Code of Conduct

Report a Code of Conduct Violation

ICICLE Code of Conduct

Regardless of their position or seniority, members of the ICICLE community and participants in ICICLE activities are expected to:

  1. Act in an ethical and collaborative manner at all times.
  2. Treat each other fairly and with dignity and respect, support and encourage each other’s growth, and step in as needed to maintain an environment free of bias, discrimination, harassment, or bullying.
  3. Speak and act with intention to support and include all members of our community.
  4. Work with the utmost scientific integrity and respect the confidentiality of information and work presented at internal ICICLE meetings.
  5. Comply with all federal, state, and local sponsor ethical requirements for conducting ICICILE research.

Furthermore, members of ICICLE and participants in ICICLE activities may not engage in retaliation against anyone for objecting to a behavior that may violate this code, reporting a violation of this code, or participating in the resolution of such a complaint.

 

Reporting Process for Violations of the Code of Conduct

Reports of Code of Conduct violations can be made directly to a member of the ICICLE leadership team or to any member of the ICICLE Equity Committee (IEC). IEC members do not provide counseling or support services; their role in this context is to direct those reporting to available resources, including providing a private reporting channel to ICICLE leadership.

Reports of Code of Conduct violations may also be reported using this anonymous reporting form. Please note that if one chooses not to provide identifying information, the IEC will not be able to respond directly to the report and may be limited in its ability to act.

Information provided to individual members of the IEC will be shared with an IEC faculty or staff member (typically the chair), and depending on circumstances may be shared with the full committee, although the individual reporting the violation may request that their identity not be shared. The IEC faculty or staff member will be responsible for reporting the complaint to ICICLE leadership.

When a Code of Conduct violation is reported to ICICLE leadership, members will work to address it in conjunction with the academic affairs or human resources administration(s) of the relevant institution(s). Consequences for Code of Conduct violations may include a verbal or written warning, removal from ICICLE events, loss of ICICLE membership privileges, reporting to the relevant university offices, or other remedies as appropriate.

Note that anyone is free to report violations of institutional policies directly to the appropriate institution, but we cannot guarantee that an institution will forward information about a complaint to ICICLE. If there has been a violation of the ICICLE Code of Conduct and you want ICICLE to respond, you should report it through one or more of the channels described above.

Anonymous Reporting Form

Supplementary List of Definitions and Resources

  • The Code of Conduct uses several phrases that may need further explanation. These definitions may not be applicable to contexts outside the ICICLE project and are provided only to clarify the intended meaning of the ICICLE Code of Conduct.
  • Ethical and collaborative manner. Members of ICICLE and participants in ICICLE activities should be aware of and adhere to the policies of their own institutions on responsible and ethical conduct. For example, MIT’s Principles of Ethical Conduct is here. The intended meaning of collaborative is well described in the MIT Physics Values Statement: “When we collaborate, we take other people’s ideas seriously and recognize that they might understand concepts and approach problems differently. Exclusion or derision of others based on different points of view is not acceptable. Collaboration requires sharing knowledge and skills, and is based on appropriately acknowledging everyone’s intellectual contributions.”
  • Utmost scientific integrity. Members of the ICICLE project and participants in ICICLE activities should be aware of and adhere to the academic misconduct policies of their own institutions, including any reporting obligations. In particular, any fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, or deliberate interference in research is research misconduct and a violation of the ICICLE’s Code of Conduct. Honest errors or differences of opinion do not qualify as misconduct. For example, OSU’s Research Misconduct policy is here. In particular, plagiarism includes any appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results, or words without giving appropriate credit, including in the context of authorship.)
  • Respect the confidentiality of information and work presented at internal ICICLE meetings. The content of meetings with restricted attendance should not be shared outside that group without the permission of the presenter, unless the same content is already publicly available. If in doubt, ask the person who presented the material.
  • Step in as needed to maintain an environment free of bias, discrimination, or harassment. The Code of Conduct places responsibility on all ICICLE members and participants for actively maintaining a healthy environment, but does not require members and participants to respond to problems by immediately confronting those involved. Appropriate strategies for bystander intervention are context-dependent and rely on personal judgement. However, all ICICLE members and participants are asked to be active bystanders—people who take steps that can make a difference when they observe unacceptable behavior. These steps could include strategies to defuse the situation, to forestall future similar incidents, or to support the person/people targeted. This link provides guidance on being an active bystander. Hosts for ICICLE talks and other events are especially encouraged to explore these resources and preemptively plan strategies for dealing with inappropriate behavior.
  • Bullying. Bullying occurs when someone intentionally and repeatedly causes another person injury or discomfort. Bullying can take the form of physical contact, words or more subtle actions. (Source) Typical examples of workplace bullying are discussed in this document.

 

ICICLE Equity Committee

 

Reporting Resources

Reports of Code of Conduct violations can be made directly to a member of the ICICLE leadership team or to any member of the ICICLE Equity Committee (IEC) . IEC members do not provide counseling or support services; their role in this context is to direct those reporting to available resources, including providing a private reporting channel to ICICLE leadership.

Reports of Code of Conduct violations may also be reported using this anonymous reporting form. Please note that if one chooses not to provide identifying information, the IEC will not be able to respond directly to the report and may be limited in its ability to act.

Code of Conduct Slides

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