Question - Original Art

An art instructor at the community college agrees to create an original work and donate it to a non-profit group for auction at an upcoming fundraising event. She throws a pot on her own wheel at home, then brings it to the college and fires it in the art department's kiln. Later, when the finished piece is displayed at the auction, she is identified as the contributing artist, both by name and as an instructor at the college. Is the piece she created a "personal work" or does the college have an ownership interest in it?

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The piece is a personal work. The fact that she used the art department's kiln is relevant only if she is not allowed even incidental personal use of college facilities (which is unlikely) or if she uses the kiln excessively (for instance, routinely fires pieces which she then sells for personal profit). Her use of the kiln in this instance does not appear to rise to the level of "substantial use" because the resources provided by the college are not "beyond the normal support services extended to individuals for development of work products." (Board Policy 3.26, Part 4, Subpart B.5) Similarly, because she is not using her status as a college instructor to gain personal advantage and because donating the artwork does not create a conflict of interest for her with regard to her college duties, identifying her as a college instructor does not alter the work's status as a "personal work."