Subject: Personnel

Policy: GUIDELINES FOR FACULTY, ADMINISTRATORS AND STAFF WITH FAMILY MEMBERS WHO ARE MSU COLLEGE OF NURSING STUDENTS

Revised: April 2021

Effective date: April 2021

Review date: April 2024. 

Responsible Party: Level I:  Executive Committee; Level II:  Dean

Introduction and Purpose: To avoid any appearance of favoritism, conflict of interest, and/or special treatment toward College of Nursing students who are family members, a policy containing guidelines for faculty, administration, and staff is an appropriate preventive measure.  This policy will guide the action and interaction of those involved in close family relationships throughout the student’s tenure in the College of Nursing.    

Policy: Any faculty, administrator, or staff member who has a family member enrolled as a student in the College of Nursing will defer to another member of the faculty, administration or staff any official individualized function which normally would be performed in the fulfillment of their position in the College of Nursing related to their family member.  The family member may be a spouse, parent, child, sibling, aunt/uncle, niece/nephew or other relative.  This list is not all inclusive.

Procedures:

  1. Faculty: College of Nursing faculty will not serve as the official academic advisor nor, in so far as is possible, be the faculty of record (i.e. assign grades), provide direct clinical supervision (i.e. assign clinical grade), or engage in any other grading function for any student who is a member of his/her family. These functions will be assigned to another appropriate faculty member by the Campus Director. If it is necessary to serve as course instructor, clinical supervisor, etc., the grading process will be reviewed by the Campus Director and/or Associate Dean in order to verify objectivity.
  2. Administrators: College of Nursing administrators will not serve as the official academic advisor, rule on grievances, nor perform any official individualized administrative function for any student who is a member of his/her family. These functions will be assigned to another appropriate administrator by the Dean or his/her designee.
  3. Staff: College of Nursing staff will not provide any official individualized function for a student who is a member of his/her family. These functions will be assigned to another staff member by the Campus Director or other appropriate supervisor.

Internal control considerations, if applicable:

MSU HR policy:  Workplace Expectations and Conduct:  Relationships in the Workplace

MSU Policy:  Relationships with Students Policy