Governance System

Hampshire College has a unique governance system. When Hampshire was founded, it was meant to be experimental not only in its academic program, but in many other aspects as well. The governance system has evolved and gone through many different iterations over the years. In its most ideal form, it is meant to be a system that gives all members of the Hampshire community proper representation and decision-making power concerning issues that matter to them. However, this idealism precariously balances itself with the administrative need for a streamlined system where decisions can be made quickly. Hampshire does have a student, a staff member, and a faculty member sitting on its Board of Trustees. In addition, there are student members on the Educational Policy Committee, which discusses and crafts new educational policies, as well as on many other committees.

Like most institutions, Hampshire College [is] government and managed by a set of boards and committees that create policies and procedures. More than at most places however, many things are accomplished at Hampshire through negotiation and informal arrangements among community members. Many innovations at Hampshire have come about through processes exclusive of governance at Hampshire when they are equipped with full knowledge of existing governing bodies and organizational arrangements.

Hampshire College, unlike many of its counterparts, gives students many opportunities to take an active part in shaping campus policy and decision making affecting academic and student life issues. Most committees and governance bodies actually require student membership, and many changes occur as a result of student influence.

The college has set aside time during each week when classes are NOT scheduled to meet anywhere on campus so that Community members may actively participate in governance activities. This so deemed "governance time" is found on Tuesdays from 3:30pm to 5:00pm throughout the entire academic year. During the time governing boards (including Community Council) meet. Meetings of all governance bodies are generally open to the community.

The book most used to address these issues is Non Satis Non Scire (NSNS), the student handbook and policy guide and thus in descriptions of governance it is liberally quoted without citation.

= Taking Part in Student Governance =

Hampshire College is very vocal about its community and how involved students are within it. But how does one get involved? Please visit the links below.

Unfortunately, you can also be ineligible. Students in poor academic standing or on disciplinary probation forfeit the privilege to run for or hold elected office. The appeals process for students ineligible to run for or hold office due to poor academic standing or being on disciplinary probation will be as follows: an appeals committee will consist of the dean of faculty and one faculty member of the Educational Policy Council for matters of academic standing. An appeals committee will consist of the dean of student affairs, a staff community council member and a student community council member for matters of disciplinary probation. Students wishing to appeal must do so in writing to the committee. This application must include a statement from the applicant’s advisor. In order to allow time for possible appeals, nominations for any elected office must close a least one week prior to the elections.

= Governance Structure =

For a very quick overview:


 * Hampshire's Organizational Chart

Board of Trustees
The Board of Trustees literally owns the College and possesses ultimate authority. Learn more at the Board of Trustees page.

Committees
The Board of Trustees organizes its work by a committee structure that addresses the areas of its responsibilities. Most committees of the board include students, faculty and staff as voting members, and the board may also invite members of the broader Hampshire College community to join its committees. The chair of the board and the president are ex officio members of all board committees, and a member of the administration staffs each committee.


 * Academic Affairs Committee
 * Admissions Committee
 * Audit Committee
 * Committee on Buildings, Grounds and Environmental Sustainability
 * Development Committee
 * Executive Committee
 * Finance Committee
 * Investment Committee
 * Committee at Hampshire on Investment Responsibility (CHOIR)
 * Nominating and Governance Committee
 * Committee on Profile and Identity
 * Committee on Student Life

Schools of Thought
The five Schools of Thought each meet regulary and decide upon many school-specific issues. One can join any of the five schools as a student member. Find out more at the Schools page.

Governing Body
The ultimate decision-making body within the faculty is the Faculty Meeting. The Executive Committee of the Faculty meets to decide upon the Faculty Meeting's agenda, and coordinates with the Educational Policy Committee, which is under the purview of the Faculty Meeting.

Assorted other Governance Committees
In no particular order at the moment...


 * All Community Meeting
 * President's Advisory Committee (AdCom)
 * Campus Planning Committee
 * Housing Advisory Committee (HAC)
 * Hampshire College Committee on Faculty Reappointments and Promotions (CCFRAP)
 * Staff Advisory Committee (SAC)
 * Budget and Priorities Committee
 * Community Review Board
 * Spring 2011 Strategic Planning Committee

Defunct

 * Judicial Council

= Current Issues =

Governance Task Force
A Governance Task Force has been convened, with the mission to fully review and rethink Hampshire's governance structures. One of the recommendations of the task force was to dissolve the Community Council system. The current pilot program for a new system to replace Community Council is the Hampshire Student Union.

College Begins Governance Review
February 2009 

By Marian MacCurdy

In September the President’s Office sent out to the faculty an invitation for us to engage in governance review on our campus. We have been prompted by recommendations from NEASC to take on this project but other reasons necessitate this as well: our documents offer inconsistencies and are incomplete, but more importantly, we need to review not only our documents but our governance processes in order for us to create a more effective governance system. Last fall Hampshire College began this review of its governance documents, structures, and processes. First, the College consulted with two attorneys well versed in higher education law and legal policy (one with extensive experience with AAUP and United Educators, an organization that specializes in risk assessment in higher education) and our Five College risk officer and asked these three professionals to review our governance documents as a preliminary step to our campus governance study. The results of those reviews will be shared with deans and members of the Task Force on Governance that will be formed in the second phase of our governance review. We will be announcing a call for volunteers to serve on this Task Force in the very near future. The charge to the Task Force will include 1) conducting a thorough audit of all governance policies, processes, and practices at all levels of decision making at the College and 2) identifying and analyzing our current policies, structures, and practices to determine what works and what needs to be changed, and 3) offering recommendations for improvement of governance at Hampshire College. The Task Force, to be chaired by a ten-year faculty member, will include members of all constituent campus groups, but the largest single group will come from the faculty. The work of the Task Force will run parallel to the Strategic Planning Process since governance will be one of the priorities studied in strategic planning. The recommendations developed by the Task Force on Governance will be received, modified, and acted on by the Board of Trustees as it sees fit.

To begin this second phase of our governance review, the College invited Tom Longin, senior consultant to the Association of Governing Boards (formerly vice president for programs and research at AGB and a former academic dean and provost), to offer a presentation on collaborative/shared governance for the Hampshire College Board of Trustees at its February meeting. The presentation outlined current approaches to governance in higher education, including the role of the board in ensuring the clarity and appropriateness of the College’s vision and mission, its fiscal integrity, and its educational quality.

Governance in the 21st century is mission driven, grounded in strategic planning, open, participatory, and shared, or better still, Tom argued, collaborative. The following are essential questions to answer in creating such a governance system:


 * What issue is to be decided?
 * Who (person/group(s)) should make or be involved in making the decision?
 * When (at what stage) and how should participation occur?
 * Where (at what level in the structure) should participation occur?

It is critical to develop clearly agreed upon roles and responsibilities for all participants. The fiscal and other challenges to higher education demand a new style of collaborative but decisive leadership; we come together to help focus the direction of the College. The need to couple delegation of authority with accountability is crucial to the success of any institution’s vision.

Higher education has two overlapping decision-making systems—the organizational (including budgets, finance, facilities, fund raising, etc. that require intensive and particular expertise) and the academic (personnel and program decisions that are consistent with professional autonomy). The role of the president is to coordinate these two systems, that is, to lead the academy by collaborating with the senior leadership team, the faculty, and others in order to formulate and execute an institutional vision. This process necessitates engagement with the institution’s academic and cultural values in order to garner broad support for its core purposes. While the Board of Trustees is ultimately responsible for setting the strategic direction of the College, it delegates authority to the president to develop and implement a strategic plan and to achieve its vision and mission in conjunction with faculty, the executive leaders, staff, and students. The resident has a fundamental responsibility to deploy resources efficiently and to demonstrate results, which is why the Board delegates leadership authority to the president.

Ultimately, the goal of effective governance is to collaborate in setting priorities, providing direction, improving learning, and solving problems. Tom then outlined ways that we can think about collaborative governance at Hampshire College.

Tom Longin will be offering a similar presentation on shared/collaborative governance for the faculty as we begin the next phase of our governance review—the work of the Task Force on Governance. He will also serve as a consultant to the Task Force. The goal of this process is to produce a document and processes that support effective governance for Hampshire College.

= Governance History and Issues =

Organized from newest to oldest.


 * Discussions of SS student members (2009 on): SS Student Member Meeting Notes
 * Presidential memo re NEASC recommendations on shared governance (Sept 25 2008): http://www.hampshire.edu/offices/9812.htm
 * Hampshire College Constitution
 * Preliminary Report of the Constitutional Reform Committee (1975)
 * A Report on the Remaking of Hampshire Governance (1974)
 * Organizational Strengths and Weaknesses. In: Self Study Report (1974)