Code of Conduct

Community Rules & Etiquette and Privacy Guidelines

Thank you for being part of our community. To ensure the best possible experience for all members, the GPA Ethics Committee, in partnership with GPA staff, has established some basic guidelines for participation. Please remember, as a GPA member, you are also bound by the GPA Code of Ethics.

By joining and using this community, you attest that you have read and will abide by these rules and guidelines. Please ensure your discussions, shared files, and content are appropriate for the community in which you are posting. This is a great medium with which to solicit the advice of your peers, benefit from their experience, and participate in an ongoing conversation. Questions should be directed to GPA member services department via the Contact Us link on this site. Technical questions on association management issues should be directed to GPA’s helpdesk.

Please take a moment to acquaint yourself with these important guidelines. If you have questions, contact the member services department. In order to preserve a climate that encourages both civil and fruitful dialogue, GPA reserves the right to suspend or terminate membership in this community for anyone who is found in violation of these rules.

 

The Rules

  • Do not attack others. The discussions and comments are meant to stimulate conversation, not to create contention. Let others have their say, just as you may.
  • All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited.
  • Be mindful of differences and do not assume. Cultures vary from department to department, organization to organization, state to state, and from country to country. Humor, abbreviations, or acronyms do not always “translate.”
  • Members should not comment or provide advice on a topic for which they have no experience or training.
  • Comments and discussions should not be commercial or promotional in nature. Please do not post commercial or promotional messages on any discussion, resource library entry, or other area where others might see it. Contact individuals directly (via a private message) with product and service information if you believe it would be of benefit to them. This includes promotions regarding your company/organization. Your post will be removed by GPA staff if it violates the GrantZone Code of Conduct or the GPA Code of Ethics.
  • Job opportunities/postings are not allowed in GrantZone. All job openings must be posted using the GPA Career Center. (Note: Members receive a substantial discount on a 30-day job posting. You can find the discount code here.) Job postings within GrantZone will be removed by GPA staff.
  • Do not post any disparaging comments or information about any individual, company, product, or service. Information posted in the community and in the libraries is available for all members to see, and comments are subject to defamation, tortious interference, and antitrust laws.
  • Do not post anything you would not want the world to see or you would not want anyone to know came from you.
  • Post your message or resources/documents only to the most appropriate communities or libraries. Do not spam several community groups or libraries with the same message.
  • Do not discuss salaries, consultant fees, or other financial matters pertaining to funder/client/grant professional contracts, or payment arrangements.
  • All messages must add to the body of knowledge. GPA reserves the right to reject any message for any reason.
  • Do not share access to the community with non-members. This includes “screenshots” or printing of community posts. Such action may result in suspension or termination from the community as well as disciplinary action under the GPA Code of Ethics.

Discussion Group Etiquette

  • Include a signature tag on all messages. Include your name, affiliation, and location.
  • State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line. This allows members to respond more appropriately to your posting and makes it easier for members to search the archives by subject.
  • Include only the relevant portions of the original message in your reply. Delete any header information and put your response before the original posting.
  • Only send a message to the entire list when it contains information everyone can benefit from.
  • Send messages such as "thanks for the information" or "me, too" to individuals--not to the entire list. Do this by using the "Reply to Sender" link to the right of every message.
  • Do not send administrative messages, such as “remove me from the list.” Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove yourself from a list. If you are changing email addresses, you do not need to remove yourself from the list and rejoin under your new email address. Simply change your email settings.
  • Warn other list subscribers of lengthy messages either in the subject line or at the beginning of the message body with a line indicating "Long Message."
  • Do not overabuse the "post anonymously" feature. GrantZone is a safe space for members of the Grant Professionals Association and should not be visible to the public. Grant Professionals Association also reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to remove any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal material, and to suspend or terminate access to any user at any time for violating this Code of Conduct.

 


GPA Code of Ethics as it Relates to Social Media

Please remember as a GPA member you are also bound by the GPA Code of Ethics when participating in both the GPA online community (GrantZone) or any other online or social media (Facebook,  LinkedIn, etc.). In the spirit of this, the GPA Ethics Committee reminds you to refer to the GPA Code of Ethics, especially the following:

  • Members shall act according to the highest ethical standards of their profession and conscience. (GPA Code of Ethics, #1)
  • Members shall avoid the appearance of any professional misconduct. (GPA Code of Ethics, #3)
  • Members shall disclose all relationships that might constitute, or appear to constitute, conflicts of interest. (GPA Code of Ethics, #4)
  • Members shall not be associated directly or indirectly with any service, product, individuals, or organizations in a way that they know is misleading. (GPA Code of Ethics, #5)
  • Members shall recognize their individual boundaries of competence and are forthcoming and truthful about their professional experience, knowledge, and expertise. Members should not comment or provide advice on a topic for which they have no experience or training. (GPA Code of Ethics, #7)
  • Members shall not disclose privileged information to unauthorized parties. (GPA Code of Ethics, #13)
  • Members shall not plagiarize in any professional work, including websites, online communities, blog posts, social media postings, or other online interactions. (GPA Code of Ethics, #15)



 

The Legal Stuff

This site is provided as a service for the members of Grant Professionals Association.  Grant Professionals Association is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. We disclaim all warranties with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by Grant Professionals Association or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall Grant Professionals Association be liable for any special, indirect, or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.

Do not post any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials. Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner. By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants Grant Professionals Association and users of this site have the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material.

Messages should not be posted if they encourage or facilitate members to arrive at any agreement that either expressly or impliedly leads to price fixing, a boycott of another's business, or other conduct intended to illegally restrict free trade. Messages that encourage or facilitate an agreement about the following subjects are inappropriate: prices, discounts, or terms or conditions of sale; salaries; profits, profit margins, or cost data; market shares, sales territories, or markets; allocation of customers or territories; or selection, rejection, or termination of customers or suppliers.

Grant Professionals Association does not actively monitor the site for inappropriate postings and does not on its own undertake editorial control of postings. In the event that any inappropriate posting is brought to the attention of Grant Professionals Association, we will take all appropriate action. Remember that Grant Professionals Association respects the Community. We understand that people make mistakes and prefer not to ban someone from the Community following a single violation. However, Grant Professionals Association reserves the right to deactivate a member account at any time. Grant Professionals Association also reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to remove any defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal material, and to suspend or terminate access to any user at any time for violating this Code of Conduct.

Grant Professionals Association reserves the right, at its sole discretion and at any time, to modify the Code of Conduct, Site Guidelines, and Terms. It is your responsibility to check the GrantZone Code of Conduct periodically for revisions. Your continued use of GrantZone following the posting of changes will signify your agreement to such changes.

Privacy Policy

We respect your privacy.

Any personal information you provide to us including and similar to your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address will not be released, sold, or rented to any entities or individuals outside of our organization except as noted below.

With Whom Do We Share the Personal Information We Collect Through This Site

Our Service Providers
We may share your personal information with companies (including our affiliates) that perform services on our behalf, for example, companies that help process credit card payments. Our service providers are required by contract to protect the confidentiality of the personal information we share with them and to use it only to provide specific services on our behalf. 

Business Transfers
Your personal information may be transferred to another entity (either an affiliated entity or an unrelated third party) in connection with a merger, reorganization, dissolution, or similar corporate event. If such a transfer were ever to occur, the acquiring entity’s use of your personal information will still be subject to this Privacy Policy. 

Government and Legal Disclosures
We may disclose the personal information we collect through this Site, when we, in good faith, believe disclosure is appropriate to comply with the law (or court order or subpoena); to prevent or investigate a possible crime, such as fraud or identity theft; to enforce our Terms and Conditions or other agreements that govern your use of this Site; or to protect the rights, property or safety of our company, our users, or others.

External Sites

We are not responsible for the content of external internet sites. You are advised to read the privacy policy of external sites before disclosing any personal information.

Cookies

A "cookie" is a small data text file that is placed in your browser and allows us to recognize you each time you visit this site (personalization, etc). Cookies themselves do not contain any personal information, and we do not use cookies to collect personal information. Cookies may also be used by 3rd party content providers such as newsfeeds.

Remember The Risks Whenever You Use The Internet

While we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of any information that you transmit to us and you are solely responsible for maintaining the secrecy of any passwords or other account information. In addition, other Internet sites or services that may be accessible through our site have separate data and privacy practices independent of us, and therefore we disclaim any responsibility or liability for their policies or actions. Please contact those vendors and others directly if you have any questions about their privacy policies.  For any other information please contact us using the Contact Us page. 

 

GrantZone Violation Policy

Date Adopted: April 4, 2025

The Grant Professionals Association (GPA) has the sole discretion to enforce its Code of Conduct within GrantZone. GPA, in its sole discretion and without notice, may review, modify, or remove any content that GPA deems inappropriate or otherwise violates its Code of Conduct, and/or suspend or terminate participation in any and all communities by any member who violates the Code of Conduct. Anonymous posts are subject to administrative review and may be modified to align with the Code of Conduct prior to approval.

Taking action against one of our members, particularly regarding suspending an account, is something we would like to avoid, but it may be necessary in order to protect the quality of service we strive to provide to all members. This restriction is not intended to limit professional networking and collaborative discussion in GrantZone, but rather to enrich it. When unsure whether a particular action is consistent with GrantZone’s Code of Conduct, please err on the side of caution. If you have any questions, please contact GPA’s Membership Director and Community Manager, Kelli Romero, at kelli@grantprofessionals.org.

Possible disciplinary actions for policy violations:

The following describes GPA's general process for handling violations of its Code of Conduct; however, GPA reserves the right to abridge, reorder, or amend this process if deemed necessary in individual cases.

  • Content may be modified or removed.

  • Communication (verbal and/or written) with the member regarding the violation by GPA staff.

  • Moderation of a member's account for 30 days or longer, which requires review and approval of new posts by GPA’s Membership Director and Community Manager before the content is viewable by others on the site.

  • Temporary or permanent suspension of a member's account or membership.

Appeal Process
A member may appeal a temporary or permanent suspension of their account. If a member wishes to appeal, they must contact GPA’s Chief Executive Officer via email.

Appeals should include the following information:

  • First name

  • Last name

  • Email address

  • Phone number

  • Full disclosure of any previous violations

  • The reason the community removal should be overturned, including any relevant or supporting evidence

The GPA CEO will review the appeal and respond to the member within ten business days.

If the member wants to appeal the decision of the GPA CEO, the appeal request as outlined above needs to be submitted to the CEO within 30 days. The GPA Board of Directors will handle the appeal, and its decision will be final. The member will receive a letter from the GPA CEO within 10 days of the decision of the GPA Board of Directors outlining the disposition of the appeal.