Regence to Serve as Title Sponsor of the 2010 Ethics Bowl
Published on Nov 16 2009 in Press Release by Brent Wilder
The Oregon Independent College Foundation (OICF) is pleased to announce that Regence, the region’s largest not-for-profit health insurer, has agreed to serve as the title sponsor of the 2010 Ethics Bowl to be held February 26-27 at the Leftbank Annex in Portland on the campus of the University of Portland.
“Our commitment to ethics is the cornerstone of our company’s operating principles, said Mohan Nair, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Executive for Regence. “We believe that ethics is a key to our success as an organization, one that is more strongly positioned to serve our employees, our members and our communities. Regence is proud to support the OICF Ethics Bowl series.”
The Ethics Bowl provides a unique opportunity for business and community leaders, students, and faculty alike to openly discuss real world ethical issues and dilemmas; critically important dialogue as these young people become the next generation of community leaders.
The OICF Ethics Bowl is an academic competition designed to increase awareness and discourse among students from the OICF’s 10-member colleges and area business and community leaders about the importance of ethics in leadership, decision-making, interpersonal relations, and all aspects of life.
Using the “college bowl” model of academic competition between teams of students, the Ethics Bowl offers a distinctive platform that matches student teams from the ten OICF member colleges in debates over case studies that address a variety of contemporary ethics-based dilemmas. Approximately 50 business executives and community leaders serve as judges and evaluate team arguments, truly connecting the classroom with the boardroom.
“We are delighted to continue this wonderful partnership with Regence that epitomizes ethics and leadership at the highest level, “said Kevin Matheny, OICF’s President/CEO. “Meaningful investment in programs that encourage discourse about ethics, leadership, and personal character aligns with the priorities of the OICF and the member colleges, and will provide substantial opportunities for thoughtful young people from the colleges to interact with top business and community leaders from across the region.”
Teams of students will deliberate a variety of case studies that focus on a variety of “real world” ethical dilemmas—business, public policy, personal decisions, etc.—that will challenge team analysis and decision-making skills.
The Ethics Bowl is more than a “day away from the office” or “time out of the classroom,” it’s a rare opportunity for substantial dialogue between the leaders of today and the leaders of tomorrow.
Profile of Student Teams
Teams of 3-5 students will represent each OICF college and university in the Ethics Bowl. Students must be enrolled as full-time undergraduates and may come from any academic program. Teams will be selected at the discretion of each OICF member institution. A faculty member will prepare and coach each student team. OICF members include: Concordia University, George Fox University, Lewis & Clark College, Linfield College Marylhurst University, Pacific University, Reed College, University of Portland, Warner Pacific College, and Willamette University.
Ethics Bowl match procedures
A total of 10 student teams will compete in the OICF Ethics Bowl. There will be a moderator and three judges in each match. In a given match, “Team A” will respond to questions based on a case study. “Team B” will have the opportunity to add to, adapt, or reject the response of “Team A.” In like fashion, “Team B” will respond to questions about a second case and “Team A” will reply. Judges will ask questions to each team following their presentations and use specific scoring criteria. Teams will be randomly matched. All 10 teams will participate in four rounds of matches. The two teams with the best “win-loss” records and highest number of judges’ points will move on to the final round. Teams from Willamette University and the University of Portland were finalists in 2009, with the University of Portland being crowned as OICF Ethics Bowl champions.
Past Ethics Bowl Champions
Warner Pacific College – 2006
Willamette University – 2007
Concordia University – 2008
University of Portland – 2009
About Oregon Independent College Foundation
The Oregon Independent College Foundation (OICF), founded in 1950, is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, fundraising and programmatic partnership of Oregon’s ten leading private colleges and universities. Since it’s founding in 1950, the OICF has raised nearly $56 million from top corporations, private foundations, and charitable individuals in Oregon and beyond. Current OICF priorities include named scholarship programs, career workforce development programs, increasing racial diversity among the campuses, and programs that showcase the colleges’ focus on ethics and leadership development. For more information, visit www.oicf.org.
About Regence
Created in 1995, Regence is the largest health insurer in the Pacific Northwest/Mountain State region. It includes Regence BlueShield of Idaho, Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah and Regence BlueShield (in Washington). Through these plans, Regence provides health, life, vision, dental and long- term care insurance to nearly three million members. Regence plans are not-for-profit, independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. More than one in three Americans have coverage from the Blues. For more information, visit www.regence.com.