President's Annual Ethics Message
Date: October 9, 2025
To: The Caltech Community
Re: Caltech's 2025 Code of Conduct
We are privileged to work and study in a community that comprises extraordinarily talented individuals dedicated to pathbreaking discovery. Caltech's mission of forefront research and education depends on a cooperative endeavor, marked by respect for each other and shared values.
Caltech's Code of Conduct helps ensure that we live up to the highest ethical practices in all Institute activities. Among the principles enshrined in the Code of Conduct is the commitment to fostering free speech and dialogue across perspectives. We are committed to cultivating an environment where individuals can express differing views openly, safely, and in the spirit of fostering community. These values have special resonance given the recent acts of political violence that have shocked all of us.
During your time at Caltech, you may encounter situations where the best course of action is not obvious. The following is a list of resources available to anyone in the Caltech community who would like advice in such a situation:
- Staff members on campus and at JPL may contact their immediate supervisors.
- Faculty, postdoctoral scholars, researchers, students, and staff within the academic divisions may always contact their academic or research advisors, immediate faculty or staff supervisors, and higher levels of the divisional administration, up to the Division Chairs.
- Students may contact the Dean of Undergraduate Students (626-395-6351) or the Dean of Graduate Studies (626-395-6346).
- Any member of the Institute may direct questions regarding unlawful discrimination and harassment on the basis of race, national origin, ethnicity, sex, pregnancy, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and other individual characteristics protected by federal and state law to the Equity and Title IX Office (626-395-3132) or [email protected].
- Any member of the Institute may direct questions regarding research integrity to the Office of Research Policy (626-395-2907) or the JPL Office of the Chief Scientist (818-354-1709).
- Any member of the Institute may direct questions to Human Resources (626-395-3300), JPL's Ethics Office (818-354-6338), Audit Services and Institute Compliance (626-395-8075), or the Office of the General Counsel (626-395-3241).
When ordinary channels are not available or there is a need for confidentiality or anonymity, you may contact the campus hotline (626-395-8787 or toll free 888-395-8787) or the JPL ethics help line (818-354-9999 or toll free 866-405-7536). The Caltech Whistleblower Policy prohibits retaliation against any individual who makes a good faith disclosure of suspected wrongful conduct.
We appreciate your commitment to the Institute's core values and standards as we advance Caltech's scientific discoveries and technological innovations.
Sincerely,
Thomas F. Rosenbaum
