Risk Management
Risk Management / University Policy Development and Approval Process

University Policy Development and Approval Process

Definitions related to this Process

Policy Sponsor- University stakeholder that has identified a policy need

Policy Committee - Deans, Vice Presidents reporting to the President or a Senior Vice President, and Senior Vice Presidents

Policy Development Support

The Office of Legal Affairs manages the policy development process for institution wide policies. Policy Sponsors are encouraged to meet with the Director of Risk Management (within Legal Affairs) before initiating a new policy as well as throughout the policy development process for policy advice such as clarity in content, format, and consistency.

Academic Policies

Policies specific to academics that have an institution-wide or cross-school/college impact will typically be initiated in the Provost’s Academic Council staffed by the Director of Institutional Academic Planning. If a Policy Sponsor is uncertain about the scope of their proposed academic policy they should contact the AVP of Institutional Academic Planning for guidance.

The Director of Risk Management and AVP of Institutional Academic Planning work together closely in policy development.

Process

  1. When a policy need has been identified, Policy Sponsors should use the Proposal for a University Policy form to submit a request to the Vice President or Dean of the appropriate area.

  2. Policy Sponsors should contact the Director of Risk Management or the AVP of Institutional Academic Planning, as appropriate, to discuss the policy and the information on the Proposal form, including a plan for ensuring stakeholder input. Policy Sponsors are encouraged to work with the Director of Risk Management and/or the AVP of Institutional Academic Planning/Academic Policy Committee throughout the policy development process.

  3. Policy Sponsors will use the Policy Template to create a draft of the proposed policy for
    submission to the Policy Committee. University Vice Presidents and Deans are responsible for submitting policy proposals to the Policy Committee.

  4. The Policy Committee will:
    • Approve the proposed policy and submit it to the University President for final approval and adoption; or
    • Approve the proposed policy for posting for comment; or
    • Work with the Policy Sponsor or relevant Vice President or Dean on further analysis and/or redrafting.

  5. If the proposed policy is posted for comment in the WU portal, comments will be solicited for a reasonable period of time (generally not less than 20 calendar days). All comments received will be considered. Once the commenting period is over, the Policy Committee may approve the proposed policy as written, modify the proposed policy and approve it, return the proposed policy to the Policy Sponsor for further action, or cancel development of the proposed policy. If the Policy Committee approves the proposed policy, it will be sent to the President and adopted as of the date it is signed by the President (Adoption Date). Please note that the timeline for academic policies may vary and the effective date may be delayed until the beginning of the next academic year.

  6. All policies will designate a Responsible Office. The Responsible Office is responsible for keeping the Policy current and for the performance of periodic reviews to ensure that the Policy complies with and reflects current laws, regulations, and practices.

  7. University policies may be revised using the same process as outlined above. The Policy Committee may determine at any time that a University policy needs revision. For minor or non-substantive changes to University policies, the Policy Committee may adopt the change without following the above process.

  8. All new and revised University policies must be submitted to the Office of Risk Management once they are approved. Submitted policies will be posted to the University Policy page in the WU portal by the Office of Risk Management and to the Responsible Office’s policy page on their department website.

  9. Nothing herein limits the authority of the President of the University, or the President’s designee, to enact such emergency or interim policies as the President or designee determines to be in the best interests of the University or to make exceptions to any University Policy.