MSU launches ethics program

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State University (MSU) has unveiled a new training program, reporting system and policy changes to better promote ethics and integrity at the university.

MSU’s departments of internal audit and human resources management, along with the general counsel’s office, recently conferred with an authority in the field to develop content for broad-based training related to ethical situations that might be encountered and how they relate to applicable laws, regulations and policies.

Beginning Sept. 15 for non-academic administrators, human resources staff members will begin online training and, later, class discussions of case studies.

In addition to training, a new ethics reporting system officially approved by MSU president Mark Keenum is providing an anonymous way to address potential issues of waste, fraud or unethical actions. The new web-based MSU Ethics Line is the first independently operated reporting service at a Mississippi public university, according to MSU.

In announcing the service, Keenum emphasized that unethical actions do not characterize the MSU family. Rather, the goal is “to ensure MSU has effective ways of reporting activities that strike us as inappropriate.”

The reporting Web site, www.msstate.ethicspoint.com, is independently operated by EthicsPoint of Lake Oswego, Ore., a company serving more than 2,000 clients nationwide, including more than 300 colleges and universities. Anonymous reports also may be made by telephoning toll-free 1-877-310-0424.