Policy Matters

Administered by the Blog Committee, Policy Matters posts are written by members on a variety of topics. From think pieces to how-to's, editorials to news round-ups, there is something for every policy administrator. Interested in contributing a post? Let us know by emailing admin@acupa.org.

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Organizing a Policy Catalog

Posted By Jessica Teets CCEP, Purdue University, Monday, October 26, 2020
Updated: Monday, September 27, 2021

How a Numbering Scheme Works Behind the Scenes

The views expressed in this post are solely those of the author and do not represent the views of ACUPA or Purdue University.

Does your institution number its policies? Do you sometimes wonder why? I had the opportunity early on in my policy administrator role to get rid of our policy numbers. Upon further examination, I chose not to. Here’s why.

Purdue University’s catalog contains approximately 120 policies and standards. This number may seem big or small, depending on your perspective. Either way, the number is large enough to me to warrant an effective numbering scheme.

Our policy numbers have three components: volume (Roman numeral), chapter (letter), and number. For example, our policy on policies is number V.C.1. Volume five, chapter C in that volume, and the first policy in that chapter. If you’re curious to know more, visit our policy website for a full description of the numbering scheme. I have heard the criticism that nobody should be expected to remember a policy’s number, and, indeed, I definitely do not know the numbers of individual policies. However, I do use the numbers in two very important ways.

First, I use the number in the name of the page that the policy is posted to on our website. So, the URL for our policy on policies ends with vc1. The URL becomes a static address that can be updated with new versions of the policy whenever it needs to be changed. This means that any other page or website that is linking to that policy will always have a functioning link. If the policy is withdrawn or superseded, we remove the text of the policy and put a note referring visitors to the policy archive and/or to the new policy, so the link is still useful—no 404 error codes.

The second way that I use policy numbers is tracking. On occasion, policy titles change. We add a word, take a word away, or completely rename it for one reason or another. The number of the policy does not change, so I can still find it on my master policy list in the same place, and I can note the previous title for reference. My master policy list tracks the dates of every version of a policy and whether that policy superseded or was superseded by another policy. For this purpose, it is much simpler to refer to policies by their numbers, rather than titles. The second part of policy tracking is finding prior versions of a policy in our archives. I just search by the policy number, and all the incarnations of that policy come back in the search results.

If you are on the fence about numbering your policies, I strongly encourage you to do so. It has made several aspects of my job easier over the years.

Tags: Jessica Teets numbering organizational theory Policy Administration policy library

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Policies as More than Rules

Posted By Megan Jones, Metropolitan State University of Denver, Wednesday, January 22, 2020

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
–Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

**This blog represents my personal views rather than the official position of MSU Denver or ACUPA.**

Developing community standards rather than rules

Often when I tell people that I work on policy, they respond with, "So you make the rules?" While this question often amuses me, I’ve come to view policies as much more than rules.

In “Decolonizing Hispanic-Serving Institutions: A Framework for Organizing” (Garcia, 2018), Dr. Garcia argues that HSIs “must recognize their history of colonialism before moving toward an organizational model grounded in decolonization” (p. 132). One way to do so, Garcia claims, is to create community standards within an organization rather than rules.

Garcia describes community standards as “dynamic and fluid” (p. 139). “In a decolonized organization,” Garcia writes, “members develop rules, regulations, and policies as needed to protect…and to progress as a community.”

Bringing Multiple Voices to the Conversation

Garcia argues that community standards are “complimentary to the decentralized governance structure in that standards can and should be created by multiple people within the organization, including students, faculty, and staff” (p. 140).

Creating welcoming and respectful spaces, such as policy advisory councils, open forums, and cross-functional workgroups, that acknowledge and adapt to the diverse backgrounds of students, faculty, and staff leads to better synergy between constituent groups, senior leaders, and organizational areas. Rather than being viewed as rules that unnecessarily restrict behavior, policies are viewed as community standards that uphold the shared values of the organization.