What is the purpose of the Conflict of Interest and Commitment Policy?

The University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver) encourages outside interactions of its faculty, student employees with federal, state, and local governments, and with business and industry as important parts of their research, education, and public service activities. Since outside interactions also carry with them an increased potential for conflicts of interest and/or commitment, either actual or perceived, it is important to communicate the following points:

• many conflicts that are properly disclosed can be adequately managed without detriment to the reputation, integrity or position of the institution and the individual;
• in most cases, problems associated with conflicts of interest or commitment do not arise from the conflicts per se, but rather are the result of a failure to openly acknowledge and actively manage them;
• it is important to outline the institutional process for identifying, assessing and managing these potential conflicts;
• it is critical to establish guidelines, in accordance with requirements from federal agencies including the Public Health Service (PHS) and National Science Foundation (NSF), that will help to assure the primacy of academic integrity and delineate the bounds of acceptable conduct for those who conduct any type of research and particularly research involving human subjects.

What must be disclosed on the annual form?

• All financial interests regardless of amount, for a faculty member and his/her family member with a financially interested entity that has commercial activities with UC Denver related to your research or area of expertise.
• An Executive Position or Membership on a Board of Directors where a covered individual and his/her family member holds any position that includes responsibilities for a material segment of the operation or management of a business, including Board membership.

What is NOT disclosed on the annual form?

• Salary, royalties, or other compensation from UC Denver;
• Income from seminars, lectures, or teaching engagements sponsored by public entities (i.e. Denver Public Schools, income for review boards, and NIH peer review boards); or
• Income from service on an advisory committee or review panel for public entities (Denver Public Schools, income from review boards, and NIH peer review boards);
• Interest in mutual funds where the individual has no control over the selection of holdings.

When is the annual disclosure form due?

The annual disclosure forms for the 2009 calendar year will be distributed on Monday January 12, 2009 and must be completed online within 60 days of receipt or by Friday March 13, 2009. After the initial annual disclosure form has been submitted, individuals should submit updates or changes to the forms within 30 days.
How do I complete the on-line disclosure form?

• This email contains the link that will open your personal Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form. The form is pre-populated with your Name, Rank, ID Number, and School. Press the "Confirm and Continue" button to proceed to Section II.
• If you have completed a COI Disclosure Form for 2008, you will have the option of importing the data from that disclosure and you may update, add a company or organization, and delete a company or organization from your form.  You must review and accept each company or organization before being allowed to finish the form.  If you opt not to import your data from 2008 you will start with a blank form.
• Answer the questions to Section II and press "Save and Continue". Depending on the activities described on this page some may go to the confirmatory statement from here.
• Section III - For each entity that you have equity interest in, serve on an Advisory Board or Board of Directors, you will fill out a separate page of Section III. When you have completed Section III for each entity press "Save and Continue" to proceed to Section IV. Depending on the activities described on this page, some may go to the confirmatory statement from here.
• Complete Section IV; the form will prompt you for the entities that will require information for this section. Section IV may have multiple entries. “Save and Continue" to proceed to the confirmatory statement.
• Please read the confirmatory statement and "Submit Information" at the end.
• This final page will allow you to print this form for your records. If you have trouble printing make sure Adobe Acrobat loaded on your system.
• Thank you!

You may press save and continue at the end of any section and the form will be saved to that point and may be reopened and completed at a later time.

Where can I get additional information concerning conflict of interests?
The Conflict of Interest Website: https://www.cu.edu/policies/Academic/Conflict-of-Interest.pdf