COLUMBUS, Ohio –
Defense Logistics Agency Weapons Support (Columbus)’ Legal Office took an innovative approach to its annual ethics training on Oct. 7, by transforming the Operations Center Auditorium into a "Federal Ethics Regulations Jeopardy!" game show set.
The event, mandatory for public and confidential financial disclosure filers, mirrored the popular TV game show, complete with buzzers and a realistic game board of ethics categories displayed on the big screen. The leaders – and one brave volunteer from the audience – were challenged with ethical questions, while the audience used "Yes/No" cards to agree or disagree with their answers. Ethics Counselors Christine Roark and Shy Wang from the Agency’s Legal Office hosted the event and provided detailed explanations following each round.
In a rapid and fierce competition, DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) Commander Navy Rear Adm. Julie Treanor, Chief of Staff Air Force Col. Lee Akers, Acquisition Executive Cathy Contreras, Director of Operations Chrissy Schall and Pathways to Career Excellence trainee Marcy Johnson tested their knowledge and reflexes in six categories.
“This is not about winning or losing,” Roark told the attendees. “It’s about having fun while learning some of the ethics rules and regulations.”
Just like in Jeopardy! questions were framed as statements and the answers were intended to be delivered in the form of a question.
And just like the real game show, category and dollar amounts were chosen round-robin style with Final Jeopardy! rounding out the game after all categories were exhausted.
The categories were Gifts and Gratuities, Conflicts of Interest, Political Activities, Financial Disclosure, Post-Employment and Miscellaneous.
The Jeopardy! format allowed the Agency’s Legal Office to present the often-complex slate of ethical regulations in a fun and interactive way, encouraging participation and reinforcing key concepts.
Ethical rules contained on the game board ranged from easy at the 200-level, up to tricky and ambiguous rules at the 1,000-level.
In the category of Gifts and Gratuities for 200 for example, the ‘question’ was: “For a special, infrequent occasion like a wedding, baby shower or retirement, this is the maximum value for a group gift.”
Treanor, quickly buzzed in and offered $1,000 as the maximum amount, prompting a wave of “No” cards rising from the audience. Roark then revealed the correct response: “What is $480?”
The Political Activities category proved more divisive, especially at the 600-level, when Akers offered, “What is one?” to a statement regarding the number of bumper stickers an employee may have on their vehicle during election season.
Roark clarified the gray area, explaining the rule allows one per candidate, per race, not just one overall.
Later, when the topic of providing influencing non-War Department entities arose, Akers answered, “What is endorse?”
While legally correct as the audience surmised, it highlighted the importance of considering appearances. Treanor emphasized that the perception of every action must be considered.
“Sometimes you should just be cautious when asked for a photo for example,” Treanor said. “Think in the back of your mind, where this could go and what might it be used for.”
She relayed a real-world situation where one of her mentees was in the process of getting a photo removed from a college promotional advertisement.
“She thought that when she gave her school the photo that it would be used in an unofficial way,” Treanor said. “As it turns out that was not the case.”
Roark concurred.
“In each ethical situation you find yourself in, evaluate the big picture and ask yourself if it’s legally sound to determine if you can do it,” she said. “But more importantly, think of the ramifications of what this action would look like in the public eye and if its right for the government.”
The live training was recorded and is available for employees who were unable to attend at this CAC-enabled link: https://dlaio.gcds.disa.mil/index.html?id=COL2010072025A
To receive credit for training attendance, employees may email the ethics inbox at DSCC.Ethics.Training@dla.mil with the code word provided at the end of the recording. Associates have until Nov. 30 to complete the annual requirement.