College Caps Ethics Awareness Week with Visit from USG’s Associate Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs

Chris McGraw Encouraged Coastal Georgia to Keep Ethics Front and Center

After a week of activities dedicated to reminding the Mariner community of the important role of ethical behavior in the life of the College of Coastal Georgia, Ethics Awareness Week concluded with a presentation from an august guest.

University System of Georgia Associate Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs Chris McCraw addressed a roomful of faculty and staff at the College this past Friday. McGraw shared how the USG’s code of conduct and the organization’s core values—Integrity, Excellence, Accountability, and Respect—are lived out daily in ethical behavior. He noted that the purpose of the Code of Conduct is to guide members of the USG community, of which the College of Coastal Georgia is a part, in applying the underlying Core Values to the decisions and choices that are made in the course of everyday endeavors.

McGraw went on to describe how particular USG policies provide valuable guardrails for the College in dealing with a range of issues such as conflicts of interest and sexual harassment. The policies can help employees of USG institutions navigate questions of political involvement or dilemmas around reporting questionable behavior by colleagues. Throughout his presentation, McGraw stressed that, by operating ethically, we are upholding our obligations to one another, our institution, our students, and the state’s taxpayers.

The presentation was a fitting capstone on a week that included a number of activities designed to reinforce the importance of ethics at Coastal Georgia. On Friday, President Michelle Johnston shared her reflections about the week via a College-wide email.

“Ethics isn’t just an idea or a philosophy,” Johnston wrote. “Ethics is, by definition, actionable. As individuals and as an organization, our ethics are represented by our behavior. Operating ethically as students, faculty, and staff provides a foundation for our success and creates a community characterized by trust and respect.”

Ethics Awareness Week is an annual system-wide recognition by the University System of Georgia of its commitment to the highest ethical and professional standards of conduct in pursuit of its mission.