Framework for Policy Creation and Oversight

The policy development process was established as a framework for the proposal, development, implementation, review, and archive of St. Cloud State University policies and procedures. The importance of having current policies available to all university constituencies, as members of the public, cannot be overstated. Everyone must be able to determine how to comply with university expectations.

Policy:

Policies and procedures are enacted to direct the interaction between the University, its constituents and community members. Policies are formal, written statements that translate the University's mission, values, and obligations into daily actions by making explicit to the University community the behaviors for which its members will be held accountable. University policies exist within a broader legal environment (see Understanding the Policy Hierarchy section below).

Procedures are detailed, written statements of specific processes to implement a policy. Procedures bridge the gap between policy and practice. St. Cloud State University may develop written procedures to implement its own policy, Minnesota State policy, state or federal law, or contractual obligations.

Policy Document Management System:

The University has invested in the development of the Policy Document Management System (also known as PDMS or more commonly, the Policy Hub) to support the development, publication, implementation and archiving of all university policies at all levels. It is the goal of the Policy Office to make this resource available to all university units, at all levels. Units, divisions, departments, or programs that have not yet been incorporated into the new PDMS process may continue to develop policies and procedures consistent with past practice, appropriate to their responsibilities, and in accordance with the established Policy Hierarchy.

Procedure:

University Policy Committee

The University Policy Committee will typically meet monthly during the academic year to make and review policy proposals and provide advice to the university President on university policy matters, additional meetings may be called during the summer if deemed necessary. This committee will act as a formal group of experts on policy matters, supplementing the prior process of seeking stakeholder engagement once the President has approved a policy initiative and prior to seeking comment from the university community.

The University Policy Committee’s work will be facilitated by the University Policy Core Group. The members of the Core Group shall include the co-chairs: University Registrar and Vice President for University Affairs and Advisor to the President; the Associate Provost for Academic Affairs, as well as appointees by the Vice Presidents for Students Affairs, Finance and Administration and Human Resources. This group of six will meet at least monthly, prior to the monthly University Policy Committee, to review proposals and establish timelines for policy development. The Policy Core Group will also invite experts from across the university when policy proposals originate in their areas or will have a significant impact on their areas of responsibility.

Members of the University Policy Committee will include the Core Group members in addition to five representatives appointed by the five bargaining units and appointees by the Director of Athletics, and the Vice Presidents for Institutional Equity, Advancement and Alumni Engagement and Instructional Technology and Strategy. As policies are considered by the University Policy Committee, stakeholders may be invited to meet with the committee to share their expertise. Members of the University Policy Committee may also suggest policies for revision or adoption, such suggestions will be taken to the University President for consideration.

Understanding the Policy Hierarchy

Policies at each level of the policy hierarchy must comply with the laws or policies at all levels above it. To maintain consistency and uniform application, a policy should be developed and applied at the broadest institutional level. At St. Cloud State University, policies designated with the policy type 'All University' will provide the broadest level of implementation.

When proposing a policy, it is important to first determine if the policy can or should be written as an ‘All University’ policy.

Unique circumstances or specific requirements of a department or unit can be written as an exception within an ‘All University’ policy or procedure and should be whenever possible. For example, the Student Participation and Medical Consultation Procedure is classified as ‘All University’, but there is an exception for Education Abroad Medical Concerns, which has specific requirements involving the Center for International Studies.

When it is not possible to capture the necessary exception within an All University policy because it is too detailed or the policy is only applicable to a specific department or group of departments; Departmental, Functional Unit, and Unit-Specific Policies can be developed, as long as they comply with all policies or laws higher up the hierarchy structure.

Overview of Development Process

A visual summary of the policy development process is available in the Policy Process Flow Chart (PDF) The process is described in further detail below:

• When a proposal is received, the content is reviewed by the Policy Office, in coordination with the University Policy Committee Core Group. Additional information may be gathered from the proposer, subject matter experts, or through research. Policy proposals may also originate from within the University Policy Committee.
• Once the rationale, scope, and basic concept of the proposal are outlined, the Policy Office, consulting the President as needed, determines if the proposal should be developed further.
• If it is determined that the proposal will not move forward or will be delayed, a member of the Policy Team will enter the appropriate reject reason in the PDMS.
• If the proposal moves forward and urgent implementation is required, the President may authorize an expedited process. Otherwise, the Policy Team determines the appropriate policy type and recommends a collaborative group to develop the policy.
• A collaborative working group, that may be an established or ad hoc group, referred to as stakeholders, may research best practices, review peer policies, consult legal or other experts, and develop a policy draft along with associated documents such as procedures, guidelines, and forms.
• When the draft is sufficiently developed, it is presented by a member of the Policy Team to the University Policy Committee for further review and development as needed
• After review and approval by the University Policy Committee it is presented by a member of the Policy Team or the Responsible University Officer (or designee) to the President’s Cabinet before determining next steps.
• If approved for public review, the draft will be shared publicly (including with Collective Bargaining Units) for a four-week comment period. Drafts developed to comply with changes in the legal or regulatory environment may, or may not be shared for comment prior to the President’s approval.
• At the end of the public comment period, all feedback is reviewed at the Cabinet. Revisions are made, by the Policy Team or, at times, in consultation with the University Policy Committee, and the updated draft is returned to the President’s Cabinet for final review and recommendation to the President. Once finalized, the President approves the policy or sends it back for further development.
• Approved policies are published electronically and made available publicly.

Overview of Review and Maintenance Process

• When policy documents are approved and adopted a review schedule is established.
• When a policy or associated document is scheduled for review, the University Policy Committee recommends a policy be reviewed or it is otherwise determined that a policy needs to be reviewed outside of the scheduled review date, the Policy Office will notify the Contact, Owner and Responsible University Officer.
  • If only minor revisions are required, the Policy Office has the authority to make corrections to policy at any time without notifying the Responsible University Officer or going through the full revision process, comment period, and public sharing as described below.
• The Responsible University Officer will either determine that revisions are needed or decide that no changes are required during this review cycle.
• If it is determined that no changes are necessary, a new review date is set.
• If revisions are recommended, the Contact, Owner and Responsible University Officer in coordination with the University Policy Committee will draft the needed changes. A collaborative working group may also be assembled to assist in the drafting process prior to sharing the revisions with the University Policy Committee.
• When the Responsible University Officer and the University Policy Committee have determined, the proposed revisions are developed to an appropriate level the draft will be presented by a member of the Policy Team or the Responsible University Officer or designee to the President’s Cabinet for approval to post as pending for public comment.
• When the President’s Cabinet determines the proposed draft revisions are sufficiently developed the draft policy will ordinarily be shared publicly (including with Collective Bargaining Units) for comment.
• If a reviewed policy is shared for public comment, at the end of the 4-week public comment period, all comments and concerns will be reviewed and, if necessary or appropriate, the draft will be amended. Subsequent drafts are returned to the President’s Cabinet for review. Once no further drafting is needed, the President’s cabinet will make their recommendation to the President to either approve or modify the revised policy.
• When the revisions are approved by the President the policy will ordinarily be shared publicly and will be published electronically replacing the previous version.
• The previous version will be archived within the PDMS.