Political Activities (III.B.4)

Volume III: Ethics
Chapter B: Conflicts
Responsible Executive: President
Responsible Office: Office of the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance
Date Issued: January 29, 2015
Date Last Revised: May 1, 2025

Contacts
Statement of Policy
Reason for This Policy
Individuals and Entities Affected
Exclusions
Responsibilities
Definitions (defined terms are capitalized throughout the document)
Related Documents, Forms and Tools
Website Address for This Policy
History and Updates
Appendix

Contacts

Policy Clarification

Vice President for Ethics and Compliance
765-494-5830 | vpec@purdue.edu

Statement of Policy

Purdue University recognizes that its employees have the right as citizens to participate in the political processes of society. All employees retain the right to exercise their political freedoms, to vote as they may choose, to express their opinions on all political subjects and to discuss local, national and international issues, except as subject to the limitations of this policy as outlined below.

No employee (full-time or part-time) of Purdue University may use or attempt to use their official authority or position in the University, directly or indirectly, to:
1. Affect the nomination or election of any candidate for any political office,
2. Affect the voting or legal political affiliation of any other employee of the University or of any student, or
3. Cause any other employee of the University or any student to contribute any time or money (whether as payment, loan or gift) to the support of any political organization or cause.
No employee of the University may engage in any political activity while performing their assigned University duties, while traveling on behalf of the University or while on University property, except that in extra-curricular functions on the campus, the employee has the same status and is subject to the same regulations as other citizens.
No employee of the University may represent that any political candidate, political party or partisan activity has the official or unofficial support of Purdue University.
Faculty and staff members who intend to participate in any of the following activities are subject to the policy on Conflicts of Commitment and Reportable Outside Activities (III.B.1) and must follow that policy’s procedures for obtaining advanced written approval for the activity.
1. Campaign for political office
2. Manage a political campaign
3. Accept a political office requiring part-time service
4. Serve part-time as a registered state or federal lobbyist
Any faculty or staff member of the University who accepts or is elected to a political office requiring full-time service must obtain a leave of absence for the period of service or resign. This leave of absence will be granted only on the explicit condition that during this period the individual does not represent himself/herself nor knowingly allow himself/herself to be represented as an employee of Purdue University.

Reason for This Policy

Purdue University, as a state-supported institution, does not endorse political candidates, political parties or partisan activities. Similarly, the University does not take an official position either on partisan political questions or on partisan matters of public policy. The Board of Trustees requires that a policy be maintained that recognizes the rights of faculty and staff as citizens while upholding the University’s position on institutional neutrality.

Individuals and Entities Affected

All faculty and staff of Purdue University, wherever located and whether full-time or part-time.

Exclusions

Consistent with the University’s Statement of Policy on Institutional Neutrality, nothing in this policy prevents the University or a University Officer or their designee, when acting in an official capacity on behalf of the University, from expressing an authorized institutional viewpoint on legislative or public policy issues that affect the fiscal affairs of the University, its land-grant mission, or its values of free inquiry, free expression and intellectual diversity.

Nothing in this policy prevents a University Officer from speaking publicly on matters of public policy in connection with their participation in an activity that is an approved Reportable Outside Activity (as defined in Purdue policy III.B.1) or that is authorized pursuant to a written agreement with the Board of Trustees.

Finally, nothing in this policy prevents individual members of the campus community from expressing their own views on a particular political or social issue, provided that the individual expresses them in a personal capacity or in the exercise of individual academic freedom and does not purport to speak on behalf of Purdue University or any of its departments or units.

Responsibilities

All Faculty and Staff

Adhere to the requirements of this policy.

Definitions

All defined terms are capitalized throughout the document. Additional defined terms may be found in the central Policy Glossary.

University Officer
Individuals employed by the University who hold a title of or equivalent to President, Provost, CFO, Executive Vice President, Chancellor, Senior Vice President, Vice President, Vice Chancellor, Vice Provost, Legal Counsel, Dean, Director or Department Head, and any individual employed by the University whose job duties include communicating the University’s position on issues of legislation or public policy to politicians and law makers.

Website Address for This Policy

www.purdue.edu/vpec/policies/ethics/iiib4

History and Updates

May 1, 2025: Updated the Reason for Policy and the Exclusions sections to include language related to institutional neutrality. List of related policies updated.

January 29, 2015: This policy dates to, and substantially incorporates, the regulations on political activities adopted by the Board of Trustees on October 17, 1951. This policy supersedes Political Activities (Executive Memorandum No. B-4) dated May 1972.

Appendix

There are no appendices to this policy.