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Report a Concern

Northwestern is committed to the highest standards of professional and ethical conduct and provides a number of channels for faculty, staff, students, and other members of the University to ask questions and communicate issues or concerns.

If you are not sure where or whether something should be reported, University Compliance is a resource for asking questions and can help put you in touch with experts across the campus community.  We also receive concerns reported through the EthicsPoint system, a third-party service where reports can be made anonymously. 

Talk to your manager, University Compliance, or contacts across campus, but we encourage you to speak up. 

Emergencies & Criminal Activity

For emergency situations or if a crime is in progress, call 911.

For a non-emergency situation that relates to suspected criminal activity, including suspected cases of abuse or other circumstances where you find yourself either a victim or a witness to questionable activity, call Northwestern University Police:

Evanston
Chicago

Routine Compliance Concerns

First contact your supervisor or unit manager. They need to know about issues that arise in the area under their management, and they are often in the very best position to answer questions and take action.

If you don’t feel comfortable raising a concern with your supervisor or manager (or if your concern relates to them, or if you have previously told them but the concern has not been remedied), there are several ways you can report your concern:

  1. Report the issue to the direct manager of your supervisor.
  2. Report the issue to one of the compliance specialists who work in the area relevant to your concern — you can find them on the Key Compliance Areas & Contacts page of this site.  Or, report the issue through one of the specialized reporting mechanisms.
  3. Report the issue through the EthicsPoint hotline, which allows you to report an issue anonymously by calling (866) 294-3545 or by submitting an online report.
  4. If you are not sure how to report a concern or are not even sure if a concern should be reported, contact the Compliance Office.  We can offer further guidance on the various reporting mechanisms, answer compliance questions, and direct you to the best subject matter resources

Northwestern’s Policy on Non-Retaliation strictly prohibits retaliation against any member of its community for reporting or inquiring in good faith about suspected wrongful or unlawful activity, or participating in an investigation or proceeding related to such activity. The University considers such actions to be protected activities in which all members of its community may freely engage without worry of negative consequences.