Message From the MC Shared Governance Working Group

[MC Governance]

Good afternoon Manhattan College Students, Faculty, Staff, and Administrators:

Do you have a say in what happens on campus? Do you want to?  Many people on campus do not understand how their voice can have an impact outside of their defined roles and how they fit into the larger picture of our campus community.  Shared governance provides a structure through which all campus constituencies can have input.

Do you know what shared governance is?

Do you know why it is important to you?

In the spirit of collaboration, we write to inform you of the work of the Shared Governance Working Group and our charge of leading discussions of shared governance across all internal campus constituents: faculty, students, staff, and administrators.

Save The Date:  An open forum on this topic will be held on January 26th at noon (Kelly 5A).

Effective shared governance is crucial to the work of the College. Shared governance provides structures for tapping the expertise and wisdom of all members of the community for input to college-wide planning, policies, procedures, and programs. Inclusion of affected stakeholder groups through representation on governance bodies, ensures a wide range of viewpoints that support effective and efficient work of the college, which ultimately fulfills our mission.  Such collaborative processes will ensure that we restore and build upon trust within our community.  

To this end, President O’Donnell, in consultation with faculty leadership, convened and charged the Shared Governance Working Group as a body of inquiry.  The working group is not designed to replace or supplement any existing governance body on campus.  Rather it is designed to pursue a broad review of our College’s governance structures.  The members of the Working Group were chosen for their experience in campus governance, their understanding of their respective constituencies, and their commitment to improving Manhattan College.  

The college community has acknowledged the need for change through feedback on surveys and focus groups, including the need for: a common vision and understanding of the purpose and principles of shared governance across all constituencies; greater communication among shared governance structures and to those outside of these structures; greater transparency of governance activities such as facilities planning and budget/financial planning; greater consistency of processes, policies and procedures among schools from the student perspective; and better understanding of the roles of representatives and their function in governance structures, including the concept of interdependence of outcomes to all stakeholders for the long-term health of the institution.  

 The work of the Shared Governance Working Group will include, but not be limited to: 

• Identifying best practices in shared governance that will form the basis of common reading materials for stakeholders;

• Reviewing existing shared governance documentation, identifying, and understanding the relationship among these bodies as well as how they mirror best practices and making recommendations for revision or updating;

• Considering best practices in relationships among campus governance structures, make recommendations in light of that consideration;

• Identifying best practices in periodic assessment of governance and make recommendations for implementation;

• Hosting open forums throughout the period of this work to share works in progress and to receive feedback from stakeholders;

• Communicating throughout the period of their work with the college community; and

• Identifying and recommending to the college president areas for improvement to our shared governance structures and processes with broad input from internal campus constituents.

We are committed to working with all constituencies in a spirit of collegiality. We acknowledge that effective consultative governance requires common understanding and purpose which will form the basis of trust among and between constituents.

Our work will be transparent and will include input from all stakeholders on campus through open forums, surveys, and other appropriate means.  Our first open forum will take place on January 26th at noon (Kelly 5A).

In early January, you will receive a survey regarding the definition of shared governance.  The survey will remain open through the beginning of February.  Prior to the survey closing, we will conduct an open forum for the community to discuss the committee, the process, and next steps.  

We look forward to working with and among the entire community to help make sure our shared governance system promotes an equitable, trustworthy, and prosperous Manhattan College. 

Sincerely, 

Members of the Shared Governance Working Group

Poonam Arora

Kaylyn Atkins

Mamady Ballo

John Bennett

Ashley Cross

Corine Fitzpatrick

Steven Goss

Michael Judge

Bruce Liby

Marisa Passafiume

Parisa Saboori

Steven Schreiner