Web site gives Rutgers community a new tool to report financial concerns
Archived article from May 8, 2006
By Carla Cantor
Rutgers has put together a new Web site to help faculty and staff report financial concerns within the university community.
The site, www.financialconcerns.rutgers.edu, provides an overview of the university’s financial services departments and offers resources to guide employees in reporting suspected financial misconduct.
“All of us at Rutgers share a vision to build on our decades of accomplishment as a leading public research institution,” said Jeffrey C. Apfel, senior vice president for administration and chief financial officer. “Each of us must feel comfortable raising issues and expressing ethical concerns. The reputation of our university depends on the integrity of every person here and a shared commitment to doing things right.”
Often, the best place to raise a concern is with one’s supervisor or a campus business manager; employees also can contact specialized central offices, such as the university controller, purchasing, risk management or internal audit.
For employees uncomfortable raising concerns through university channels, Rutgers recently added an external option for reporting questionable financial practices. The university has contracted with EthicsPoint, an independent company that provides a confidential and anonymous telephone and Internet reporting system.
Such anonymous financial reporting systems are now common at universities across the country, Apfel said. He added that the audit committee of the Rutgers Board of Governors requested that this additional resource be made available to university employees.
Reports can be made through EthicsPoint’s 24-hour Web site, www.fc.ethicspoint.com, or by phone in both English and Spanish at 1-800-445-7079. The TTY number for the hearing impaired is 1-866-294-9572. The information will be relayed to the appropriate university office for investigation. Employees should feel comfortable in voluntarily reporting misconduct, since the New Jersey “Whistleblowers Act” prohibits retaliation for reporting unlawful activity.
At this time, EthicsPoint should be used only for reporting financial concerns to university leadership. Nonfinancial concerns, such as sexual harassment and environmental and public safety, should be reported directly to the appropriate university offices.
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