Thinking Ethics

Master's in Ethics and Public Policy

Nir Eisikovits has sent in this information about a new Master's Program in ethics and Public Policy at Suffolk University in Boston.

Suffolk University: Masters in Ethics and Public Policy

Suffolk University is delighted to announce a new Masters program in

Ethics and Public Policy. This degree, offered by the departments of

Philosophy and Government, will train leaders, executives,

professionals and aspiring scholars to think through the tough moral

problems arising in policy making. Students will explore such topics

as the significance of genetic engineering for our understanding of

human nature, the social responsibility of corporations, and the

unique dilemmas faced by state and federal government employees.

The curriculum combines rigorous interdisciplinary academic training

with hands-on internships, thus preparing students to meet the

growing demand for professionals and scholars who can navigate the

ethical challenges arising in government, business, healthcare,

research and non-profit sectors. In addition we will provide

excellent preparation for students interested in applying to law

school or those who wish to pursue doctoral degrees in philosophy,

political science and public policy.

Applications are available for the fall of 2008. To learn more about

the program, visit our new website at http://www.suffolk.edu/epp

or email the director, Nir Eisikovits, at neisikov@suffolk.edu

An unbroken chain

A new organization has been created in Switzerland - Bonopro (website in French only), named after the idea of pro bono work of lawyers. In fact it is a private to private (or one to one) loan scheme for students subtitled "investing in students' future". Students will receive loans to finish their studies, and some coaching, and promise on their honor to repay the loan someday. The members who pay in 5'000 CHF get to propose candidates and act as coach/mentor to the student when needed. The founders received some money to start this organization from someone who himself had been helped during his studies, as they had too.

Teaching Ethics by Games

Great conversation on www.sirin.net about "Can Games Teach Ethics?". For or against - I don't care, as long as people keep talking about ethics.

Teaching ethics in decision process

The Chronicle of Higher Education explains about Harvard's new undergraduate curriculum. They will now require students to take seven courses, among which sciences of living systems and ethical reasoning. Apparently, an earlier proposal for a course on the study of religion was dropped. As moral authority erodes or is fragmented, it is even more important to bring ethics into the decision process. And where Harvard goes, others will follow. I feel fairly confident in predicting that we will see these types of courses everywhere within a few years.

MBA Education

Interesting slant in this commentary in the Institute of Global Ethics on a Christian Science Monitor article about the value of ethics classes in MBA education. The remarks are very critical, claiming that just because the students attend a class on ethics does not mean that they will change their behavior. Fair point - but what else can we suggest ? It raises awarness, and by incorporation ethical considerations in case studies, ethical considerations will be part of their decision process. Practice makes perfection. The next step would be for companies to make ethical behavior part of their evaluation process. So far we hear about companies firing for ethical reasons, but very little about hiring on ethical grounds.

MBA hit pararde

Beyond Grey Pinstripes has just published its biennial survey and ranking of business schools, on the basis of preparation of the students for social and environmental stewardship. And the top 5 winners are Standford (USA), ESADE (Spain), York (Canada), ITESM (Mexico), Notre Dame (USA). Full ranking here.

Tackling plagiarism

One of the side effects of being able to find information on the web, is that students tend to copy parts of what they find without referencing it or they pass it off as their own - which is commonly called cheating. Some schools use software programs to detect plagiarism. Several American schools are trying to reinforce their values by publishing honor codes, and the first British university, Northumbria, has just adopted one - good article in the Guardian here. The main issue is of course the fact that most students don't think it is wrong, and that the lines around what they do as original work, and pulling something off the web are becoming fuzzy. The advantage of the honor code, is that it puts in black and white the desired behavior - clarity first.

A step too far...

Apparently, some ethics panels in US universities are extending their reach far beyond what is reasonable. Originally set up in 1974 to oversee research involving human subjects in the biomedical field, they were expanded to cover all research projects in universities that receive federal funds. Some universities have extended their oversight to all research projects. This is a sort of unwarranted expansion, as it can be detrimental to the humanities and social science research. Hard to conduct some research if you cannot interview people, say, and have to only rely on newspaper articles. Obviously it has gone a bit too far. Article with examples in the New York Times.

Doing good and doing well conference

The leading MBA conference in Europe organized by the Spanish business school IESE (their motto is "Professionalism with a spirit of service") on Socially Responsible Business for students and companies is taking place in Barcelona on March 2-3, 2007. For information and registration click here.

Getting kids involved in social enterprise

The UK government is launching a plan to turn kids into ethical "tycoons". Gordon Brown announced it at the same time as the Social Enterprise Action Plan. The idea is to give 10£ loans to 1'000 kids to creat a business and try to make a social impact. The 50 who make the most money and the 50 who have the biggest social impact in one month will win prizes. Schools and colleges will distribute the money and decide on the suitability of the projects. They hope the kids will reimburse the loans. Anybody who does not return 60% of the money will be banned from future participation. more on the bbc website. Besides the educational aspect - there is another angle: we all heard of microcredit for developing countries - maybe it will work in more affluent societies as long as we start the entrepreneurs earlier.