Levels & Types of Policy

In the NMC policy governance model, there are two levels of policy: Board Policy and Staff Policy.

Board Policy
Board policies for the organization are broad, guiding statements which reflect the board's philosophy, values, or principles. Board policies can be proposed by staff to the President, by the President to the Board, or by a board member for consideration for adoption by the Board of Trustees. There are four types of board policy.

1. Board Process Policies (Prefix A) are established by the board for its own internal workings.
2. Board-President Relationship Policies (Prefix B) are established by the board to indicate how it delegates authority to the President and monitors presidential (organizational) performance.
3. Ends Policies (Prefix C) of the college are its Vision Statement, Mission Statement, Purposes Statement, Values Statement and the Institutional Effectiveness Criteria Policies. Ends policies deal with the ends or goals for which the college exists. Ends policies state a philosophy or general principle which is intended to provide broad guidance for organizational decisions in a variety of situations. These policies are designed to promote consistency continuity and standards of performance and reflect the basic needs of the college as well as its faculty, staff, students and community.
4. Parameters Policies (Prefix D) limit the means staff may use in accomplishing the ends of the college. They are generally in the form of placing boundaries or parameters on prudence, ethics, and methods.

Staff Policy
Staff policies generally affect more than one area of the college and define in more operational terms how the board policies will be interpreted and implemented. In other words, staff policies describe the means which staff will use in accomplishing the ends of the college. Staff policies are recommended to the president by the Policy Council. The president issues final authorization of staff policy.

1. The Statement of Principle enunciates the guidelines which will govern the college's actions in implementing the specific Board of Trustee's Ends Policy it interprets. The Statements of Principle shall respect any limits set by the applicable parameters policy.
2. The Means Statement defines and describes means or steps which staff will take to interpret, administer, implement, and achieve the guidelines enunciated in the statement of principle in a staff policy.

New staff policies (both statement of principle and statement of means), as well as changes to existing staff policies, are proposed by the Policy Council to the President for approval and may be reported to the Board of Trustees as deemed appropriate.

Staff Procedures
Staff procedures define a manner or process for implementing a board or staff policy. Staff procedures are developed by the area primarily responsible for implementing the policy and approved by the appropriate executive officer or administrator. In order to assure effective and consistent implementation of staff policy, the Policy Council may review office procedures as part of the policy review process.