Message to the Campus from Interim Vice President for Ethics, Compliance and Risk Management

The following introductory message was distributed to the campus August 21, 2018: 

I want to introduce myself. On September 1, 2018, I will assume the duties as the Interim Vice President for Ethics, Compliance and Risk Management.  I studied Management at Morgan State University in Baltimore and received my law degree from Howard University School of Law in Washington D.C.  I then went on to practice law at an Atlanta law firm before joining Georgia Tech.  I have been here since May 2011, most recently working with its affiliated organizations on the Institute’s strategic priorities.  

Please know that I am fully committed to working with you and President Peterson to address the recent breakdowns in ethical behavior at Georgia Tech. There is nothing more important to me professionally or personally than to provide you with strong leadership on this matter. 

President Peterson has outlined steps to strengthen the ethical culture at Georgia Tech.  To remind everyone, the Georgia Tech EthicsPoint hotline number is 1-866-294-5565. If you are aware of unethical or illegal behavior please call that number or visit www.ethicspoint.com. You may remain anonymous.  I promise your complaint will be pursued with vigor and without regard to the position of the person toward whom the complaint is directed.  

For those of you whose trust we need to regain, please know that a copy of the complaint is automatically forwarded to the University System of Georgia Organizational Effectiveness office.  Our top priority is to assure you that we will police ourselves without regard to position.  

In addition, I am directing immediately that all in-person complaints must be input into the hotline system anonymously by the person receiving the complaint.  One of the recent breakdowns was the failure of management to properly handle an in-person complaint.  It is important to me and to the success of Georgia Tech that every single complaint is pursued.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.  You can either call my office at 404-385-1608 or email me at aisha.oliver-staley@carnegie.gatech.edu to schedule a time to talk with me personally. 

President Peterson has changed the reporting structure, and in this interim role, I will be reporting directly to him. He has made it clear that my charge is to build a strong, ethical climate and culture here at Georgia Tech.  To achieve this, we need your ideas and full participation. Please feel free to share your thoughts, ideas and suggestions about how we can accomplish what the president has outlined.  

I look forward to working with everyone.