Members,
I want to encourage you to be cautious when using the school e-mail system, or the school's Billboards, or school hallways or any other part of school property to buy or sell items, or to promote specific businesses or organizations. Using your position as a school employee for financial gain, or to avoid financial detriment, could be a violation of Oregon ethics laws.
If you're not sure if posting a flier or sending an e-mail advertisement might constitute an ethics violation, please check with a building representative or one of our Officers.
We will reach out to you ourselves if we see behavior that we think might get you in trouble. We want to protect you, and that means telling you when we think an action might be considered unethical under school policy or Oregon law.
Some examples of activities that I encourage you not to take on school grounds, or using school e-mail, because they could be seen as using your position unethically:
Using the school e-mail system to advertise that you are selling items.
Asking for donations to a crowdfunding effort.
Hanging up a poster for a play, concert or other event that is unaffiliated with the school.
Setting up a donation jar for a personal cause in a faculty break room.
Selling homemade or homegrown products to colleagues over e-mail (eggs, cookies, etc)
Taking items out of the school trash, or school recyclables boxes for your own use (bottles, newspaper)
Placing fliers for a business in staff mailboxes because you like that business, or because they give a good deal to school staff, or any other reason.
Confronting possible ethics violations is not a comfortable topic, and sometimes makes a person feel persecuted.
I believe that you would rather be politely taken aside by a colleague then placed under investigation for an ethics violation.
Please reach out to me by e-mail if you have any questions about this matter.
