Academic Policy Processes

I. Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to describe processes for new proposals and periodic maintenance for Academic Policies and Procedures.

II. Scope
This policy applies to all faculty, staff, and students seeking to establish and maintain academic policies and procedures.

III. Definitions
Academic Policies and Procedures are defined as those policies which impact academic programs and services to students and facilitate the academic and professional life of the faculty. Academic Affairs policies which come forward from the campus, 1) affect faculty and staff, 2) have academic implications and 3) require approval by the Provost or the Provost’s Delegate before implementation. These policies are located in the UCM Policy Library.

IV. Procedures
New Proposals – See Figure 1. New Academic Policy or Procedure Routing

1. Initial Proposal - The proposal originator (governance groups, individuals, ad hoc groups, committees, administrative teams, legal counsel) will forward the policy/procedure proposal with a policy development justification statement (what is purposed, who wrote the proposal, and the rationale for the proposal) to the relevant administrator. The administrator may consult with appropriate university personnel in determining the need for such a policy/procedure. If it is determined by the administrator that the proposed policy/procedure should be considered for implementation, he/she will forward the proposal and justification to the vice provost for academic programs & services (vp ap&s) or if not endorsed, will notify the party who submitted the proposal of the decision not to endorse.

2. Review and Recommendations - The vp ap&s will review the proposal and justification. If endorsed or determined to merit further discussion, the vp ap&s may forward the proposal including the justification to the Faculty Senate (FS) Executive Committee, the Academic Council (AC) Executive Committee and/or the Provost Council (PC). If not endorsed, the vp ap&s will notify the party who submitted the proposal of the decision not to endorse.

The FS, AC, and/ or PC will review the proposal. A review period is typically 30 days, but may be extended by request (e.g. FS does not meet in the summer) or may be modified by the Provost as special circumstances dictate. Proposals affecting faculty members or students will be reviewed during the academic year whenever possible. Members will discuss the proposal with their governance groups and other constituents. The FS, AC and/or PC will forward their comments or recommendations to the provost.

Final proposals will follow the UCM policy template. The vp ap&s will forward the proposed academic policy and/or procedure to the provost for a final review.

3. Approval - The provost will review the proposal and consult Legal Counsel as circumstances dictate. The provost’s approval is final.

If the provost determines that the proposal requires approval by the president, the provost will recommend review to the president.

Timelines and review processes up to the provost’s consideration may be relaxed or waived in extremely rare circumstances where the provost is convinced of the necessity to act without these deliberation measures. The effective date is the date the policy is approved.

4. New policies are communicated to the campus via electronic communication. In addition, the campus is supplied with a summary of all new policies, revisions, and deletions at the end of every semester. The policies are accessible online through the UCM Policy Library. Departments should link academic policy and procedure references directly to this site.

5. The assistant to the vp ap&s processes approved proposals; documenting the policy in the administrative drive for historical reference and adding the approved policy to the UCM Policy Library.

Maintenance of Existing Academic Policies and Procedures:

Editorial or Technical Updates

Editorial or technical updates may be needed to reflect organizational change, clarification, or minor procedural changes. These changes may occur between review cycles and may be made without going through the review or final approval process. 

When an editorial or technical update is made to a policy document, the revision date and who made the change is added to the revision history (located at the bottom of the policy). Editorial updates are historically archived and posted to the Policy Library by the assistant to the vp ap&s.

Regularly Scheduled Policy and Procedure Reviews 
1. Policies are reviewed using a five-year review schedule.
2. The provost, vp ap&s, the president of Faculty Senate and the chair of the Academic Council will meet to coordinate and establish timelines for reviews.
3. Responsible parties are given a target date for completion of the policy review which should be guided using the UCM review checklist (Appendix A).

V. Formatting and Further Information
The UCM standard policy format is Associated Press format. Associated Press format per policy section denoted by a capital letter. Each section has its own page and will require review in its entirety. A policy template (Appendix B) is provided with this policy.

Policy Writing References:

The Elements of Plain Language, J. Kimble
AP Stylebook - style guidelines, abbreviations, tips on writing, & journalistic writing style.

Appendix A. Policy Review Checklist

Policy Review Checklist

This checklist is a tool that will assist you in completing an academic policy review. Policy reviews are scheduled every five years to assure policies are current. Please complete this form and forward to the administrator/governance group associated with the review.

Appendix B. Policy Template

Policy Template

All Policy Updates Fall 2015 to Spring 2018

Five Year Review Schedule

 

Revision History:

Approved by the Provost on February 9, 2016.

Previously annotated as II.J Establishing and Maintaining Academic Policy and Procedures. Renamed Establishing and Maintaining Academic Policy and Procedures for alphabetical listing, grammar and spell check, and transitioned into policy library April 2017

Previously named Establishing and Maintaining Academic Policy and Procedures. Renamed Academic Policy Processes to improve accessibility. Revised to include routing figure. Policy Library language added and reference to the Faculty Guide removed.

Edited Policy Review Checklist with input from Faculty Senate Faculty Personnel Policies Committee. Approved by vice provost February 2018. 

Edited to insert All Policy Updates Fall 2015 to Spring 2018 and Five Year Review Schedule per Vice Provost of Academic Programs & Services October 2018.

Appendix A and Appendix B updated and modified to reflect current process for policy changes May 2024