Email dated Monday 1 December 2008 Concerning COI-C

On Mon, 1 Dec 2008 14:23:06 -0800, "Human Resources" wrote:

December 1, 2008

Dear colleagues:

As Fall term comes to a close, we would like to share with you plans for a substantial upgrade and clarification of current UO practice and policy in Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment (COI-C). While the UO has a long-standing policy to address this area of professional practice, there are new requirements that have arisen from a review of our COI-C efforts that require annual disclosures of any potential or actual conflicts of interest or commitment. These requirements arise out of state law and State Board of Higher Education Internal Management Directives (IMDs) designed to implement that law. They are detailed in Personnel Practices Policy 3.095 (the pertinent URL is provided below). By complying with these requirements, you help protect yourself from issues, including ethical concerns, which could result from external consulting, business associations, or other external professional relationships.

It is common for faculty to cultivate professional relationships that extend beyond the boundaries of their conventional UO appointments. Most such relationships are entirely appropriate, though in some cases they may reflect a perception of or actual Conflict of Interest or Commitment (COI-C). Generally, faculty disclosures under COI-C reflect cutting edge scholarship and research that has application to address societal needs and/or professional activities that reflect a broader engagement with the community which the University fully supports in principle.

Disclosure and successfully managing potential COI-C is the mechanism that will facilitate outside relationships now and in the future and can protect you from the possible penalties that can be imposed on you by Oregon state laws. Many of you already have disclosed your outside activities in the past. However, we are implementing some new and, we hope, easier and more integrated procedures for your disclosures. And, importantly, we are implementing a policy that requires all of us to carry out a yearly, mandatory disclosure as is typical of many major research universities nationally.

For those who are not familiar with the process, our current (Personnel Practices 3.095) and a draft of the revised policy regarding conflicts of interest and commitment can be reached via the Academic Affairs website at http://academicaffairs.uoregon.edu . (From the Academic Affairs web page, click on the "Conflict of Interest and Commitment" link on the right-hand side of the page. This will take you to the COI-C Disclosure page.) The current and draft policies are at the top of the left hand menu of the COI-C Disclosure page. We strongly urge you to review these documents as they relate to your personal circumstances. A campus wide roll out of the disclosure process is scheduled for January 2009, and you may choose to wait until that time to complete and submit your disclosure form. All disclosures are due to ORCR by January 31, 2009.

The Office Responsible Conduct of Research (ORCR) headed by Lynette Schenkel, Assistant Vice President, Responsible Conduct of Research, is ready to help those of you who know that you need to complete the disclosure process. Catherine Coyle (ccoyle@uoregon.edu; 346-0889) in ORCR is a primary help contact. Meg Rowles, Interim Assistant Director (mrowles@uoregon.edu; 346-3863) is also available to assist you The ORCR is prepared to work with your Department Heads, Deans, and Directors to identify, minimize, and if need be, mitigate COI-C concerns. The goal is to support the relationships and outside activities that have allowed University of Oregon faculty to be at the forefront of academic fields and to collaborate with colleagues around the world. Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the ORCR.

Sincerely,

James Bean, Senior Vice President & Provost
Richard Linton, Vice President, Research and Graduate Studies
Russ Tomlin, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs