Florence-Darlington Tech hosts annual ethics panel

FLORENCE — Florence-Darlington Technical College students had the opportunity Wednesday to discuss ethics with some of Florence’s most prominent business and education leaders.

Andrew Kampiziones was the moderator for Florence-Darlington Tech’s annual “Ethical Issues in Today’s World” panel discussion. This year’s panel featured Dr. Allie E. Brooks Jr., Mark Buyck Jr., Dr. Frank Cox and Dr. Dale Doty. Brooks is a lifelong educator. He retired in June 2005 after serving in Florence area public schools for more than 35 years. He served as principal of Wilson High School from 1974 to 2005 and takes over as interim superintendent for Florence School District 1 in July.

Buyck, a graduate of the University of South Carolina Law School, is a partner with Willcox, Buyck and Williams in Florence. He is admitted to practice before all state and federal courts in South Carolina, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Cox is president and general manager of Roche Carolina. He has more than 24 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry. He joined Roche Carolina in 1995 and over the subsequent 15 years, held management positions in quality control, technical services and logistics.

Doty is Florence-Darlington Tech’s vice president for academic affairs. He came to Florence-Darlington Tech in July 2009 from Colorado Community College in Grand Junction, where he was responsible for the academic administration of the technical and developmental education programs.

Each of the panel members gave a brief presentation on ethics he faces in his profession then answered questions from students.

Buyck read the oath that all attorneys must take and said lawyers must put justice and truth before all.

“Every lawyer has a role to play in the courtroom, but our goal of justice must be the same,” he said.

Cox said there is plenty of debate about the ethics of marketing pharmaceutical products directly to consumers, and many throughout his profession and the medical profession have differing opinions on the matter. Personally, he said, he strives to practice good ethics in business and all other aspects of his life.

“The definition of ethics really means to always do what’s right for the right reasons and to avoid doing what’s wrong for the wrong reasons,” he said. “Sounds easy enough, right? But sometimes we use those gray areas when it’s difficult to make a decision.”

Cox recalled a situation in which he was offered Wimbeldon tickets by a business associate. His company’s policy says Roche employees cannot accept gifts of $100 in value or more. The price on the tickets said $90, but the street value was probably closer to $1,000.

“Sure, I was within company policy on paper, but am I outside of the spirit of the policy? Sometimes knowing what’s right to do is difficult, but knowing what’s wrong is not. Focus on what’s wrong, and avoid it,” Cox said, adding that he did not accept the tickets.

Kampiziones started the ethics panel many years ago, and it has become an annual tradition, Florence-Darlington Tech’s Director of Media Relations Clay Williams said.

“Every year, it brings together the most prominent and well-known men and women in this area to talk about ethics in their profession,” Williams said. “We’ve had Army colonels, newspaper publishers, doctors. It’s always interesting and always well-attended.”