Tennessee Board of Regents
(TBR) Policy 1:02:03:10, “Conflict of Interest” [1], defines “general
principles which should guide the actions of members of the Board and of
employees,” and includes “illustrations of activities which potentially
constitute a conflict of interest.” Specific concern is expressed in
Section 3 for two types of conflict:
“A ‘conflict of interest’
occurs when the personal interests, financial or otherwise, of a person
who owes a duty to the Tennessee Board of Regents and its constituent
institutions (Regents and all employees) actually or potentially diverge
with the person’s professional obligations to and the best interests of
the TBR and its Institutions.
“A ‘conflict of commitment’
occurs when the personal or other non-work related activities of an
employee of the TBR and its constituent Institutions impair the ability of
that employee to meet their commitments of time and energy to the TBR and
its Institutions.”
To enforce policies and
laws, TBR requires all members of the Board and many key institutional
leaders to submit disclosure forms. The TBR Disclosure Review Committee
evaluates written disclosures. All possible conflicts of interest related
to family members, business affiliations, gifts, educational benefits, use
of staff, intellectual property, real property, purchases, or other
concerns are subject to review and sanction.
Members of the Board of
Regents, the Chancellor of the system, members of the senior staff of the
system office, all institutional presidents, and other key institutional
personnel are required to file a financial disclosure form within one
month of their initial appointment and annually thereafter in January.
At the institutional level,
TBR Conflict of Interest Disclosure Forms are completed by deans,
administrative department heads, professional level employees of the
athletic department, and employees who report directly to the President.
These forms are on file in the President’s Office. [2]
