OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Ethical Communities Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:

1. Describe the four ethical communities

2. Apply the ethical communities to your personal case situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

As a conservative Christian student at Arizona State University (“ASU”), I have often felt
alienated from my classes due to biased viewpoints and questionable materials being presented
as facts. There have been many incidences where I have had first-hand knowledge of a situation,
and know that the learning materials did not reflect the truth of the situation. Furthermore, I feel
Christian views are often totally misrepresented, and there are highly offensive materials that
contain specific narratives in line with certain political ideologies, without opposing views or
critical thinking being encouraged. In fact, challenging the narratives and ideologies has resulted
in outright censorship. The policies, rules, and procedures being followed by ASU have created
an environment where certain ideologies are given preferential treatment, while others are
suppressed, censored, and misrepresented.

2) Describe how the ethics of the organization influenced the situation.

Arizona State University (ASU) has an ethics office that oversees and promotes the institution’s
commitment to appropriate conduct and integrity (Arizona State University, n.d.). The policies,
rules, and procedures have created an environment where certain ideologies are given
preferential treatment, while others are suppressed, censored, and misrepresented. According to
Brittanica (2024), ethics is “the discipline concerned with what is morally good and bad and
morally right and wrong. The term is also applied to any system or theory of moral values or
principles.” Who determines morality and through which worldview is morality being
considered? It is obvious that morality can be biased depending on whose lens it is viewed
through.

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It is a well-known fact that universities in general, have become ramparts for liberalism and have
a commitment to promoting diverse perspectives except those of Christians and conservatives.
So if ethics is determined by morality, is morality subjective depending on the views held by the
person(s) in power, or those holding the purse strings (Federal Funding)? It has become obvious
to me that Christian and conservative viewpoints are marginalized, ridiculed, or even censored.
Recent examples of ethical bias were professed in the textbook by Bolman & Deal, 2021, where
Republicans and conservatives were held in a very negative light, and yet Democrats and
Liberals were held in high esteem.

Undoubtedly biased ethics become very obvious when viewing the liberal agenda of the
University. This has significantly influenced the learning experience of conservative Christian
students, making us feel alienated and discouraged concerning what is being taught in our
classes. This becomes particularly problematic when one is graded on regurgitating the
narratives being taught.

3) Recommend how you would apply one of the ethical communities for an alternative
course of action regarding your case.

Each of the four frames discussed in the book by Bolman & Deal (2021), Reframing
Organizations, has metaphors associated with specific ethical aspects and defines its aspect of
leadership contribution. The Structural Frame’s metaphor is “The Factory” as it is the structure
that is associated with producing a product. This Factory is concerned with producing excellence
through its leadership contribution, authorship, or accountability. Through the ethical lens,
Human Resources can be likened to “Extended Family”, where care is administered, through the
leadership contribution of love. The Political Frame’s ethics metaphor is a Jungle and is
concerned with justice through leadership power. Finally, the Symbolic Frame can be likened to
a Temple, through which faith and beliefs provide a framework for significance. (Bolman &
Deal, 2021, p. 413).

The ethical community of the Structural Frame whose metaphor is the Factory which is allegedly
aligned with “Excellence and Authorship” (Bolman & Deal, 2021, p. 415) can be used in this
instance as we are dealing with an Educational Institution. The structural frame can be compared
to a factory for its focus on turning out college graduates, or the way it was stated in the
textbook, “turning out 5-year-olds into educated graduates” (Bolman & Deal, 202, p. 415). A
factory implies that there is a standardization of the process and the outcome. Although students
graduate with different degrees, skills, and talents the overarching theme is that Universities are
producing students that are largely aligned with specific political ideologies.

This Structural or Factory frame can be used as an alternative course of action as this is where
organizational objectives are standardized. One could challenge the existing structure to ensure
that it is aligned with the organization’s goals and objectives to be an inclusive and diverse
organization. If in fact, Christian and conservative values are not part of the goals for inclusivity,

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then this must be challenged so that the textbooks and materials can be more neutrally taught so
as not to exclude the group that is being marginalized.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about ethics.

The Structural Frame in a university setting emphasizes structure, processes, and systems that are
supposed to contribute to academic excellence, such as research, teaching, and learning,
hopefully without obvious biases. A Christian or conservative student facing censorship could
focus on the structural aspects of the institution and work within existing systems to file
grievances and complaints, as well as voice their concerns to their professors.

What I would do differently is to challenge the course material that is offensive and where the
truth is being suppressed and file a grievance immediately. We need to hold those accountable
who are making decisions for course materials that are not aligned with the university’s goals
and objectives for inclusivity and diversity. The university needs to be reminded that its ethics
are required to be dedicated to upholding high standards of conduct so that Christians and
conservatives, nor any other group, are marginalized.

References

Arizona State University (n.d.). Academic Integrity. Arizona State University Office of the
University Provost. Retrieved February 18, 2024, from https://provost.asu.edu/academic-
integrity

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(7 th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass

Brittanica (2024, February 14). Ethics, philosophy. Britannica. Retrieved February 17, 2024,
from https://www.britannica.com/topic/ethics-philosophy