PIERCE COLLEGE FACULTY CODE OF ETHICS

Adopted by the Senate May 14, 1990

Revised by the Senate December 4, 1995

Revised by the Senate March 19,2001

Revised by the Senate March 23, 2015

Revised by the Senate May 10, 2021

While there are many definitions of what it means to be a professional, common to them all is the belief that a professional is a member of a self-regulating body. To this end, the Senate of the Pierce College Faculty has adopted the following Code of Ethics with

operational guidelines.

This code has been modeled after the code of ethics adopted by the American Association of University Professors, but differs significantly from that code in that it specifically addresses the special obligations of Community College faculty.

This code is adopted with the hope that making our values explicit and insisting on a campus culture that promotes and protects these values will enhance professionalism.

Section I. We acknowledge our responsibility to be truthful and forthcoming in our intellectual and academic pursuits:

1. We recognize our obligation to develop and maintain scholarly competence and design and deliver content that is equitable.

2. We acknowledge our responsibility to defend the right of free inquiry and expression.

3. We accept the obligation to practice intellectual honesty and humility.

Section II. Faculty encourage the free pursuit of learning by acknowledging our obligations:

1. To respect students as individuals.

2. To serve as intellectual guides and advisors.

3. To foster honest academic conduct.

4. To ensure that evaluation reflects the student's true academic merit, and NOT personality, race, religion, political activism, personal beliefs, identity, or other non-academic criteria.

5. To respect the confidential nature of the faculty/student relationship.

6. To always treat students as ends in themselves, and never as means to our own ends.

7. To create a learning environment of trust and sensitivity.

8. To protect and advance academic freedom of students.

Section III. As members in the community of scholars, we acknowledge the obligations:

1. To defend the right of associates to engage in free inquiry.

2. To show due respect for the opinions of others.

3. To accept a share of faculty responsibility for governance of the academic institution.

4. To fulfill our responsibilities as specified in our contract of employment with the LACCD.

Section IV. Faculty seek above all to be effective teachers and scholars:

1. The faculty member's primary responsibility is to the instructional role within the institution. A faculty member determines the amount and character of the work done outside the institution with due regard to his/her paramount responsibilities within the institution.

2. There is an obligation to give due notice in the event of interruption or mtermination of services.

Section V. As educators, we accept certain obligations to the community at large:

1. Whether inside or outside the classroom, we avoid creating the impression that, when speaking as individuals, we speak or act for the college.

2. We accept the obligation to promote conditions of free inquiry and to promote public understanding of academic freedom.

3. In the conduct of our professional duties, faculty members are obliged to behave in a manner consistent with the Education Code and the laws of the land.

Section VI. We work to promote the rights of students:

1. Faculty shall act in accordance to the mission statement of the California Community Colleges and in compliance with the current union contract.

2. Faculty accept the obligation to present the subject matter of the course as announced to the students and to cover the approved curriculum.

PIERCE COLLEGE FACULTY CODE OF ETHICS WITH OPERATIONAL GUIDELINES

Adopted by the Senate December 4, 1995

While there are many definitions of what it means to be a professional, common to them all is the belief that a professional is a member of a self-regulating body. To this end, the Senate of the Pierce College Faculty has adopted the following Code of Ethics with

operational guidelines.

This code has been modeled after the code of ethics adopted by the American Association of University Professors, but differs significantly from that code in that it specifically addresses the special obligations of Community College faculty.

This code is adopted with the hope that making our values explicit and insisting on a campus culture that promotes and protects these values will enhance professionalism.

Section I. We acknowledge our responsibility to be truthful and forthcoming In our intellectual and academic pursuits:

1. We recognize our obligation to develop and maintain scholarly competence and design and deliver content that is equitable.

   1. We recognize the importance of remaining current in our discipline.

   2. We recognize the pedagogical and andragogical importance of presenting diverse and representative content and, where not possible, to give sufficient context for material that may be alienating to students.

   3. Faculty members are encouraged to avail themselves of opportunities to participate in professional development, particularly in the areas of online education and culturally responsive teaching.

2. We acknowledge our responsibility to defend the right of free inquiry, and expression.

   1. Faculty do not give up their Constitutional rights to profess views or engage in lawful activities that may in fact offend their colleagues, students, or the community. At the same time a disregard for individual sensitivity, especially in the areas such as religion or politics or identity, can detract from the student's ability to benefit from instruction. Accordingly, faculty should avoid derisive or hostile comments within the classroom.

   2. Faculty show respect for thoughtful opinions that differ from their own points of view.

3. We accept the obligation to practice intellectual honesty and humility.

   1. We exercise care to distinguish fact, opinion of others, professional opinion, and personal opinion.

   2. Faculty recognize the obligation to verify and document corrections to text material when that text material is inaccurate.

   3. Faculty ought to provide sufficient context and justification particularly concerning historical or canonical texts which may be marginalizing or alienating to our students.

   4. Faculty acknowledge credit due to others, however small their contribution.

   5. Faculty ought to be receptive to opportunities to learn alongside their students."

Section II. Faculty encourage the free pursuit of learning by acknowledging our obligations:

1. To respect students as individuals.

   1. The Pierce Faculty Senate resolved that it regards as unprofessional conduct any instructor belittling, harassing or otherwise intimidating any student, even when the intention is to shame the student into learning. Faculty are encouraged to explore less confrontational alternatives to resolve problems of poor motivation or lack of preparation.

   2. Faculty are obligated to respect the rights of students as individuals when conflicts with colleagues or with administrators occur. Every effort should be made to avoid allowing students to become pawns or innocent victims when conflict arises in the governance of the institution.

2. To serve as intellectual guides and advisors.

   1. Faculty recognize the obligation to encourage students' individual intellectual growth through discussion and study outside class hours.

   2. Faculty should welcome students seeking advising in the faculty member's area of expertise.

3. To foster honest academic conduct.

   1. Faculty shall encourage the personal best effort of each student.

   2. Faculty shall communicate and enforce sanctions for students found guilty of cheating on examinations or plagiarizing written work.

4. To ensure that evaluation reflects the student's true academic merit, and NOT personality, race, religion, political activism, personal beliefs, identity, or other non-academic criteria.

   1. District policy explicitly states that no student can be excused from the course final examination.

   2. Final examinations are to be given according to the final exam schedule unless conflicts due to the student's transfer to another institution or similar emergencies arise. When such emergencies do occur, it is advisable to have the proper documentation at hand.

   3. As much as practicable, faculty should avoid scheduling assessments during religious holidays and, when assessments cannot be scheduled as such, to provide students with alternatives consistent with the Pierce College Academic Catalogue policies.

   4. Fairness of evaluation in the academic setting requires following established and well-communicated procedures for adding students and excluding students from classes.

   5. Faculty should avoid situations in which, for personal reasons, their ability to fairly evaluate any student might be compromised.

   6. Faculty should be mindful that the schedule of classes guarantees students the right to review their grades within one year of the time their class has ended.

5. To respect the confidential nature of the faculty/student relationship.

   1. It is a violation of trust and in violation of federal law to disregard the student's right to privacy (e.g.: by posting grades with students' names or social security numbers attached).

   2. Whenever possible, faculty should handle disciplinary, academic, and personal problems with individual students in a confidential setting.

   3. Information of a personal nature obtained about students during the course of professional activities should be treated as privileged information.

   4. In addition to guarding the privacy rights of students, faculty should also avoid disclosing personal information about their colleagues to others.

6. To always treat students as ends in themselves, and never as means to our own ends.

   1. It is unethical to solicit students within the class setting for outside activities not reasonably connected with the goals of the course, especially when these activities are to the faculty member's own benefit either personally or monetarily.

   2. Except for texts or other necessary course materials sold through a bookstore or similar outlet, it is unethical to require students to purchase services or materials that create a financial benefit to the faculty member.

   3. Faculty must avoid any situation which creates or sustains a conflict of interest.

      1. (Nothing illegal or unethical need occur for a conflict of interest to arise. Simply allowing oneself to be in a position where personal interests might conflict with professional duty is sufficient to cause a conflict of interest.)

7. To create a learning environment of trust and sensitivity.

   1. Respecting students as individuals is an ethical imperative for faculty in order to promote a learning environment that is sensitive to the diverse components of our student population. We explicitly endorse and embrace the general policy that, "All programs and activities of the Los Angeles Community College District shall be operated in a manner which is free of discrimination on the basis of all race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, creed, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, age, handicap, disability, or veterans' status."

   2. Faculty should commit to addressing the ways in which oppressed, marginalized, and disenfranchised groups may have been negatively impacted by content contained within and relevant to the discipline's Course Outline of Record.

   3. Personal, financial, or sexual exploitation of students or other employees is a clear violation of trust and, with students or subordinates, an abuse of an unequal power relationship. We are aware that California Civil Code defines sexual harassment as sexual advances that are persistent or severe after notice is given that they are unwelcome. We hold that care must be taken not to offend the sexual sensibilities of others either intentionally or unintentionally, and believe that any sexual advances should be presumed as unwelcome, even when they are in response to student actions.

8. To protect and advance academic freedom of students.

   1. Diverse ideas should be encouraged and treated with respect.

   2. Faculty are encouraged to respond to students' ideas with curiosity and compassion.

Section III. As members in the community of scholars, we acknowledge the obligations:

1. To defend the right of associates to engage in free inquiry.

   1. Faculty recognize the importance of tenure in the protection of academic freedom in order to enable the free exchange and expression of ideas in the classroom without fear of adverse consequences.

   2. It is the responsibility of all faculty to select instructional materials that assure free inquiry.

   3. The right of individual faculty to select texts for their own courses is specifically recognized.

2. To show due respect for the opinions of others.

   1. The Pierce Faculty Senate has resolved that it regards it as unprofessional conduct for faculty members to criticize or denigrate their colleagues in a classroom setting.

   2. The exchange of diverse viewpoints is to be encouraged within the college community.

   3. Faculty are reminded that it is unethical to discriminate against and harass colleagues.

   4. Formal governing bodies of the faculty community explicitly agree that personal differences between faculty will not be the basis for judgments on issues at hand.

3. To accept a share of faculty responsibility for governance of the academic institution and appropriate utilization of its resources.

   1. In addition to teaching courses, full-time faculty are responsible for holding office hours, participating in departmental decision making, and making other contributions as needed to enhance the culture and governance within the academic institution.

   2. Faculty are reminded that it is unethical to use campus resources, such as computer technologies, printers, phones, mail and reprographic services for personal purposes. Furthermore, it is unethical to remove equipment from the campus for personal use.

4. To fulfill our responsibilities as specified in our contract of employment with the LACCD.

Section IV. Faculty seek above all to be effective teachers and scholars:

1. The faculty member's primary responsibility is to the instructional role within the institution. A faculty member determines the amount and character of the work done outside the institution with due regard to his/her paramount responsibilities within the institution.

2. There is an obligation to give due notice in the event of interruption or termination of services.

   1. It is required that instructors make available a course syllabus so that chairpersons can give guidance when a substitute instructor becomes necessary.

   2. The district provides leave options for faculty. It is unethical to use these options other for other than their stated purposes.

Section V. As educators, we accept certain obligations to the community at large:

1. Whether inside or outside the classroom, we avoid creating the impression that, when speaking as individuals, we speak or act for the college.

2. We accept the obligation to promote conditions of free inquiry and to promote public understanding of academic freedom.

3. In the conduct of our professional duties faculty members are obliged to behave in a manner consistent with the Education Code and the laws of the land.

Section VI. We work to promote the rights of students:

1. Faculty shall act in accordance to the mission statement of the California Community Colleges and in compliance with the current union contract.

   1. Faculty are obligated to follow proper registration procedure when adding students to classes. For example, where there is a waiting list for a course, faculty should first take students from that list before adding anyone notion the list.

   2. While faculty have full authority to add students to their classes, optimal class sizes have been established with educational objectives in mind. Hence faculty are encouraged to pursue the intent of the existing union contract.

2. Faculty accept the obligation to present the subject matter of the course as announced to the students and to cover the approved curriculum.

   1. It is improper to persistently intrude material that has no relation to the subject.

   2. It is inappropriate to utilize class time in any significant manner either to propagandize students or to pursue one's own extracurricular interests when those interests have no bearing on course content.

   3. Faculty are encouraged to review and revise curriculum so that it may promote broad intersectional representation.