Procedures of the Ethics Review Committee

Any member of the Union County College faculty, full-time or adjunct, who believes that another faculty member has possibly violated one or more of articles 8-11 of the CPEF, may bring a complaint to the ERC within thirty days of the date of the perceived breach of articles 8-11, or within thirty days of the date they first became aware of the alleged ethical breach.

Allegations of professional misconduct shall first be confidentially reported to any member of the ERC. The complainant's initial confidential formal contact with this member shall not be in writing, or in electronic form. When the initial formal contact is made between the complainant and the member of the ERC, this member shall log the date of the allegation, along with the specific section(s) of the CPEF that may be involved. At this stage, there shall be no other formal written record (other than personal notes); the names of the faculty members involved shall not be recorded.

The Chair shall convene the ERC within fourteen (14) days after the initial formal contact, to discuss the allegation. At least four members must participate at this meeting. In order to maintain confidentiality during this initial ERC meeting, the member who has been contacted by the complainant will not mention the names of the faculty members involved. Only the nature of the allegation, the preliminary oral evidence presented by the complainant, and its relation to articles 8-11 of the CPEF will be discussed. Other than a record of the date of this initial meeting, the discussions shall not be recorded or transcribed in any way.

If the ERC determines that there may be a possible violation of one or more of articles 8-11 of the CPEF, then a representative within the ERC membership will be selected by the ERC to attempt to resolve the matter informally, first by contacting the faculty member against whom the allegation was made (the respondent), and by having a follow-up discussion with the complainant. (If so desired, the complainant shall not be required to meet or confront the respondent and shall remain anonymous. Both parties shall be notified by the representative of the obligation to maintain strict confidentiality). This informal resolution period shall not exceed fourteen (14) days unless agreed upon in writing by the complainant, the respondent, and the members of the ERC (by majority vote). If the informal resolution period is not extended, the complainant must submit within seven (7) days a formal, written, signed statement citing the specifics of articles 8-11 that have allegedly been breached, and setting forth the specifics of the allegation, and the nature of the supporting evidence. The respondent shall be given a copy of the complainant's statement as soon after it is filed as is possible, but not later than three (3) days after filing.

Within fourteen (14) days of the filing of a statement by the complainant, the ERC shall convene a Fact-finding Conference to determine whether the allegation has sufficient substance to be submitted to the FEC for formal review and consideration. At least four (4) members of the ERC must be present. Both the complainant and the respondent shall be invited to attend the Fact-Finding Conference, and shall, separately, have an opportunity to express their own views. Both parties shall be entitled, if they so desire, to have one UCC faculty representative present. This Fact-finding Conference will be recorded.

The ERC must notify both parties of its decision within five (5) days. If, under a majority vote, the ERC determines that the complaint has sufficient merit to proceed further, the matter shall be submitted within five (5) days to the FEC for formal review and consideration, along with the recording. If the ERC determines that the allegation does not have sufficient merit to proceed, and the complainant is dissatisfied with that decision, the complainant may appeal the matter within five (5) days to the FEC.