Sponsors
Elizabeth Skowron (College of Education, Senate Vice President)
Motion
Section I
1.1 WHEREAS a joint administrative and senate task force was charged by the University President and University Senate President with reviewing and revising the former “Conflicts of Interest, Potential” policy; and
1.2 WHEREAS University employees are encouraged to engage in outside activities that advance the mission of the University with the expectation that those activities be proactively disclosed if they would or could present a conflict of interest so they can be managed in a manner that protects integrity, ensures legal compliance, and promotes good stewardship of public resources; and
1.3 WHEREAS the University is prohibited from authorizing outside compensation that “does not comport with the mission of the public university or substantially interferes with an officer’s or employee’s duties to the university.” (ORS 352.232(2)); and
1.4 WHEREAS the current policy was first adopted in 1991, provides unclear guidance about permitted and unpermitted outside activities, currently overlaps unnecessarily with other policies specific to sponsored research, and is not clear which employee groups it covers, though state ethics law applies to all employees; and
1.5 WHEREAS the current policy addresses both conflict of interest and conflict of commitment; and
1.6 WHEREAS the joint Administration-Senate committee charged with this work sought to set forth principles that permit university employees to engage in activities outside the university while preserving their primary professional responsibilities to the university, and not interfere with academic and personal freedoms involved in choosing to engage in those outside activities;
Section II
2.1 THEREFORE BE IT MOVED the University Senate approves the revisions to the existing policy “Conflict of Interest, Potential,” with this revised policy proposal entitled, “Conflict of Interest, Conflict of Commitment, and Outside Activities” as outlined in the Related Documents.
1.1 WHEREAS a joint administrative and senate task force was charged by the University President and University Senate President with reviewing and revising the former “Conflicts of Interest, Potential” policy; and
1.2 WHEREAS University employees are encouraged to engage in outside activities that advance the mission of the University with the expectation that those activities be proactively disclosed if they would or could present a conflict of interest so they can be managed in a manner that protects integrity, ensures legal compliance, and promotes good stewardship of public resources; and
1.3 WHEREAS the University is prohibited from authorizing outside compensation that “does not comport with the mission of the public university or substantially interferes with an officer’s or employee’s duties to the university.” (ORS 352.232(2)); and
1.4 WHEREAS the current policy was first adopted in 1991, provides unclear guidance about permitted and unpermitted outside activities, currently overlaps unnecessarily with other policies specific to sponsored research, and is not clear which employee groups it covers, though state ethics law applies to all employees; and
1.5 WHEREAS the current policy addresses both conflict of interest and conflict of commitment; and
1.6 WHEREAS the joint Administration-Senate committee charged with this work sought to set forth principles that permit university employees to engage in activities outside the university while preserving their primary professional responsibilities to the university, and not interfere with academic and personal freedoms involved in choosing to engage in those outside activities;
Section II
2.1 THEREFORE BE IT MOVED the University Senate approves the revisions to the existing policy “Conflict of Interest, Potential,” with this revised policy proposal entitled, “Conflict of Interest, Conflict of Commitment, and Outside Activities” as outlined in the Related Documents.