Shared Governance
What is Shared Governance?
Shared governance is the set of practices under which college faculty, staff, and students participate in significant decisions concerning the operation of their institutions. Colleges and universities are very special types of institutions with a unique mission—the creation and dissemination of ideas. For that reason, they have created particular arrangements to serve that mission best. For example, academic tenure protects the status, academic freedom, and independent voice of scholars and teachers. Participatory governance, in turn, arose out of a recognition that:
- Academic decision-making should be largely independent of short-term managerial and political considerations.
- Faculty and professional staff are in the best position to shape and implement curriculum and research policy, to select academic colleagues and judge their work; and
- The perspective of all front-line personnel is invaluable in making sound decisions about allocating resources, setting goals, choosing top officers, and guiding student life.
It is widely understood that broad participation in decision-making increases the level of employee investment in the institution’s success. As a result, organizational theorists for many years have recommended shared decision-making as a key strategy to improve productivity in all kinds of organizations. In higher education, due to the high turnover rate of top administrators, the faculty and staff are often in the best position to provide the institutional history so valuable to institutional planning. Without that institutional history, institutions are apt to repeat past failures.
Shared Governance Committees
The College Council is the forum in which all proposed broad-based College practices and procedures are discussed collegially before they are acted on or implemented by the College President.
The Institutional Effectiveness Committee (IEC) is a shared governance committee of the College Council.
The Merritt Technology Committee (MTC) is a subcommittee of the College Council that is designated to act as an advisory body to the President of Merritt College via the College Council in matters relating to campus Information Technology.
Constituency Groups
The Merritt College Academic Senate is a legislatively mandated body that brings the voice of the faculty to college policy and practices.
The Inter-Club Council (ICC) is recognized and funded by the Associated Students of Merritt College (ASMC). It consists of elected representatives from the various campus clubs.
The Merritt Classified Senate is a legislatively mandated body that brings the voice of the Merritt College Classified Staff to college policy and practices.
Standing Committees
The Accreditation Committee advises the Accreditation Liaison Officer (VPI) and is responsible for defining characteristics of quality and excellence and for presenting evidence (through the College’s self-evaluation report) that such quality and excellence are being achieved.
The Merritt College Career Education Advisory Committee (CEAC), a committee of the Merritt College. Academic Senate, makes recommendations pertaining to Merritt’s CE programs to the Academic Senate
The Council of Department Chairs & Program Directors (CDCPD) is an advisory body to both the Merritt Academic Senate and the Vice President of Instruction on all matters relating to instruction
The Curriculum Committee is a committee of the Academic Senate, responsible for making recommendations on all matters relating to curriculum development and approval.
The College Facilities Committee (CFC) is a subcommittee of the College Council that is designated to act as an advisory body to the President of Merritt College via the College Council in matters relating to campus facilities
(including renovations, remodels, and use of Bond funds designated for facilities and the physical environment).
The Health and Safety Committee, in coordination with District Risk Management, is responsible for developing a disaster preparedness plan for the campus, facilitating disaster preparedness training, identifying health and safety issues for the campus and recommending solutions
The Professional Development Committee (PDC) plans, develops, coordinates, reviews and evaluates all of the professional development activities that take place at the College.
The purpose of the Student Success and Equity Committee (SSE) is to oversee and coordinate the review, implementation, and evaluation of the College’s Student Success and Equity Integrated Plan (SSEIP)comprising the efforts of SSSP, SEP, and Basic Skills.
Student Learning Outcomes & Assessment is an ongoing process aimed at understanding and improving student learning. It involves making our expectations explicit and public.