February 1999

I am pleased to be able to issue the second report on the activities connected with the Center for Ethics and Business at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles since I assumed responsibility for its programs in 1995. We had originally planned to produce a report annually, but some logistical problems forced us to postpone the 1997 report and to issue a combined 1997/1998 report. With those matters now resolved, we plan to return to annual reports in the future.

This report describes the progress we have made with our unusual "Business Ethics Fortnight" program. But it also describes some of the challenges we've faced over the last couple of years. We've learned a great deal about the practical problems connected with a program as elaborate as the one we're trying to develop. And I hope that this information will help other colleges and universities interested in developing similar programs.

Sincerely,

Thomas I. White, Ph.D.

Hilton Professor of Business Ethics

Director, Center for Ethics and Business

Business Ethics Fortnight

As detailed in our 1996 report, during the 1995-96 academic year, we initiated a new business ethics program on campus that aimed to build on the strengths of LMU's former "Business Ethics Week" panels. The new program, which we dubbed "Business Ethics Fortnight," has four elements: a presentation competition, a fund-raiser, a combined academic/athletic competition and a final ceremony.

The centerpiece of the new program is a student team presentation competition. Students form teams of 3 to 6 members, research a contemporary case in business ethics, and make a 20 to 30 minute presentation in which they analyze the issue and propose a solution. Teams must cover the financial, legal and ethical dimensions of the problem and offer a solution that passes muster on all three counts. Presentations are judged by panels made up of faculty members and men and women from area businesses. The top teams receive cash prizes ($1,000, $600 and $400).

However, as a way of putting a practical twist on the program, we put on a 5 kilometer walk/run and 10 kilometer run (the LMU Run for the Bay) and donate the proceeds to "Heal the Bay," a local environmental group. The idea is to have a component in the program that, within the limited time available in students' schedules, encourages them to be involved in something that does some tangible good for the surrounding community. The run is completely optional, but many students participate--either as runners, walkers or volunteers at the event.

To link these two components and to encourage students to appreciate the connection between mind and body, we also have two $500 prizes for the teams with the best combined scores between the presentation competition and the two distances in the run. We call this "L. A.'s Weirdest Biathlon."

To conclude the program, we have a closing ceremony. We've tried two different formats for this: a panel discussion on some issue related to business ethics, and an awards banquet.