Committee on Faculty Ethics, 2008-2009
as of 7/22/08

The Committee on Faculty Ethics (CFE) receives and considers charges of violations of faculty ethics that involve the abuse of professional responsibilities as outlined in Principles of Ethical Behavior (see section 2.7 of the Faculty Handbook). The CFE also acts to promote knowledge of and adherence to the ethical principles of the faculty. The CFE is not intended to be used to seek remedies such as monetary damages. The CFE will not act when legal, mediational, or other proceedings have been initiated or are ongoing by complainants that render the CFE's pursuit of an investigation redundant or disruptive. The CFE will not act on matters that have been or should be referred for investigation and action to an administrative officer, supervisor, or another appropriately charged committee in accordance with university policies and procedures. Complaints concerning personnel actions taken by a supervisor are to be handled by the applicable grievance procedure. If ethical issues arise from, or remain unresolved following such proceedings, the CFE will be available to receive or consider charges of violations of the principles in section 2.7 of the Faculty Handbook. The Committee on Faculty Ethics is composed of one faculty member from each college, one from the library faculty, and one from the extension and outreach faculty with continued appointment. Committee members are appointed by the president of the Faculty Senate with the advice of the senate cabinet. All committee members must have tenure or continued appointment. The senate president designates one committee member to serve as chair. Voting members of the CFE serve a two-year appointment and are limited to serving two consecutive terms. A quorum of the CFE consists of two-thirds of the appointed members.

The operating procedures of the Committee on Faculty Ethics, as revised and adoped by the CFE on 4/12/96, are posted below.

College or Division   Committee Member   Term Expires
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences   To be named   2010
         
College of Architecture and Urban Studies   Mitzi Vernon, Architecture (Committee Chair)   2009
         
Pamplin College of Business   Meir Schneller, Finance, Insurance, and Bus. Law   2009
         
College of Engineering   Thomas Cousins, Civil and Environmental Engineering   2009
         
College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences   Peter Doolittle, Learning Sciences and Technologies   2009
         
College of Natural Resources   Carolyn Copenheaver, Forestry   2009
         
College of Science   To be named    2010
         
College of Veterinary Medicine   To be named    2010
         
University Libraries   To be named    2010
         
Extension and/or Outreach   Cathy Sutphin, 4-H   2009


Operating Procedures, revised and adopted by the Committee on Faculty Ethics (CFE) on 4/12/96:

The following steps constitute the planned procedure to be followed in all cases that are presented to the CFE for investigation of an alleged ethics violation by a Virginia Tech faculty member.

Case Procedure: A written incident report about the faculty member's alleged ethics violation can be submitted by anyone to the CFE chair. While the CFE is sensitive to the vulnerability and motivation of accusers, it will typically be necessary to reveal the identity of the accuser(s) to the accused. The CFE retains the right to withhold the identity of any party in an investigation. However, identity will be withheld only if, in the judgment of the CFE, anonymity will be in the best interest of all parties, and the integrity of the evidence-gathering process will not be compromised.

Step One: At a scheduled meeting, the CFE will examine all charges to determine if an ethical issue is at stake in light of the Statement of Professional Ethics and Responsibilities in the Faculty Handbook (section 2.7). Whether the charges address an ethical issue will be decided by a two-thirds majority of the CFE. The CFE will attempt to establish if legal, administrative, mediational, or other procedures are currently underway and concern issues that render the CFE's pursuit of an investigation redundant or distruptive. If any such procedures are in progress, or are known to have been initiated, the CFE will decline to investigate the charges until all other procedures are concluded. The CFE may further explore the charges with the accuser(s) and the accused, if appropriate, before making a decision about an investigation. A decision regarding the CFE's intent to investigate will be reached within 15 working days of the receipt of charges during spring and fall semesters, or within 15 working days of the beginning of the following semester if charges are filed during the summer or a university vacation.

Step Two: A letter informing both parties (and if appropriate, such individuals as the provost, deans, department heads, or the Faculty Senate president) of the CFE's decision to investigate, or not, will be sent within 10 working days of the committee decision. The letter will include a statement about the (in)appropriateness of the ethical issue(s) called into question, and the reason for the CFE's decision to (not) investigate the charge(s). If further inquiry is deemed appropriate, then the CFE will initiate an investigation. If not, then the file will be closed. If an investigation is to be initiated, the CFE chair will secure permission from the accuser(s) to reveal their name(s) to the accused (and others involved in the investigation) before any further steps can be taken. If permission is not obtained, the CFE will have to reconsider its decision in light of the need to conceal the accuser's identity. If the investigation is initiated, then the remaining eight steps will be followed unless the charge is withdrawn.

Step Three: A CFE meeting will be held within 15 working days of step two being completed, at which the CFE will attempt to:

Step Four: Step three will be repeated until the CFE is satisfied that all appropriate witnesses or sources of information have been identified. The CFE chair, or designated subcommittee chair, will then:

Step Five: The CFE will establish the location and time of interviews, and meet before the interviews to:

Step Six: Interviews will be conducted with as many CFE members as possible (but with a minimum of two). Every effort will bemade to make the interview as relaxed and non-confrontational as possible. Every effort will be made to ensure that those accused of ethics violations will be given the opportunity to be confronted with, and to respond to, all evidence being used by the CFE in its investigation.

Step Seven: A post-interview CFE meeting will be held within 10 working days of the final interview. At this meeting the CFE will review all the gathered material, interview records, charges, explanations, perceptions, reasons, etc. It will then do one of the following:

Step Eight: Within five working days of the CFE reaching a decision, the CFE chair, or designated subcommittee chair, will draft a report of the CFE's findings and recommendations to be circulated among committee members for corrections and additions.

Step Nine: Within 10 working days of completing step eight, the CFE will ratify the amended report and recommendations. The report may include minority opinions, if any, as well as the majority decision.

Step Ten: Within five working days of completing step nine, a signed copy of the report and cover letter will be sent to the accuser(s) and accused and, if necessary, to other individuals such as the president, provost, deans, department heads, or the Faculty Senate president.

The CFE chair will retain the official record of the case in the CFE filing system. The case will then be closed.

Faculty Senate, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061
Website updated on 7/22/08. Please contact Suzie Karlin with questions or comments about this website.