Tech Forum

Hello. I have just been set apart as ward clerk. My ward's website has NEVER been added to. The only thing that exists on it is the membership directory. Things like Leadership directory, ward calendar, etc. are all blank. I've tried getting a hold of my Stake's Technology Specialist, but no luck there yet.

Isn't it part of the ward clerk's job description to update the unit's site? I have all access in MLS, but nobody seems to know how to get info added to the ward's site.

Things I would like to do:

Post a picture of our Bishopric on the site (I've seen this on every other ward's site I've ever visited)
Get the "Leadership Directory" to actually show the people with certain callings (i.e., the Bishopric, Relief Society, YM and YW presidencies, etc.) and their contact info right next to them
Assist the EQ and RS in posting their respective newsletters
Create a "Google Docs" type of environment in which presidencies can post info in real time for the ward council to access for ward council and PEC meetings

Is there a way to do these things? Am I the one that's supposed to do them?

Thanks!

You just need to get your stake administrator to add you or whomever your bishop designates as a ward administrator for your ward's site. You will then be able to update it.

Markdavidson78 wrote:Isn't it part of the ward clerk's job description to update the unit's site?

Not necessarily. It's common for the clerk to do it since they have the information. And who ever admins the site can see some sensitive information such as full legal name and birth date. So it should be someone with the trustworthiness of a clerk.

But feel free to pawn it off to an assistant.

Markdavidson78 wrote: Get the "Leadership Directory" to actually show the people with certain callings (i.e., the Bishopric, Relief Society, YM and YW presidencies, etc.) and their contact info right next to them

You may want to consider having people refer to the leadership directory on new.lds.org since it pulls all the callings from MLS

I even added a 'calling' in the old website that tells people to refer to new.lds.org/directory

ryan jones wrote:You may want to consider having people refer to the leadership directory on new.lds.org since it pulls all the callings from MLS

I even added a 'calling' in the old website that tells people to refer to new.lds.org/directory

This option is okay but it would be great to have a toggle in LUWS for a ward to select to redirect the visitor from the LUWS leadership directory/calendar to the corresponding one on http://new.lds.org.

nimebe wrote:This option is okay but it would be great to have a toggle in LUWS for a ward to select to redirect the visitor from the LUWS leadership directory/calendar to the corresponding one on http://new.lds.org.

I like that idea. I submitted it as feedback. I couldn't find a good way to submit feedback on LUWS, so I used the new directory feedback.

You might also want to check out the wiki as well, specifically https://tech.lds.org/wiki/index.php/Local_Unit_Website

Markdavidson78 wrote:Create a "Google Docs" type of environment in which presidencies can post info in real time for the ward council to access for ward council and PEC meetings

I am hesitant to endorse this suggestion.

Hi. May I ask why the google-docs-type of database (not the actual google docs) might be a bad idea?

Thanks, and thanks to EVERYONE for their feedback!

Markdavidson78 wrote:Hi. May I ask why the google-docs-type of database (not the actual google docs) might be a bad idea?

The hesitancy comes from not knowing what info is posted and where it would be posted. There is no way on the ward website to post items so just the presidencies and ward council can view them. Everything posted is accessible to everyone in the stake. If the documents are innocuous, then it probably doesn't matter. If, however, confidential information is included, then this method is inappropriate.

As for the question of where, use of any type of third party service (google docs, for example) is not allowed. If you are using LUWS, the only section that allows you to upload files is the News and Information section. As long as the confidentiality concern is addressed, I see no issue.

crislapi wrote:As for the question of where, use of any type of third party service (google docs, for example) is not allowed. If you are using LUWS, the only section that allows you to upload files is the News and Information section. As long as the confidentiality concern is addressed, I see no issue.

I know priesthood leaders who use Google Docs to share selective information among themselves. (Such practices have been the subject of several posts here.)

AFAIK, other than the general requirement to keep confidential information secure, there is no articulated policy against using Google Docs. There is an admonition, articulated in various comments on this forum by ICS administrators, against uploading to a third-party server any data that has been downloaded from Church systems. That would include Google Docs, but that is a narrower restriction as to content.