COPE, and all of us who are committed to academic integrity, lost a good friend last week. Dr Tracey Bretag passed away on 7 October 2020. Some of us knew Tracey as the Founding Editor of the International Journal for Educational Integrity. Members of the European Network for Academic Integrity (ENAI) knew her as an active participant and speaker at their meetings. Many people use her valuable Handbook of Academic Integrity. COPE knew her in all of these capacities, and as a member of COPE Council since 2017.
Dr Bretag began her studies as a mature student and did not waste any time in establishing herself as a scholar committed to academic integrity particularly as a teacher of undergraduate and graduate students. She was an active scholar with a particular focus on helping faculty and students understand issues of plagiarism, and why honesty and integrity are critical values for students to learn as a core part of their university education. Tracey was a faculty member at the University of South Australia and was promoted to Full Professor last year.
This picture of Tracey (third from the right) was taken with our COPE team at the World Congress of Research Integrity in June 2019 in Hong Kong, where Tracey was part of a panel discussion on ‘responsible authorship’.
Tracey was also a great storyteller and a lively and engaged human being. She will be missed by all of us. Our thoughts are with her family and friends.
Deborah Poff, COPE Chair