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Conduct

Faculty Senate Policy on Graduate Student-Faculty Intimate Relationships

For the purposes of this policy, intimate relationships include sexual, romantic, or close family relationships. Where a power difference exists, such as between a faculty member and a student, intimate relationships have the potential to expose both parties to conflict of interest and can have adverse effects on the climate of a department or program.

Faculty members shall not accept academic authority over any student or postdoctoral scholar with whom they currently share an intimate personal relationship or with whom they have shared such a relationship in the past. Some examples of exercising academic authority include:

  • Teaching
  • Mentoring
  • Supervising
  • Making professional recommendations
  • Taking actions to affect grades, grants, honors, or admission to academic programs

Questions regarding what constitutes academic authority as well as other aspects of this policy should be directed to the University Ombuds.

Faculty members shall not enter into romantic or sexual relationships with undergraduate students of the University, nor shall they enter into such relationships with any members of the University community (including all students and postdoctoral scholars and prospective students and postdoctoral scholars) over whom they exercise academic authority. Faculty members should err on the side of disclosing a relationship to the ombuds if there is any doubt about whether they exercise academic authority.

Exceptions to the policy can only be made when there exists a written plan to manage the professional relationships for the protection of the parties involved. Such a plan must be approved by the Office of Counsel and may be developed in consultation with the ombuds. This plan will be shared with other relevant authorities (department chair, dean, etc.) as well as with the other member of the relationship in question.

Failure to report an intimate relationship of the type described above may subject the faculty member to disciplinary action and also the forfeiture of the protections of indemnification by the University in the event of legal action. For the full policy, see page 11 of the faculty handbook.