Appendix - Introduction - The Research Center on Computing & Society

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National Conference on Computing and Values
Report on the Track: Policy Issues in Campus Computing
Report on the Discussions of the Working Group
on Policy Issues in Campus Computing

Marvin J. Croy

Introduction

This report constitutes a summery of the discussions of the Working Group on Policy Issues in Campus Computing which met at the National Conference on Computing and Values in August of 1991. The aim of this summary is not to provide solutions to problems concerning computer ethics on campus. Rather, it is to communicate the concerns expressed by those involved in the discussions primarily for the purpose of identifying and effectively characterizing existing problems. The identification of these problems should serve as a stimulus to the budding Research Center on Computing and Society and hopefully will suggest a direction and focus for its future growth. The working group on policy issues in campus computing was composed of the following persons:

Della Bonnette		University of Southwestern Louisiana
David Bridge		Smithsonian Institution
Leslie Burkholder		Carnegie-Mellon University
Marvin Croy		University of North Carolina – Charlotte
Antonio De Vido		Pennsylvania State University
Jan Eveleth		Yale University
Timothy Foley		Lehigh University
Richard Gordon		University of Delaware
Beth Kevles		Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Carol Noyes		University of Hartford
Sue Stager		University of Indiana
T. C. Ting		University of Connecticut
Lee Watkins		Johns Hopkins University
Sally Webster		State University of New York/CESF
Frank Wozniak		Southern Missouri State University

The members of this group, although fewer in number than those in other working groups at the conference, brought with them considerable experience relevant to many of the practical problems of computer ethics on campus. Many in this group held administrative positions or were computer professionals who had a direct hand in formulating, interpreting, and enforcing rules which governed the academic and administrative use of computers. There was one clear sentiment repeatedly expressed by this group. Many complained that the policies they had to work with were either vague, contradictory, or nonexistent. In short, these policies, even when they existed, were difficult to interpret and apply in a consistent manner. Many in this group stated that they often found themselves in situations in which definite decisions were required. Yet lacking appropriate precedents and paradigms, they were forced into making judgment calls on an ad hoc basis without the kind of professional support they desired. Much of the group’s discussions centered around addressing the problems of designing and implementing a code governing the use of computers on campus, and often these discussions led directly to ethical questions concerning the rights and obligations of particular individuals or groups. In addition, the role that the Research Center in Computers and Society might play in contributing to the resolutions of these problems and questions was considered. In the following report, each of these topics is presented in a separate section, although the underlying themes are closely connected.

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