As a Department Head, you play an important role in promoting and upholding Conflict of Interest (COI), Conflict of Commitment (COC), and / or Institutional Conflict of Interest (ICOI) compliance in your department. You are responsible for:

• Ensuring that all applicable personnel under your supervision submit timely and accurate disclosures.
• Reviewing and approving / denying prior approval requests for all full-time faculty in your department. NOTE: Prior approval per policy AC80 does not apply to Postdocs or research staff.
• Submitting your own disclosure. In most cases, you are subject to the same disclosure requirements as those you supervise. Your own disclosures are essential in demonstrating leadership through example and setting the standard for compliance throughout your department.

To fully understand the disclosure requirements that apply to both you and your faculty, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the specific policies for the primary faculty type within your department. Review the Learning Path below that most closely aligns with your own primary role at the University. This will provide you with the detailed knowledge you need to fulfill your own disclosure obligations. Then, familiarize yourself with COINS and learn how to manage your own disclosure profile.

NOTE: Most Department Heads will be aligned with the Tenure-line and Researcher Disclosure requirements.

• Tenure-Line and Researcher Disclosure Requirements: See the Tenure-Line and Research Faculty Learning Path
• Teaching Faculty Disclosure Requirements: See the Teaching Faculty Learning Path

• Review Annual COINS Disclosures: You will no longer be required to review annual COINS disclosures. Email COI staff at coinsadmin@psu.edu if you want access to the disclosures for your department.
• Review Prior Approval Requests: You WILL be required to review and approve/deny Prior Approval Requests for the applicable personnel under your supervision. This review process will occur in COINS. The COI program will conduct the initial compliance review and then your focus is on evaluating the request for workload and time commitment.  See resources in this Learning Path for guidance on reviewing prior approval requests, which are called Pre-Approval Requests in COINS.

Key Changes for All Full-Time Faculty (including Teaching Faculty)

• Previously, faculty confirmed via email to their Department Head that they had no outside professional activities to report.
• Starting in January of 2025, all full-time faculty, including teaching faculty, will be required to log in to COINS annually and complete a disclosure. If they have no outside professional activities to report, they will still need to log in to COINS, answer “No” and then submit.

What You Can Do:

• Reinforce awareness of policy AC80 disclosure requirements this year to ensure a smoother transition next year.

Resources to help:

• COINS Learning Paths (role-based guidance on disclosure requirements and step-by-step COINS instructions)

Now that you understand the changes, consider the following to help those under your supervision prepare for the transition:

• Discuss the updates in one of your faculty meetings.
• Contact the COI office at coinsadmin@psu.edu to arrange a time for someone to attend one of your faculty meetings to discuss the updates and answer questions.

• Review the activities that require prior approval per policy AC80.
• Read about who must submit a prior approval request and when it should be submitted: Overview of Activities Requiring Prior Approval (webpage).

• Understanding Your Role in the Prior Approval Process (webpage)
• Use this checklist to make decisions about prior approval requests: Prior Approval Decision Checklist (webpage)
• Step-by-step instructions for approving Pre-Approval Requests in COINS: Review and Approve Prior Approval Requests in COINS (webpage)

• As a department reviewer, you can view all Pre-Approval Requests for your department under the Requests sub-tab in COINS: Access All Department Prior Approval Requests (webpage).
• NOTE: If you are not able to review the Pre-Approval Requests for your department by following the instructions above, please email coinsadmin@psu.edu. 

Staying informed about your department’s COI disclosures allows you to proactively identify any potential issues or overdue disclosures, track trends or patterns within your department, and promote a culture of COI awareness and transparency. Email coinsadmin@psu.edu for information and reports of disclosures for your department. 

• Locate Department Disclosures (webpage)
• Access and Run Reports (webpage)

In some situations, the COI or ICIO Committees might determine that a discloser’s outside activities or interests create a potential conflict of interest or a conflict of commitment. When this occurs, a management plan is developed in collaboration with the faculty member and COI / ICOI staff. 

• What is a Management Plan? (webpage)
• The Role of the Department Head in the Management Plan Process (webpage)
• Access and Review Management Plans (webpage)
• Email coinsadmin@psu.edu with any questions about management plans for your department.

• Email: coinsadmin@psu.edu
• Phone: (814) 865-1775
• Book time with a COI Analyst: Bookings app (Monday – Friday)
• Web: researchsupport.psu.edu/orp/coi/