Administrative Implementation of Board Policy

Value Statement

Austin Community College District (“ACC” or “the College”) regards comprehensive, orderly and efficient administration as essential to the fulfillment of its mission.

Administrative Rule

ACC shall be administered through an organized system of Administrative Rules and, as warranted, related Guidelines/Procedures, through which Board Policy shall be implemented.

Terminology/Definition

Administrative Rule (AR) – a written statement that addresses how ACC will implement an aspect of Board Policy. Collectively, ARs provide the highest level of administrative direction to the college.

Guideline/Procedure (G/P) – a written statement that provides details as to how an AR shall be implemented and is published as a G/P in relation to a specific AR.

Council – a group with the responsibility to advise the College Chancellor with respect to Administrative Rules and Guidelines/Procedures related to designated spheres of ACC responsibilities, activities or operations, and whose membership includes both personnel with relevant expertise and representatives of relevant ACC stakeholders.

Administrative Rules

1. Administrative Rules, their modification or rescission become effective upon being signed by the College Chancellor.
2. In general, a proposal to the College Chancellor to adopt, modify or rescind an AR shall come from the Council within whose sphere of responsibility it falls, and only after the proposal has been considered through ACC’s process of shared governance. However, if, in the judgment of the Chancellor, the interests of ACC would be materially harmed during the time it typically takes to adopt, modify or rescind an AR, the Chancellor may sign off on the adoption, modification or rescission of any Administration Rule to the extent needed to meet ACC’s material interests. In such cases, the AR in question will immediately be placed on the agenda of the Council within whose sphere of responsibility it falls, and, after consideration through ACC’s process of shared governance, the Council will either resolve in support of the Chancellor’s action or recommend to the Chancellor that the rule in question be rescinded, modified or restored.
3. For non-substantive modifications (e.g., to correct a typographical or grammatical error, to conform to a change in name, title, address, etc., or to clarify language without changing its effect), the Chair of an ACC Council may make a modification to an AR or G/P under that Council’s jurisdiction.
   1. This mechanism for modification of an AR or G/P shall not be employed by a Council Chair if that Chair recognizes that the modification constitutes any material change in the AR or G/P.
   2. Any AR or G/P so modified will be put on the agenda of that Council’s next meeting at which time the modification(s) will either be ratified by affirmative vote of all the Council members who choose to vote or, if there are any negative votes, the item will be pulled to be handled through ACC’s standard shared governance process.
   3. Such a modified AR or G/P will go into effect immediately upon approval by the Chancellor.
   4. Modification of an AR or G/P under this clause shall not constitute the regular review cycle articulated in AR 2.0800.01
4. Each AR shall clearly reference the Board Policy to which it is related and must be compatible with all Board Policy.
5. All ARs shall be made available in electronic form both internally and externally.

Guidelines/Procedures

1. Guidelines/Procedures, their modification or rescission become effective upon being signed by the College Chancellor.
2. In general, a proposal to the College Chancellor to adopt, modify or rescind a G/P shall come from the Council within whose sphere of responsibility it falls, and only after the proposal has been considered through ACC’s process of shared governance. However, if, in the judgment of the Chancellor, the interests of ACC would be materially harmed during the time it typically takes to adopt, modify or rescind G/Ps, the Chancellor may sign off on the adoption, modification or rescission of any G/P to the extent needed to meet ACC’s material interests. In such cases, the G/P in question will immediately be placed on the agenda of the Council within whose sphere of responsibility it falls, and after consideration through ACC’s process of shared governance, the Council will either resolve in support of the Chancellor’s action or recommend to the Chancellor that the G/P in question be rescinded, modified or restored.
3. Each G/P shall clearly reference the AR to which it is related.
4. All G/Ps shall be made available in electronic form both internally and externally.

Review Process

Administrative Rules and related Guidelines/Procedures shall be reviewed every three years, or sooner if needed, by the Council within whose sphere of responsibility they fall. The creation, modification or rescission of any AR or G/P shall be completed in accordance with this AR and its corresponding G/P (Creation, Modification, Rescission of Administrative Rules and Guidelines/Procedures).