Academic & Related Policies

Important For All UO Faculty Members

The educational, research and service endeavors of faculty members encompass an exceptionally broad spectrum of activities.  Some of these activities may involve complex personal, financial and/or legal components, and for many, specific policies and rules have been developed which address the faculty member's responsibilities and provide helpful guidelines.  There are a small number of especially important UO Policy Statements and Oregon Administrative Rules which are directly applicable to employees. This page provides links to these policies and rules which every faculty member should be aware of and understand.  We urge all faculty to carefully review these policies (by clicking on the titles below) and contact the appropriate office for clarification or additional information, if desired.  For more overarching policy information please check out the University of Oregon's policy on policies. 

Dead Week Policy  Faculty legislation regulates assignments that may be due during the last week of regular clases, commonly known as "Dead Week"  Information on those regulations can be found here.

Potential Conflicts of Interest in Research and Outside Activities   The University of Oregon, in the natural course of furthering research, scholarship and service, engages multiple communities well beyond our own organization.  As with any public institution, multiple commitments - primarily but not exclusively external, without proper disclosure and diligent management, can leave faculty and other community members vulnerable to conflict of interest and commitment.  Thoughtful, responsible management of potential conflicts of interest (COI) and conflicts of commitment (COI) can protect both the integrity and objectivity of our faculty and other community members, promote public trust, and create compliance with state and federal laws and regulations. Faculty are encouraged to visit the Conflict of Interest and Commitment link for more information on current policy and the opportunity to weigh in on new policy for the near future.

Policies Relating to Inventions, License Agreements, Educational and Professional Materials Development, Patents, and Copyrights  The Oregon Administrative Rules require that faculty disclose (to the Office of Technology Transfer) the creation of intellectual property within the scope of their employment. Furthermore, faculty must understand that as a condition of employment, all UO employees agree to assign to the State Board of Higher Education rights to certain types of intellectual property. The information on this web site assists faculty in understanding their rights and responsibilities regarding intellectual property developed during the course of their employment at the UO. For more information, contact the Office of Technology Transfer.

Conflicts of Interest and Abuses of Power: Sexual or Romantic Relationships with Students  It may be a conflict of interest and abuse of power for faculty members to engage in sexual or romantic relationships with students enrolled in their classes or otherwise subject to their direct supervision or evaluation. This conflict of interest and abuse of power can occur even when both parties have consented to the relationship. This OAR defines the circumstances constituting any conflict of interest and mandates remedies to remove such conflicts. For more information, contact the Office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity

Acceptable Use of Computing Resources  When faculty are provided access to University computing resources, their use of such resources may be explicitly or implicitly limited. This policy sets forth the standards and expectations for use of university computing resources. For more information, contact the University Computing Center.