis pages until the Friday before Orientation, when they opened the groups to other class years and ceded control of the pages to moderators. In the past, anyone part of the group could become a moderator or administrator as long as a current moderator or administrator approved. This has caused issues in the past, such as when then-Class of 2022 Senator Alex Chang took over sole administratorship of the MyDeis Class of 2020 page through non-University profiles.

In an Aug. 30 interview with the Justice, Assistant Director of Social Media Strategy Allie Morse clarified that the Office of Communications was planning to implement a monitoring system in early fall 2018, about a month or two before Chang’s actions took place.

Morse compared the groups as they previously operated to “islands of lost toys,” saying they mostly operated as club listings and event announcements. Because the pages started out as official extensions of the University, Morse said this initiative was meant to keep them that way by placing them under the control of the Office of Communications, but said the office was not trying to hinder how the groups used to work.

Under the direction of Morse, the page is now only open to Brandeis students; alumni, parents and businesses are not allowed in the groups. The Admissions Office still controlled the pages until the Friday before Orientation, and during that time only students in that class year are allowed in the group, with the exception of some people who work with the incoming class, such as Roosevelt Fellows.

In order to join the groups, users must answer three questions, Morse said. They must verify their Brandeis email address, their class year and their full name. Users must also abide by the rules of the group posted by the University on each page as well as in the Brandeis Rights and Responsibilities and they may face disciplinary action for any violations. 

Users should treat others with kindness and respect, avoid spamming the pages with more than one event post and refrain from corporate promotion posts, per the rules. In addition, the guidelines specify that if the Office of Communications thinks that a user is impersonating someone else, acting in an official capacity when not authorized to do so or blocking moderators and administrators, those actions can result in removal from the group.

Once the new members of the Union are sworn into office, the Office of Communications will start a transition to student moderators, who will be the respective class senators. These students will undergo training on what to do in certain situations and how to screen for membership. They, too, will be bound by the Brandeis Rights and Responsibilities.

—Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct a quote.