III. Community Values
USA’s Community Values are designed to inspire and guide members of the USA campus community in pursuit of our mission, and are intended to provide a foundation for our conduct. The Community Values should be used as a lens through which we make decisions that affect the USA community. USA’s Community Values are defined as follows:
USA seeks a student body, faculty and staff that represents the diversity of the local and regional community we serve, and our actions should demonstrate our commitment to value each member of the USA community with an open mind and global viewpoint. We acknowledge our best results are achieved through reflection of and appreciation for the diversity of our community.
USA values the dignity, worth, and contributions of all members of the USA community, thoughtful and respectful engagement with a broad collection of perspectives and experiences essential to intellectual growth, and an inclusive culture in which all members can engage meaningfully and contribute to our collective success. By incorporating a broad range of human experiences and a rich variety of perspectives, we increase our capacity for learning, enrich the quality and experience of campus life and patient care, and better prepare our students for their future.
Every member of the USA community should aim to provide the highest quality of services responsive to the needs of our students, patients, employees, family members, as well as our business associates, and the community at large. USA takes great pride in its local and regional influence and reputation, and we realize our community benefits positively when we are performing at our best.
To achieve excellence, we must monitor our results and benchmark against other peer organizations. We should avoid sacrificing quality for quantity whenever possible, and always seek a team approach in pursuit of our goals. We must be open and honest, particularly when we make a mistake so that we can learn and improve the quality of our work. Members of the USA community should feel comfortable admitting when they make mistakes, and leaders are responsible for promoting an environment where problems are raised and solved without fear of retaliation. Members of the USA community should always feel comfortable approaching their supervisor to discuss any type of matter, including errors.
Members of the USA community are committed to freedom of inquiry, freedom of expression, and to healthy and civil discussion and debate.
Academic freedom is essential to USA’s mission. Members of the USA community are encouraged to discuss all relevant matters in the classroom; to explore all avenues of scholarship, research, and creative expression; to speak or write as a public citizen without institutional restraint or discipline (if expression is not unlawful, does not falsely defame a specific person, does not constitute a threat or harassment, or violate privacy or confidentiality per University policies); to foster intellectual honesty and freedom of inquiry; to respect those with differing views and allow others to express their views; to acknowledge when the individual is not speaking for the University; to seek and state the truth as we see it; to develop and maintain our scholarly competence; to submit our knowledge and claims to peer review; and to work together to foster the education of students.
To best serve the public trust, all members of the USA community should conduct activities with honesty and integrity, both in fact and in appearance. To continue building a stronger, increasingly positive reputation in our community, we realize the trust we earn derives from our level of integrity.
As members of the USA community, we should be fair and principled in University and USA Health business transactions and other related professional activities, and act in good faith when dealing with both internal constituents and external entities. Our conduct should always reflect our positions of trust and loyalty with respect to members of our own University and surrounding communities. We should conscientiously fulfill obligations towards others, and communicate ethical standards of conduct through instruction and example. When we make a statement or sign our names to any document, we are confirming that the statement is true to the best of our knowledge. We do not falsify documents, make up entries or make it appear as though we documented something that we did not.
To assure our actions are in the best interest of the University and the community we serve, we aim for our decision-making processes to be transparent and inclusive. Additionally, we need to be self-conscious of potential conflicts of interest or commitment, whether of a financial, personal, or professional nature.
In our responsibility of serving the public trust, we must be mindful of conflicts of interest, both real and perceived. Activities, pursuits or interests that detract from the ability to perform our duties should be avoided. We recognize it is human nature that by accepting even a small gift we are then potentially beholden in some way to the giver.
While these values are reflected in our various University Policies and Procedures, we have developed the following Code of Conduct which expands upon key attributes of each of our 5 Community Values.