UCF IntegrityLine Report
January 1, 2022, to December 31, 2022
University Compliance and Ethics
2022 IntegrityLine Reports Submitted
During the 2022 calendar year, the UCF IntegrityLine received a total of 270 reports. Of these reports 261 contained allegations of suspected misconduct or ethical concerns and nine reports were inquiries. Reports containing allegations of misconduct were triaged between University Compliance and Ethics and University Audit. Based on the nature of the report, it was either investigated by University Compliance and Ethics, the Office of Institutional Equity, University Audit, or referred to the appropriate compliance partner for review. Reports involving students under the UCF Golden Rule were referred to the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities. Reports criminal in nature were referred to the UCF Police Department.
Highest Number of Reports by Issue Type
All Issue Types
Reports submitted to the UCF IntegrityLine in 2022 spanned a total of 20 issue types.
Closed Cases
University Compliance and Ethics closed 275 IntegrityLine cases during the 2022 calendar year. Closed cases include a combination of reports received in 2022 as well as those submitted in a previous year. Below are the outcomes for all cases closed in 2022.
Closed Cases – Investigations with Substantiated and Unsubstantiated Findings
In 2022, a total of 89 of the 275 cases were closed after an investigation was conducted by University Compliance and Ethics, the Office of Institutional Equity, or University Audit with the following outcomes.
Substantiated Cases
Sixteen cases investigated resulted in a substantiated finding (representing 6% of all closed cases) where investigations yielded evidence to support the complaint and a finding that misconduct occurred. The substantiated cases spanned a range of topics, with the highest in the category of Data Privacy / Integrity.
Substantiated Cases – Action Taken
For the 16 cases investigated that resulted in substantiated findings, the university took the appropriate action. Those actions included policy/process reviews, disciplinary action, and termination.
Unsubstantiated Cases
The remaining 73 cases (26% of closed cases) investigated by University Compliance and Ethics, University Audit, or the Office of Institutional Equity yielded insufficient or no evidence to support that misconduct occurred and were closed with an unsubstantiated outcome. Despite the unsubstantiated finding, 32 of the cases resulted in recommendations for improvements such as a review in a policy, process, or training due to identified weaknesses.
Closed Cases – Referred or Insufficient Information
One hundred and eighty-six (186) cases were not investigated by University Compliance and Ethics, University Audit, or the Office of Institutional Equity. Those cases were either referred out of the system or to another office or closed due to insufficient information.
Referred
A total of 143 cases (52% of all closed cases) were referred as follows:
- Eighty-five cases were referred to the UCF Police Department, Student Conduct, or another college or department to address through the appropriate university process and closed out in the IntegrityLine system. These cases span the range of issues involving student misconduct such as alleged alcohol or drug abuse, grade disputes, COVID-19 policy violations, and interpersonal conflicts. Once the report is referred to the appropriate office, it is closed in the IntegrityLine system with a message posted back to the complainant.
- The remaining 58 cases were referred to a college or department to conduct an internal review and report back their findings.
Referred – Substantiated
Nineteen of the 58 cases reviewed internally by a college or department resulted in a substantiated finding with the following issue types:
Referred – Substantiated – Action Taken
The actions taken for the 19 referred investigations that were substantiated were as follows:
Referred – Unsubstantiated
The remaining 39 referred cases were unsubstantiated. However, 17 required improvements due to identified weaknesses which included policy or process reviews.
Insufficient Information
For 43 cases (16% of all closed cases), questions were posted to the complainant requesting additional information with no response. These cases were closed due to insufficient information.
2022 IntegrityLine Trends
In 2019 the office identified a spike in the number of reports submitted to the IntegrityLine regarding Offensive or Inappropriate Communication. These types of concerns relate to inflammatory, derogatory, unduly critical, or insulting communication, including bullying, and employee’s failure to treat one another with respect in accordance with the UCF Ethical Standards. As a result, the office collaborated with Human Resources to develop a communication, education, and awareness campaign to increase civility in the workplace. Throughout 2020, 2021, and 2022, the office delivered significant training and education on this topic and monitored IntegrityLine reports as well as culture survey responses to gauge the effectiveness of the efforts.
In 2020, likely as a result of the increased awareness efforts and marketing the IntegrityLine, the office saw an even sharper rise in the reports submitted regarding Offensive or Inappropriate Communication. By 2021, the reports leveled out with the same number reported the prior year with a total of 88 reports. This year, for 2022 there is a dip to 66 reports regarding Offensive or Inappropriate Communication. The dip suggests that the workplace is improving in this area.
University Compliance and Ethics and Human Resources continue to evaluate opportunities to expand the education and awareness program with the overall goal to improve the workplace and support the university’s strategic plan aspiration to make UCF a best place to learn and work.