Policy on Policies

Policies ensure that the University operates with appropriate administrative governance, oversight, and control. Policies are formal directives concerning the University’s day-to-day operation and administration. All students, employees, vendors/contractors (while on-campus or at University-sponsored events), and campus visitors (while on-campus or at University-sponsored events) must comply with the University policies; failure to do so may result in consequences up to and including termination of employment, expulsion, cancellation of University contracts with vendors/contractors, and removal from campus.

This Policy explains the process by which policies are adopted, amended, and rescinded, and how policy exceptions are requested and determined.

Ultimate policymaking authority rests with the Board of Trustees. The President, as the Board’s chief executive officer, enjoys policymaking authority concerning any matter not specifically addressed by the Board’s policies or resolutions. Policymaking authority may be delegated in general, categorically, or with respect to particular matters.

The Policies adopted according to these processes apply to all University students, employees, vendors/contractors (while on-campus or at University-sponsored events), campus guests (while on-campus or at University-sponsored events). Failure to comply with a policy can result in consequences up to and including termination of employment for employees, expulsion for students, cancellation of University contracts with vendors/contractors, and removal from campus.. Consequences will be imposed in accordance with University policy and the provisions of any applicable agreements.

1. Recommending Policies. Any student or employee may recommend a policy change. New policy recommendations must be submitted in writing to the University Policy Committee, while recommendations for amendment or elimination of an existing policy must be submitted in writing to the Policy Manager responsible for the policy in question. Recommendations should include an explanation of why policymaking serves the University’s interests, example policies (if any) collected from other institutions, a draft of any new/amended policy language, and other materials the recommender wishes to submit for review. The Policy Committee / Policy Manager will review policymaking recommendations from time to time, and may (but is not required to) consult with the author of the recommendation or other interested parties. The Policy Manager and/or Policy Committee has discretion to determine whether to pursue further policymaking in response to any request. The Policy Manager / Policy Committee is not obligated to review/consider policymaking recommendations that are redundant, unreasonable, or illegitimate.
2. Board Policies. The Board may adopt, rescind, or amend a policy through an act orresolution in accordance with its Bylaws. Board policies are effective immediately upon adoption, andare not subject to other policymaking prerequisites or processes, such as posting for comment, or appeal, but Board Policies will be posted promptly to the University’s policy register.
3. Emergency Policies. If the President determines that existing policies are inadequatefor the effective administration of the University, and the President determines that there is an urgent need for policy guidance, the President may exercise emergency policymaking authority. In an emergency, the President may adopt, rescind, or amend a policy unilaterally, and without complying with the regular policymaking process. Emergency policy changes are effective immediately upon posting to the University policy register, and expire no more than 120 days after adoption (unless circumstances render it infeasible to engage in regular policymaking during that window). If the Office of the President is vacant, then emergency policymaking authority may be exercised by the next senior officer.
4. Regular Policies. Regular policies may be adopted, amended, or rescinded by the President (or delegate) or the Policy Committee. Proposed policy changes will be posted to the University’s policy website at least 30 days in advance of formal action. The President (or delegate) or Policy Committee will review and consider (and may but are not obligated to respond to) comments submitted in writing by students, employees, or student/employee organizations, before taking formal action on a proposed policy change. Policy changes instituted in this manner will be effective upon posting to the University’s policy register.
5. Corrections. The Policy Committee may correct typographical, spelling, and formatting errors at any time and without complying with the formal processes in this section. A corrected policy will be posted to the Policy Register, but other notice is not required.
6. Guidance. To assist with administrative governance, informal policy guidance may be posted with each policy. Policy guidance may include definitions, procedures, forms, examples, notes, and so forth. Policy guidance may be adopted, amended, or rescinded without any formal process by the Board, President, Policy Committee, or Policy Manager for the particular policy in question.

At adoption or as each policy is revised, it will be assigned a Policy Manager who is responsible for maintaining the sufficiency of the policy. The Policy Manager will conduct the periodic Policy Review: consulting with stakeholders, reviewing similar policies at peer institutions, drafting/revising policy language (if appropriate) and reporting to the Policy Committee regarding the need for policymaking. Policy Review will occur when directed by the Policy Committee, or when deemed advisable by the Policy Manager, but in no case less than once every three years.

1. Review. All University students and employees must review the policy register at least once annually, at the beginning of the academic year (or promptly upon hire and then annually at the beginning of each successive academic year for newly-hired employees), and attest in writing to having reviewed the University’s policies.
2. Notification. The University will promptly communicate policy changes of campus-wide significance to the campus community by email.

Unless a policy provides other guidance, exceptions may be approved in writing only by the Board (for Board Policies), the President, the Provost (for academic policies), or the Executive Vice President (for administrative policies).

Department-level or Unit-level “policies” or handbooks may not conflict with official University policies, and only constitute informal guidance unless (a.) approved by the Policy Committee, and (b.) posted on the University’s policy register.

The Policy Committee shall determine a uniform format for policies and policy references. New Policies shall conform to the current format, and existing policies shall be converted to the then-current format during Policy Review.