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The Eller College of Management will host the second annual High School Ethics Forum.

By University Communications
May 1, 2008

Most young people probably aren’t thinking about corporate business models or shareholder profits while they’re playing video games.

A few, however, will chew on that and other issues at the second annual Eller College of Management High School Ethics Forum on Friday.

Nearly 60 students from public and private high schools in Pima County will wrestle with personal and professional dilemmas that businesses deal with on a near-daily basis. Members of the Eller Board of Honor and Integrity, all students at the Eller College of Management at The University of Arizona, will act as facilitators at the forum, generating discussions around the thorny ethical issues of running a profitable company.

The students will pursue three case studies. One is about Take 2 Interactive, the software company that produces the enormously popular video game series "Grand Theft Auto." The case will ask students to weigh the lucrative profits the video games generate against the negative aspects – not only the social costs of violent and sexist entertainment but also the impact of the company’s maverick business practices on its shareholders.

“What I’m trying to do with this forum is to get students to think about the important role they play as consumers today, and the important role they’ll play at some point in the future as business leaders,” said Paul Melendez, director of the Eller College ethics program and a public policy lecturer there.

“These issues are multifaceted and ultimately you have to be thinking about them critically. It’s all about decision making as a consumer, as a parent, as a shareholder. We’re trying to impress on them how this often requires some deeper thought and decision-making skills,” Melendez said.

Student attendance has more than doubled since last year’s forum. The event, sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers, will include a lunch and a keynote address by Patrick Kuhse, who lectures on business ethics as part of his community service obligation after having served four years in Costa Rica and U.S. federal prisons for financial crimes.

More information and the schedule of events are on the Eller Web site.