Policy on Policies

Policy Name: Policy on Polices
Policy Number: 01-05-007
Accountable Senior Administrator: University Counsel
Issued: 11/23/2019
Last Updated: 05/07/2020

Policy Statement

At NJCU, university policy development, renewal, and retirement follow a formal process involving proposal, writing, approval.  This policy applies to all university policies except those initiated or vetted through the University Senate.  

Reason for the Policy

Policies are fundamental to NJCU’s ability to operate. Well-written policies can clarify expectations, guide actions, provide controls, enhance productivity and efficiency, support compliance with regulatory mandates, ensure accountability, and mitigate risk. All employees are required to follow and accountable for following applicable policies. Noncompliance could result in consequences including, but not limited to, intervention from Human Resources.

Stakeholders Affected by Policy

  • Contractors
  • Employees
  • Students
  • Vendors

Definitions

  • Policy Owner - the administrator who provides oversight of the office proposing a policy for development, revision or retirement.  This is typically the President/Vice President who heads the appropriate division. Could also be the office representative proposing a policy for development, revision, or retirement.
  • Interim University Policy - a provisional policy implemented in a situation that requires it to be established in a time period too short for vetting through the official process (e.g., new legislation, incident on campus).
  • Policy Advisory Group (PAG) - a standing cross-divisional group that reviews policies presented for development, revision, or retirement.  After iterative review, PAG forwards policies to the Policy Executive Group for executive review and action.
  • Policy Approval Form - Form used by University Policy Administrator or Policy Coordinator to document and track approvals of policy developments.
  • Policy Executive Group (PEG) - a standing group, comprised of senior administrators. PEG review policies forwarded by PAG and makes recommendations to the President for approval.
  • Policy Library - the central repository for all university policies. Policy Library
  • Policy Template - Template used in developing/revising policies. This form, used to write policy in Phase II of the policy process, outlines the standard elements to be included in all policies. Policy Template
  • Request From - Form used when requesting approval to develop, revise, or retire a policy. This form is used in Phase I of the policy process. Request Form
  • University Policy - a policy is a statement of the University’s position on a particular issue.  A policy is considered a university policy if it meets all of the following criteria:
    1. It has broad application or impact across the University.
    2. It serves to comply with applicable laws and regulations, promotes operational efficiencies, supports the University’s mission, or reduces institutional risk.
    3. It requires actions or constraints and contains specific procedures for compliance.
    4. It applies to a subject matter that requires review and approval of the President and in some cases other approval authorities.

Policy Text

The development, renewal, and retirement of university policies follow a formal process that includes proposal, writing, and approval. The steps of this process are articulated in the Procedures Section of this policy.

  • The process applies to all university policies except those initiated or vetted through the University Senate.
  • The Policy Owner is responsible for developing and updating policies.
  • Policies for subordinate units are not subject to this policy, but such unit policies must clearly indicate their scope and that they are not university-level policies.
  • Documents that do not qualify as policies (e.g., guidelines, procedure-only documents) should not be referred to as policies, either in their title or their text. 
  • An interim policy can be enacted in a situation that requires it to be established in a time period too short for vetting through the official process (e.g., new legislation, incident on campus). Such policies will be placed on the subsequent PAG agenda for Phase 1 presentation by the Policy Owner. Interim policies remain in effect for a maximum of one year.
  • The President, and, if required, the Board of Trustees are the final approvers of University policies. Policies are not official until these approvals are secured. The President is authorized to approve an Interim Policy.
  • Current policies must be reviewed every five years, unless warranted sooner.

Procedures 

The following five-phase process comprises the procedures for development, revision, or retirement of a university policy.

Phase I: Proposing

  • Any employee wishing to propose, revise, or retire a policy should contact a University Policy Administrator or the Policy Coordinator. They may also contact a PAG representative.
  • The Policy Owner completes a Policy Request Form and returns it to the Coordinator to present to the Policy Advisory Group (PAG) for review and feedback.
  • After any PAG-requested revisions are made and upon PAG endorsement, the University Policy Administrator presents the Policy Request Form to the Policy Executive Group (PEG) for review, feedback and approval to move forward.
  • Approved justifications for developing new or revising existing policies move to Phase II; approved justifications for retiring policies are forwarded to the President and, if required, the Board of Trustees for approval.

Phase II: Writing

  • The Policy Owner creates a team to create/revise the policy. The team will be comprised of knowledgeable staff and stakeholders from relevant offices.
  • The team drafts the policy using the Policy Template.

Phase III: Approving

  • The Policy Owner submits the fully developed policy to Policy Coordinator for review and feedback by PAG.
  • After any PAG-requested revisions are made and upon PAG endorsement, the University Policy Administrator presents the fully developed policy to PEG and the President for review, feedback and approval.
  • Official approvals are recorded on the Policy Approval Form.

Phase IV: Implementing

  • The Policy Coordinator assigns the policy an administrative number, and posts it to the Policy Library.  If the policy is a revision to an existing policy or if an existing policy is being retired, the Policy Coordinator moves the policy to the archives.
  • The Policy Coordinator communicates the approved policy to the community by posting on the GothicNet Latest News and Happenings section and also on the Policy Library website in the updates section.
  • The Policy Owner educates and trains the community as appropriate.

Phase V: Assessing

  • The Internal Auditor schedules a review to monitor policy compliance two years after implementation as applicable.
  • After implementation, if internal circumstances or external regulations require policy revision, the Policy Owner schedules a full-review of the policy to accommodate the changes.
  • If internal circumstances or external regulations do not require policy revision, the Policy Owner schedules a full review of the policy five-years after implementation to ensure currency and relevance.
  • If the policy may present risks to the University, the Internal Auditor will present the area for a proposed review.

Violations

University policies must be developed, reviewed, revised, approved, and published in accordance with the procedures outlined in this document

  • Policies not vetted through the official review process will not be posted to the Policy Library nor will they be considered official university policies. Similarly, policies not included in the Policy Library or linked to another site through the Policy Library are not considered official university policies. 
  • The Policy Administrator and Policy Coordinator will work with appropriate staff to address instances when subordinate unit policies are referred to as university policies or non-policy documents are posted as policies.
  • Individuals who believe there has been a violation of this policy are encouraged to contact the University Policy Administrator or Policy Coordinator for resolution.

Related Policies and Documents

  • Policy Approval Form
  • Policy Template
  • Request Form

Responsibility

  • Internal Auditor
  • Policy Advisory Group (PAG)
  • Policy Executive Group (PEG)
  • Policy Owner
  • University Counsel

Contact for Questions

Office of Institutional Effectiveness
201-200-3073
upt@njcu.edu

University Counsel
201-200-2039
Monica de los Rios
mdelosrios@njcu.edu