French University Students Visit ECOA Members in Washington, DC, and New York 

By Robert Israel


Thirty students pursuing advanced degrees in European law and business ethics at the University of Cergy-Pontoise (UCP) traveled to the United States recently to participate in a five day educational program coordinated by ECOA, its members, and the university.

This year the graduate students attended several meetings at the United States Office of Government Ethics, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, and at the World Bank in Washington, D.C., among others. During their stay in New York, representatives from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Pfizer, NBC, L’Oréal, and Assurant shared their E&C programs and professional experience with the students.

“This is the fourth year the ECOA has been involved with this program, and we are extremely proud of our relationship with UCP and with the high caliber of the students who travel to the United States each year to study with us,” said Keith T. Darcy, ECOA’s executive director. “As the program expands, we are looking to develop additional resources, including internships.”


Ongoing relationship

Over these past four years, ECOA has cultivated strong ties to the University of Cergy-Pontoise. Keith Darcy has been a frequent guest lecturer on business and ethics at the university, as has former Chair of the ECOA Board of Directors, now at the University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign, Gretchen Winter. In addition, earlier this year Darcy and S. Maria Sonin, ECOA’s Associate Director of Marketing and Communications, visited the UCP campus and engaged in an interactive dialogue with the students about careers in E&C.

“The annual visit to the United States is but one way we at the ECOA are working to ensure that the students are equipped with the skills needed to succeed at interpreting complex ethics and compliance laws and trends,” said Darcy. “Thanks to this program, these future ethicists will be held in good stead when they enter the working world as practitioners. We are grateful to our members for hosting the students during their visit.”


Thank you to the hosts!

ECOA very much appreciates the time and effort provided by ECOA member organizations that welcomed the students:
  • International Monetary Fund
  • U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • Siemens
  • U.S. Office of Government Ethics
  • Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
  • World Bank
  • L’Oréal
  • Assurant
  • Federal Reserve Bank of New York
  • NBC
  • Pfizer
  • The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  • New York City Commission on Human Rights

Planning for 2013

Plans are underway for next year’s visit. If you are interested in participating, please contact Farah Asmussen, ECOA’s assistant director of member relations, at 781-827-4048 or farah.asmussen@theECOA.org.


ABOUT THE ECOA:

The ECOA, now celebrating its 20th anniversary, is a member-driven, nonprofit, professional association exclusively for individuals responsible for their organization’s ethics, compliance, and business conduct programs. Headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, its members represent the largest group of ethics and compliance practitioners in the world. For more information, visit www.theecoa.org.