Physics and Astronomy Department -
Aspirational Code of Conduct
Our community strives to provide an open and healthy learning and work experience, fair access to opportunities, and support for all its members in their educational and professional goals.
The following principles are designed to ensure that the environment in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Pittsburgh meets the highest standard of professionalism. All members of, guests of, and visitors to our community of faculty, staff, and students should feel welcome and respected regardless of identity, background, or status. These principles reflect the culture of our department and reinforce our common values. All members of our department community are expected to follow these standards.
Members of our community actively support and respect each other. We demonstrate this by:
● Speaking and acting with consideration, respect, and professionalism in our interactions with everyone, without discriminating against or harming others, mentally or physically.
● Respecting the professional, physical, and personal boundaries of each other, including the need for work/life balance.
● Giving everyone the space to share their own diverse experiences and perspectives.
● Handling disagreements through respectful dialogue.
● Speaking and acting in ways that are mindful of power differentials when interacting with other people
● Working to ensure that members of the community have equitable access to opportunities without bias or favoritism
● Ensuring that criticism is constructive and that positive feedback is provided when appropriate
● Neither making nor tolerating unwelcomed jokes and/or disparaging remarks grounded in prejudice or stereotype.
● Challenging practices that facilitate or allow prejudice and/or discrimination and encouraging others to challenge them as well.
● Supporting those who report violations of departmental or university policies, including but not limited to Title IX infractions. Retaliatory actions are not tolerated by the department, constitute a violation of University policy, and are subject to disciplinary action.
● Being mindful of the impact of our words on others, and of the intent behind others’ words. It can be helpful to keep in mind the THINK principle when talking to people: is what you are saying True? Helpful? Inspiring? Necessary? Kind?
● Avoiding language that disparages the abilities of others or trivializes the difficulty of learning.
Members of our community are committed to openness and growth. We demonstrate this by:
● Being receptive and responsive to suggestions or requests to improve classroom and work environments and relationships
● Challenging our own assumptions about people as well as the sources of those assumptions.
● Sincerely apologizing, seeking to make amends, and changing future behavior when our actions or words do harm.
● Accepting and valuing the range of unique cultures within the department and broader community and respecting individual religious, spiritual, and secular beliefs and practices.
● Taking responsibility for eliminating challenges or barriers to success others may face due to their personal characteristics, identities or backgrounds
● Acknowledging that although our Department may not always succeed in fulfilling the principles of our Code of Conduct, we will work together constructively to make things better over time.
Members of our community take initiative to maintain a healthy and supportive environment. We demonstrate this by:
● Intervening when others are exhibiting conduct that is inappropriate for a community member.
● Helping each other to speak up (when it feels safe to do so) or to report when someone is disrespectful of an individual or a group or class of people (even when that individual or members of that group or class are not present).
● Seeking opportunities for ourselves and others to participate in training on equity and inclusion, cultural change, reporting, and bystander intervention techniques
● Challenging and taking responsibility for our own biases and actions
If you need support...
Cindy Niznik (niznik@pitt.edu) serves as Ombudsperson for the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Members of the department may go to her to seek informal, independent, confidential and impartial assistance in addressing conflicts, disputes, or complaints without fear of retaliation or judgment.
Additionally, the Dietrich School Ombudsperson, Philippa Carter (pkc3@pitt.edu), can assist graduate students and postdocs with resolving conflicts and issues that arise in the course of their education and training that they believe have not or cannot be addressed within their academic department (see https://www.asgraduate.pitt.edu/student-life/ombudsperson for details).
For academic issues the primary point of contact is either the Undergraduate Director, Prof. Michael Wood-Vasey or the Graduate Director, Prof. Ayres Freitas.
The University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion handles reports on bias incidents (including but not limited to Title IX reports). Relevant policies and procedures are described at
https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/civil-rights-title-ix/policies-procedures-and-practices . To file a report via this office, go to https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/civil-rights-title-ix/make-report .
Some other events may fall under the University Student Code of Conduct. Information on how to report research misconduct at the University is provided at https://www.orp.pitt.edu/research-integrity. Additionally, the Pitt Concern Connection provides a comprehensive tool that can be used by anyone at Pitt to report issues of concern so that they can be investigated and resolved.
Please provide feedback to the Pitt Department of Physics and Astronomy Equity and Inclusion Committee on how we can make the department a better place for all. You can submit anonymous comments via this Departmental Feedback Survey, or send non-anonymous comments via email to phyast-equity@list.pitt.edu .
If you are interested in training…
A variety of workshops on issues related to equity and inclusion are offered at Pitt. Workshops offered by the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences are described at https://www.as.pitt.edu/diversity/deitraining .
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion offers a wide variety of relevant workshops as well; see https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/education/institutional-equity-workshops for examples.
For Pitt employees interested in more in-depth training, they offer a Diversity and Inclusion Certificate program: https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/education/diversity-and-inclusion-certificate-program.
All Department members are encouraged to enroll in PITT 0210 (Anti-Black Racism: History, Ideology, and Resistance), a one-credit course that is required for undergraduate students but also available to Pitt graduate students, faculty, etc.
If you want more information on Equity and Inclusion at Pitt…
A strong commitment to diversity and inclusion is a fundamental value of the University of Pittsburgh and is critical to achieving our mission as a public research university.
Pitt’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion aspires to help create and sustain a university-wide culture that understands that diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential to the University’s mission and continued excellence.
For more information, see the Office’s website at https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/; the resource and support services offered by this office are listed at https://www.diversity.pitt.edu/civil-rights-title-ix/resources-and-support-services.
The University of Pittsburgh, as an educational institution and as an employer, does not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, genetic information, marital status, familial status, sex, age, sexual orientation, veteran status or gender identity and expression in its programs and activities. The University does not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or retaliation on these bases and takes steps to ensure that students, employees, and third parties are not subject to a hostile environment in University programs or activities. All members of our department community are expected to live up to these standards.
Our community strives to provide an open and healthy learning and work experience, fair access to opportunities, and support for all its members in their educational and professional goals.
All members of, guests of, and visitors to our community of faculty, staff, and students should feel welcome and respected regardless of identity, background, or status. We are committed to work together to build a department where:
● Members of our community respect and actively support each other.
● Members of our community are committed to openness and growth.
● Members of our community take initiative to maintain a healthy and supportive environment.
The University of Pittsburgh does not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or retaliation, and neither should any member of our community.
For more details on the Department of Physics and Astronomy’s code of conduct as well as resources to support department members who are facing challenges, links to training opportunities, and summaries of equity and inclusion policies and programs at Pitt, go to www.diversity.pitt.edu.