Administrative Rules

Austin Community College personnel affirm the inherent worth and dignity of all persons and the right of all persons to learn. Learning best occurs in an environment devoted to the pursuit of truth, excellence, and liberty. These flourish where both freedom and responsibility are esteemed.

Austin Community College personnel shall treat all persons with respect, dignity, and justice, discriminating against no one on any arbitrary basis such as race, creed, sex, age, or social situation. Austin Community College personnel shall strive to help each student realize his or her full potential as a student and as a human being.

Austin Community College personnel shall by example and action encourage and defend the unfettered pursuit of truth by both colleagues and students, supporting the free exchange of ideas, observing the highest standards of academic honesty and integrity, and seeking always an attitude of scholarly objectivity and tolerance of other view points.

Austin Community College personnel, recognizing the necessity of many roles in the educational enterprise, shall work in such a manner as to enhance cooperation and collegiality among students, faculty, administrators, and non-academic personnel.

Austin Community College personnel shall recognize and preserve the confidential nature of professional relationships. Good judgment shall be used in deciding whether or not to repeat pertinent information.

Austin Community College personnel shall maintain competence through continued professional development, shall demonstrate that competence through consistently adequate preparation and performance, and shall seek to enhance that competence by accepting and appropriating constructive criticism and evaluation.

Austin Community College personnel shall exercise the highest professional standards in the use of time and resources.

Austin Community College personnel, recognizing the needs and rights of others as embodied in the institution, shall fulfill the employment agreement both in spirit and in fact, shall give reasonable notice upon resignation, and shall neither accept tasks for which he is not qualified nor assign tasks to unqualified persons.

Austin Community College personnel shall support the goals and ideals of the institution and shall act in private and public affairs in such a manner as to bring credit to the institution. Any student interaction between employees and students must be conducted in a professional and ethical manner at all times.

Austin Community College personnel shall observe the stated rules and regulations of the institution, reserving the right judiciously to seek revision.

Austin Community College personnel shall participate in the governance of the institution by accepting a fair share of committee and institutional responsibilities.

Austin Community College personnel shall support the right of all colleagues to academic freedom and due process and defend and assist a professional colleague accused of wrongdoing, incompetence, or other serious offense so long as the colleague’s innocence may reasonably be maintained.

Austin Community College personnel shall not support the continuation in higher education of a colleague known by them to be persistently unethical or incompetent.

Austin Community College personnel shall accept all rights and responsibilities of citizenship including the formulation of public policy, always avoiding use of the privileges of his or her public position for private or partisan advantage. ¹ Employees should not take any action that would result in reduced income or added, unnecessary expense to the College. All employees are expected to act in the best interest of the College.

Specific Policy

Compliance

Austin Community College personnel are expected to adhere to all federal, state, and municipal laws and ordinances. Employees shall also adhere to all College policies and procedures, as well as other guidelines and rules of all regulating agencies and entities having jurisdiction over College activities.

Standards of Conduct

Austin Community College endorses the following standards of conduct:

• To identify and disclose any actual and potential conflicts of interest, and to act at all times for the general public good, regardless of personal friendships, relations, or interests.*

• To treat others in the college and community with courtesy and respect, even when critical of their statements or performance.

• To encourage and engage in open and honest discussion in making decisions, to respect differences of opinion, and to keep an open mind until everyone has been heard.

• To respect the collective decision process and to accurately report and explain votes and policies.

• To respect the authority and responsibilities of other people within the college, empowering them to work without interference within the limits of board policy and administrative rules.

• To maintain the confidentiality of privileged information, as outlined in the Texas Open Records and Meetings Act.

• To be scrupulous in requesting only authorized and legitimate reimbursement of college-related expenses.

*Adapted, with permission, from the Texas Junior College Teachers Association Code of Professional Ethics.

Austin Community College personnel shall not accept or solicit any gift, favor, service, or benefit that the employee should reasonably know is offered with the intent to influence their decisions or actions. Likewise, the employees may not solicit, accept, or agree to accept any unauthorized gifts, favors, services, or other benefits from having exercised the powers and responsibilities of their official college positions.

1. Employees of the Austin Community College District shall not accept gifts, either in-kind or of money, or excessive entertainment, from a vendor.

a. Gifts include any items not obviously of an advertising nature. (Gifts of an advertising nature are all those with the name of the firm affixed which have an estimated value of $25.00 or less).

b. Excessive entertainment shall include, but not be restricted to, transportation beyond district boundaries, and overnight accommodation.

2. The college will not enter into any contract with an employee to sell to or purchase from the employee. The College will in no way do business with any employee acting as an individual, partner, sole proprietor, officer, or director of any firm.

Provosts or Vice Presidents or Campus Managers will prohibit solicitation by agents or sales persons and/or employees acting as agents. They will prohibit unauthorized solicitation of employees on ACC property for membership on and contributions to any organization or association, unless approval has been granted.

Solicitation of employees on College property for membership in and contributions to any organization or association is prohibited. Solicitations by agents or salespersons, or employees acting as agents or salespersons, on college premises is prohibited. Any exceptions must have the consent of the President or designee.

Advertisements

Provost or Campus Managers will prohibit the placing of advertisements on the campus premises (i.e. classrooms, on vehicles, electronic media, or common areas) without the written approval of the Provost or Campus Manager.

Designated staff of the Provost or Campus Manager will remove and discard unauthorized advertisements and/or solicitations on ACC property.

Austin Community College personnel shall not accept other employment or engage in any business or professional activity that would require or induce the employees to disclose confidential information acquired through their official College positions.

Austin Community College personnel shall not conduct private business using College equipment, systems, supplies, or facilities; nor transport or use college equipment, systems, supplies, or facilities for personal purposes. Employees may not conduct private business with or within the College. Employees may not contract for work/projects for the College which require the same skills or consists of the same responsibilities inherent in their positions with the College. Private business on the part of the employee may not conflict with the duties, responsibilities, or time commitment required by the employee’s positions with the College. Non-College-related business may not be conducted on the College premises or using College staff, services, systems, or equipment. Employees of the College, or any other persons, shall not use the long distance telephone system for personal purposes and charge such use to the College.

Software copies are considered the property of the College.

The loaning of a book to a student as a substitute for the student’s purchase of the book is prohibited.

Austin Community College personnel whose positions allow/require participation in the selection process for textbooks, software, or any materials from which the employees might personally gain shall completely withdraw from such processes by not participating in any discussion and by not voting on any recommendation related thereto.

Austin Community College personnel shall not participate, directly or indirectly, in activities that relate to or consist of the sale or exchange of complimentary textbooks, software, laboratory manuals, or other educationally related items.

Nepotism

Related employees may not work within the same organizational unit of the College where one has supervisory jurisdiction over the other. This policy shall apply to all family members within the first, second, and third degrees of consanguinity (descended from the same ancestor) and affinity (relationship by marriage) or co-habitation.