About

Development and approval process

The development and approval of university-wide policies are governed by UA-08 Establishing University Policies .

Read on for additional guidance on the policy approval process. For assistance with the policy process or for any accessibility issues, contact the University Compliance & Policy Office.

Requests for new policies or revisions to a current policy should be submitted to the University Compliance and Policy Office through the policy submission form. This form should only be completed once the policy revisions have been reviewed by relevant stakeholders and approved by the policy's responsible office and administrator.

Policy Submission Form

Development

Identify need

The responsible office determines issues and identifies the need for a policy.

Draft policy

The responsible office drafts the policy and the communication plan, and submits them to the University Compliance & Policy Office. A policy template in Word document form is linked here.

Review and comment

Seek feedback

The responsible office (with guidance from the University Compliance & Policy Office) consults stakeholders, the Policy Advisory Council (PAC), faculty governance, the president’s cabinet (if needed), and others to seek feedback and make adjustments to the policy.

Post policy draft for review

During this period, the University Compliance & Policy Office posts the policy to the university policies website for a 30-day public review period. Exceptional circumstances may preclude a 30-day review period (see UA-08).

Approval

Route for final approval

After the review and feedback periods are complete and any necessary changes to the policy are made, the responsible office and the University Compliance & Policy Office route the policy to the responsible administrators for final approval. Responsible administrators with authority to approve university policies include the Board of Trustees, the president, vice presidents, and the University Faculty Council.

Post approved policy on website

After final approval is obtained, the University Compliance & Policy Office posts the policy on the university policies website as in effect.

Distribution and maintenance

Distribute

The responsible office communicates and distributes the policy broadly to the university community and key stakeholders. The University Compliance & Policy Office can guide the responsible office in communicating, educating, and training targeted groups on the policy.

Monitor, measure, review, update

The responsible office should monitor compliance, measure effectiveness of the policy, evaluate feedback, and review the policy regularly. In accordance with UA-08, each policy should be reviewed at least once every five years.