Academy Fellows Can Now Take Ethics Core Course in a Virtual Classroom Setting

Academy for Excellence in Local Governance adds Virtual Classroom format for Ethics Core Course.Academy logo

The Academy for Excellence in Local Governance is a volunteer certificate program founded by the Maryland Association of Counties (MACo), the Maryland Municipal League (MML), and sponsored by the Local Government Insurance Trust (LGIT) – the program is administered by the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy. There are two tracks – County and Municipal. County Participants in the program must earn credit for 8 Core Courses and 6 Elective Courses, offered at MACo, MML, and LGIT conferences and events.

The Ethics course is one of the 8 Core Courses Fellows must complete to earn their certificate.

Ethics
Officials should be knowledgeable of their public ethics ordinance, as generally required by state law. Many officials fill out the necessary forms and assume that they have complied with the law. But are their day-to-day actions living up to the intent of the law? A fine line often exists between legal and ethical behavior. The Academy Ethics core class illustrates the differences through real-life scenarios and small group discussions.

Individuals attending this class will develop an understanding of:

1) The significance of ethical behavior in local government
2) The legal map of Maryland and Local Ethics Law – Title 5 of the General Provisions Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland
3) What constitutes unethical behavior
4) How ethical lapses happen: lack of attention to detail, pride, greed, failure of moral courage
5) The consequences of unethical behavior; to the person and to the entity: order of compliance, reprimand, recommendation for censure or removal, fines, discipline under personnel rules, etc.
6) Why we need Ethics Codes  – Using recent examples from the ethically challenged

On Wednesday, July 27, the Academy will offer an interactive, online version of the Ethics core class at four different locations around the state. Long-time Academy core instructor Ernie Crofoot will lead the session at the University of Maryland campus in College Park and will transmit out to the other sites. Students will be able to participate in real time at three other university locations throughout the state. Academy Fellows attending at any of these locations will receive core class credit toward Academy certification. All local government officials, however, are welcome to attend, but registration is required.

The application deadline is Wednesday, July 20, 2016. Seats are limited in each of the four locations, so early registration is encouraged. Read more about the course, including the site locations and registration fee. Register today!

For additional information, please contact Aisha Washington at 301.314.2641 or awashin1@umd.edu.