Santa Clara University

Go back to basics.  That's the advice from Judy Nadler, Markkula Center senior fellow in government ethics, for cities facing tight budgets or even insolvency.

In an article for the Wall Street Journal's MarketWatch, she recommends:

1. Spend only what you can afford.

2. Be realistic about what you need, versus what you want.

3. Consolidate, cooperate, and collaborate.

4. Create, strengthen, and maintain a culture of ethics.

5. Recommit to the importance of public service.

Search services like Google, AOL and Yahoo! compile vast amounts of data on the searches of all their visitors. These seemingly innocent little bits of data, when taken together, can be very revealing. From a person's search queries, one could infer, rightly or wrongly, medical and psychological issues, legal problems, employment status, personal interests, sexual activities and preferences, relationships, fantasies, economic circumstances, geographical location and a host of other characteristics.  Taken together they can suggest a fairly comprehensive portrait of a person, including that person's most intimate problems and vulnerabilities.

These are some of the ethical concerns raised by data aggregation, according to Michael McFarland, S.J., a visiting scholar at the Ethics Center this past year.  McFarland, a computer scientist and the former president of College of the Holy Cross, addresses these and other issues in an extended case study on Internet privacy.

Thomas Reese, SJ, popular commentator on the Catholic Churc and the role of religion in politics, will speak August 9, 5-5:30 p.m., in the St. Clare Room of the Learning Commons on the Santa Clara University Campus.

Reese is the author of the Washington Post blog "This Catholic's View," part of the On Faith section.  He is the former editor of America Magazine.

August 1 is the deadline to register for Ethics Camp for new teachers in Catholic elementary and high schools.  The workshop runs from Aug. 2 through Aug. 10 and includes discussion of practical issues and skills, balanced with time for prayer, reflection, and interaction in community with colleagues.

The shut-down of California's Redevelopment Agencies this year has left cities scrambling to make up the budget shortfalls created by the drying up of redevelopment money from the state.  The demise of RDA was one factor in the recent bankruptcy of San Bernardino.

On August 3, 11:30 a.m. - 2 p.m.,the Center's Public Sector Roundtable will focus on "Ethics in a Post-RDA California."  The Roundtable brings city councilmembers, mayors, city managers, and other public officials together to discuss current challenges in government ethics.  If you would like to attend, contact Center Senior Fellow in Government Ethics Judy Nadler at jnadler@scu.edu. 

Fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University and author of the Washington Post Blog "This Catholic's View," Tom Reese, S.J., returns to the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics this summer as a distinguished visiting scholar.

The former editor of America magazine, is the author of a trilogy examining Catholic Church organization and politics on the local, national, and international levels.

A teaching module for college students on Internet privacy is now available in beta version for university instructors to try out with fall classes. 

Focusing on the "why" of privacy protection, the module offers a case study, an explanation of what companies have to gain from violating a user's privacy, and links to sites that show visitors how to protect their privacy.  Throughout, the materials place privacy in the context of ethics, exploring why privacy is crucial to rights that we value.

As the Center's new external relations director, Jennifer Dirking is responsible for building relationships between the Center and its partners on the Santa Clara University campus, throughout the greater Bay Area, and across the globe. She manages special events, outreach activities, and strategic alliances to engage individuals, corporations, and foundations in supporting the important work of the Center.

Prior to joining the Center, Jennifer was the associate director of the Foothill-De Anza Colleges Foundation, and previously served as director of development for the Burke Museum of Natural History at the University of Washington in Seattle. She also raised support for the UW World series, the international performing arts program at the university.

Lesson plans for independent study are the newest component of the Ethics Center's popular Character Based Literacy (CBL) program, which integrates ethics into the curriculum.  Detailed lesson plans are available in the language arts, US and world history, and science, in addition to the CBL Leadership program, which combines language arts and history.

CBL is a subscription program; sample lesson plans can be accessed here.

WeKnowWhatYoureDoing.com is a new Web site that copies potentially embarassing status updates by people who have not protected their privacy on Facebook and posts them for all the world to see.  The site is a partial answer to the question, Why do we care about privacy?

So is a new group of materials on privacy recently posted on the Ethics Center Web site.  Created by computer scientist Michael McFarland, the materials look at privacy as an ethical matter.  McFarland was a visiting scholar at the Ethics Center this spring, following a 12-year stint as president of Collge of the Holy Cross. McFarland began his career at Bell Labs, and has taught computer science at Boston College and Gonzaga University.  See McFarland's take on Why We Care About Privacy.