Kaua‘i community college

IV.A.2.a. Faculty and administrators have a substantive and clearly defined role in institutional governance and exercise a substantial voice in institutional policies, planning, and budget that relate to their areas of responsibility and expertise. Students and staff also have established mechanisms or organizations for providing input into institutional decisions.

Descriptive Summary

KCC’s College Council is the primary forum for dialogue about the College’s mission, strategic planning, priority setting, policy development, and budget development. The Council serves as an advisory body to the chancellor, who, as the chief academic officer, makes all final decisions. The Council’s purpose, composition, responsibilities, and meeting information are described in Establishment of the College Council (Exhibit II-9: KCCM 1-7).

College Council members include the administrators and representatives from the various campus units and committees.
Administrators

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  Chancellor (non-voting)
  
• 
  Dean of Instruction
  
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  Dean of Student Services
  
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  Director of Office of Continuing Education and Training
  
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  Director of Administrative Services
  
• 
  Director of University Center/Assistant Dean for Academic Support
  

Faculty

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  Faculty Senate Chair
  
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  Budget Committee Representative (non-voting for budget items)
  
• 
  Building and Grounds Committee Representative (non-voting for facilities items)
  
• 
  Curriculum Committee Chair
  
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  Division Chairs
  

Student Government Representative

Classified Staff

• 
  Unit 1, Facilities Representative
  
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  Unit 3, Clerical Representative
  
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  Unit 8, APT Representative
  

Ex-Officio (non-voting)

• 
  Development Officer, UH Foundation
  
• 
  Institutional Researcher
  
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  Professional Development Coordinator
  
• 
  Assessment Committee Chairs
  

Representatives from the Budget Committee and the Building and Grounds Committee attend Council meetings on an as-needed basis when budget or facilities items are on the agenda.

KCC’s policies and procedures are outlined in Kaua‘i Community College Memorandums (Exhibit IV-4: KCCMs). Procedures that apply to all of the University of Hawai‘i Community Colleges are referred to as Chancellor for the Community College Memorandum (CCCM) which originated from the former Office of the Chancellor for Community Colleges. Currently these CCCMs are being transformed into University of Hawai‘i Community College Policy (UHCCP) which are policies created under the tenure of the present Vice President for Community Colleges.
The Faculty Senate, Academic Divisions, and ASUH-KCC meet regularly to discuss campus issues. The Curriculum, Professional Development, and Assessment committees meet regularly but do not necessarily discuss College Council issues. The classified staff, Units 1, 3, and 8, have no unit meetings.

Self Evaluation

Since the College Council is the primary forum for campus planning and dialogue, a survey of Council members was taken to evaluate the group’s function and effectiveness.

The College Council appears to be an accepted forum for giving and receiving input. Although 65 percent of the members feel that they are able to represent their units well, the KCC Self Study Survey shows that only 40.3 percent of faculty and staff feel they are adequately represented (Self Study Survey, Standard IV, Question No. 15). Also, half of the survey participants feel that the “advisory-only capacity” of the Council is not an acceptable/effective form of governance.

Planning Agenda

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  Outcome-oriented agenda items should be published and posted one week prior to College Council meetings to allow unit representatives to get timely feedback/input from faculty and staff before discussion. Minutes should be published and posted in a timely manner to keep the college campus informed of decisions.
  

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  The college should consider establishing an electronic chat room or other forum to discuss issues of interest, announce changes in policies and personnel, and celebrate birthdays, retirements, and special awards. This would minimize channels through which information now flows, promote communication, and strengthen working relationships among campus personnel.
  

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  The college should explore the possibility of scheduling monthly all-campus informational sessions to assure a more current and comprehensive flow of communication.
  

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  Make use of a Suggestion Box to solicit ideas for improving services and boosting morale.
  

IV.A.2.b. The institution relies on faculty, its academic senate or other appropriate faculty structures, the curriculum committee, and academic administrators for recommendations about student learning programs and services.

Descriptive Summary

The chancellor and other administrators rely on the recommendations of the following bodies in regard to academic and professional matters:

• 
  Faculty Senate: The Faculty Senate functions as the policy-recommending advisory body and a position-stating unit of the college faculty in the areas of educational curricula; grading policies; standards of teaching, scholarship, and services; personnel policies, academic freedom, and professional ethics; community relations; and academic policies.
  

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  Curriculum Committee: The Curriculum Committee, a standing committee of the Faculty Senate, oversees matters pertaining to curriculum. The committee reviews and approves new and current courses and programs; reviews degrees and certificates requirements; looks at campus-wide pedagogical directions and recommends professional development related to curriculum and pedagogy; incorporates accreditation recommendations related to curriculum; and meets with the college’s Assessment Committee to review curriculum procedures relative to data and assessment. The Dean of Instruction also sits on the Curriculum Committee as an ex-officio member.
  
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  Case Management and College Success Committees: The Case Management and the College Success committees were established to improve retention at the college.
  

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  Program Review Committee: The college originally established the Assessment Task Force (ATF) to develop processes for program review. The Program Review Committee now oversees the implementation of these processes.
  

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  Assessment Committee: The function of the Assessment Committee is to educate and train the campus in assessment practices and to aid in the implementation of assessment at the college, program and course level.
  

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  Academic Divisions: Individual academic divisions meet regularly to discuss curricular and personnel matters of their division.
  

Representatives from the above bodies have the opportunity to discuss issues regarding student learning programs and services at College Council meetings, as well as meet individually with an appropriate college administrator.

The Dean of Instruction meets regularly with the academic division chairs and program coordinators to develop strategic plans for curriculum, program enhancement, Student Learning Outcomes, student remediation, college student success, and to resolve academic issues. The dean, Student Services counselors, and academic division chairs meet frequently as a group to develop class schedules and multi-year plan of offerings.