Faculty Senate Code of Ethics
Adopted by Faculty Senate 6/8/18
Approved by President 6/29/18
1. Constantly uphold the honor and dignity of your elected position as a member of the Faculty Senate in all personal conduct and relations with students, faculty, staff, administration, and outside constituencies.
2. Prepare for each meeting by devoting time, thought, and study to the items to be addressed at each meeting. Your response may determine the success or failure of an important item on the agenda.
3. Read and follow the By-Laws of the Faculty Senate – be aware of the trust we have from our colleagues.
4. Exercise a high level of integrity and decorum when discussing items from our agenda with colleagues.
5. Never discriminate unfairly by dispensing privileged information to anyone, and never accept favors or benefits under circumstances which might be construed by reasonable persons as influence.
6. Make no private promises to colleagues, staff or administrators on behalf of the Faculty Senate without another Faculty Senate member present. For example, you can promise not to give the name of an individual whose concern is brought before the Faculty Senate, but you cannot promise him or her the vote of the senate.
7. Expose breaches of integrity and confidence wherever and whenever discovered. Discuss this with one of the three officers in the Faculty Senate.
8. Work with fellow members in a spirit of harmony and cooperation in spite of differences of opinion that may arise.
Standards of Conduct
1. Do not use your position to influence or to gain special favors.
2. Do not give preferential treatment (inside information) to any member of the staff, faculty, or administrators unless assigned that specific duty.
3. Do not make a commitment or decision for the Faculty Senate without consulting one of the three officers or receiving the full support of the Faculty Senate.
4. No member of the Faculty Senate, in the presence of staff, colleagues, or administrators, should criticize any other member of the Faculty Senate for actions carried out in the execution of his or her senatorial duties.
5. No member of the Faculty Senate shall miss a meeting without notifying one of the officers.
6. No senator shall reveal or discuss how other senators voted on senate business.
7. Solicit information only from your school unless you are asked or assigned by committee to do otherwise. (This is not intended to discourage the normal, informal conversations between the faculty of different schools.)
8. Two members of the Faculty Senate MUST attend any meeting in which, a policy change is considered and the Faculty Senate has been asked to attend and explain our position on the policy, or other business relevant to the senate. Also, the discussion at these meetings should be limited to previously identified topics. If other topics are addressed, members of the Faculty Senate will excuse themselves from further discussion.
9. Personality conflicts will not be tolerated during a scheduled or non-scheduled Faculty Senate meeting or our attendance at another EGSC meeting. Personality conflicts MUST be left at the door during senate meetings, especially regarding speakers or guests.
10. Nothing discussed at our meetings should be construed as a personal attack. This can be very difficult. Emotions can be misinterpreted as a personal attack when actually they are not. The presiding officer will rule such comments out-of-order as stated in Roberts Rules.
