Administrative Policies

Policy on Policies

I. Purpose

This Policy on Policies governs the development, revision, review, approval, communication and archival of Administrative policies at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (“KCTCS” or “System”). This process ensures that Administrative policies are properly developed and regularly updated to remain compliant with the law; are reviewed by and subject to input from the KCTCS community; are easy to find, read, and understand; and align with the mission of KCTCS. Through this policy, KCTCS provides the process for establishing policies that govern the operations of the organization.

II. Reason for Policy

To ensure consistency, effectiveness, and compliance with Administrative policies, KCTCS adopts this policy that outlines the process for developing, revising, reviewing, approving, communicating, and archiving System-level policies. The process establishes the expectations and timelines for completing the policy process.

III. Entities Affected

This Policy applies to all employees, students, and units of KCTCS.

IV. Definitions

1. Archive – policies that are no longer applicable that are preserved for institutional reference.
   
   
2. Administrative Policies – policies that do not require approval of the KCTCS Board of Regents.
   
   
3. Minor Revisions – revisions that do not substantially alter the scope, effect, or requirements of the policy, including the addition of supporting clarifications and explanations. Minor revisions will be reviewed by the KCTCS Executive Leadership Team and approved by the KCTCS President prior to being posted on the KCTCS policy website and are not subject to the approval process outlined in Section V.
   
   
4. Non-Substantive Revisions - revisions that are small changes, including edits to correct grammar, spelling, formatting, and to update links and employee titles. Non-substantive revisions may be made by the Policy Administrator and must be noted in the policy and documented in the policy records.
   
   
5. Policy – written statements that contain the governing principles of the organization that are broad in nature and are meant to support the mission of KCTCS through mitigating risk, promoting operational efficiency, and ensure compliance with applicable laws, regulations, or accreditation requirements.
   
   
6. Policy Administrator – the KCTCS employee designated to manage and oversee the policy process outlined in this policy and collaborate with Policy Owner to ensure timely completion of the drafting or revision of any proposed policy.
   
   
7. Policy Owner – the KCTCS employee designated as the author and subject matter expert of a specific policy. A policy can have multiple owners and the owners typically report through to the Executive Sponsor.
   
   
8. Procedure – detailed statements that provide for the orderly implementation of the corresponding policy through specific prescribed actions. Procedures are generally not included in the policy unless required by law or an external agency.
   
   
9. Executive Sponsor – means the System employee, typically a Vice President, and unit charged with overseeing the administration of the policy, including but not limited to developing, implementing, and enforcing the policy.
   
   
10. Substantive Revisions – major revisions that materially alter the scope, effect, or requirements of the policy that mandate a review of the revision through the process governed by this policy.

V. Policy Statement

1. KCTCS requires policies to communicate institutional expectations and requirements, support and compel compliance with laws and regulations, mitigate institutional risk, and enhance the System’s productivity. To fulfill these requirements, KCTCS has a clear and transparent process, as delineated in this policy, for drafting, reviewing, revising, approving, announcing, and archiving policies.  All Administrative Policies must be promulgated in accordance with the standards and procedures set forth in this policy. All Administrative Policies must include a review cycle, which will be every three years unless otherwise stated in an individual policy.
   
   
2. The KCTCS process for drafting, reviewing, substantive revisions, and approving policies must comply with the steps below.
   1. Step One: The Policy Owner completes the Policy Request Form and submits it to the Policy Administrator to initiate the policy process along with the draft policy or proposed revision.
   2. Step Two: The request is reviewed by the Policy Administrator and either approved and moved to Step 3 or the request is denied, and the Policy Administrator informs the Policy Owner.
   3. Step Three: The Policy Administrator shall provide a draft of the policy to the identified contact of the respective stakeholder group, and the stakeholder groups shall have thirty (30) calendar days to complete their respective reviews, and return the feedback to the Policy Owner and the Policy Administrator.
   4. Step Four: The Policy Owner will review the comments from the open comment period and the stakeholder group and incorporate the feedback submitted as permitted. As the Policy Owner is the subject matter expert, they will make an informed decision as to the inclusion of the feedback.
   5. Step Five: The Policy Owner shall submit the revised draft to the Office of General Counsel for legal review.
   6. Step Six: The Policy Owner will incorporate the feedback from the legal review.
   7. Step Seven: The final version of the policy or policy revisions will be submitted to the Executive Leadership Team for review and/or approval. The KCTCS President will determine if the President’s Leadership Team should either be informed of the policy or should consult on the approval of the policy.
   8. Step Eight: If approved at the Executive Leadership Team, the KCTCS President will sign the policy. The policy will then be shared with the PLT for information.  Once the PLT has been informed, the policy will be posted on the KCTCS policy website. If the KCTCS President determines the PLT should consult on approval, then the policy will be taken to PLT for consultation and approval and will be subsequently posted after PLT approval.
      1. If the policy is not approved, the Policy Owner will be notified.
      2. Unless otherwise stated in this Policy, a Policy is in effect immediately after it is approved by the President.
   9. Step Nine: The Policy Administrator will inform the KCTCS community of any new policy or policy revision through established KCTCS communication channels.
      
      
3. The KCTCS policy template shall include a revision schedule in the “Review and Revision History” section and the Policy Administrator will collaborate with the Policy Owner to complete a timely review.
   
   
4. The Policy Administrator shall maintain the official KCTCS policy website and update the website in a timely manner with updated and/or new policies and policies within the 10-day comment period.
   
   
5. KCTCS will make every effort to complete this process within four months of the initial submission of the Policy Request Form.
   
   
6. The Policy Owner may request a minor revision by contacting the Policy Administrator in writing. The Policy Administrator will inform and seek the approval of the Executive Leadership Team and if approved, make the revision and post the change to the policy on the KCTCS policy website. The Policy Owner may request a non-substantive revisions by contacting the Policy Administrator and requesting the change.
   
   
7. To archive a policy, the Policy Owner will submit a written request to the Policy Administrator with a rationale for the archival of the policy. The Policy Administrator will inform the Executive Leadership Team of the request to archive the policy. If approved, the policy will be archived by the Policy Administrator and removed from the active policy library on the KCTCS website.

VI. Roles and Responsibilities

1. Policy Owner
   The responsible official for a policy may assign an office within their area of operations to be responsible for the policy’s review, implementation and management. Duties of the responsible office or designee include:
   1. Identifying the need for and purpose of a policy in relation to a responsibility that falls under their jurisdiction;
   2. Determining the stakeholders that should review the policy and provide feedback to be incorporated into the policy;
   3. Reviewing and recommending approval of the final draft of the policy before it is presented to the President;
   4. Communicating with and training appropriate areas or individuals regarding the policy’s requirements;
   5. Establishing any support systems necessary to achieve ongoing compliance with the policy; and
   6. Reviewing and revising the policy when it is due for renewal.
      
      
2. Policy Administrator
   The policy administrator’s responsibilities for policy development, revision, withdrawal, approval and archival include:
   1. Guiding policies through the drafting, review, revision, withdrawal, approval and archival process and assisting the responsible officials with the policy development process;
   2. Overseeing the form, wording, and structure of policies to assure clarity, consistency, and coherence;
   3. Establishing a calendar for regular review of all policies (regular review is generally recommended to occur every three (3) years);
   4. Assisting with obtaining final approval by the President or designee;
   5. Assisting the Office of the President in issuing the System-wide announcement to promulgate or, where appropriate, withdraw or archive an Administrative policy; and
   6. Maintaining the System’s policy website ComplianceBridge.
      
      
3. Office of General Counsel
   The Office of General Counsel’s responsibilities include providing the legal review for the draft of the policy that is submitted after the stakeholder feedback has been solicited and incorporated by the Policy Owner.
   
   
4. KCTCS Executive Leadership Team
   The KCTCS Executive Leadership Team shall review each proposed policy as the final step and recommend whether to approve the proposed policy to the President of KCTCS.
   
   
5. KCTCS President's Leadership Team
   The KCTCS President’s Leadership Team will be informed of all policy adoptions, revisions, and archival. The KCTCS President will determine which policies, if any, need to be approved by the PLT prior to receiving the approval of the KCTCS President.

VII. Compliance and Training Requirements

1. Administrative System-wide policies and related procedures will not be adopted outside of the process outlined in this policy. Compliance with this process is required by the adoption and approval of this policy by the KCTCS President.
   
   
2. There are no specific training requirements for this policy, however each KCTCS employee shall be informed of the KCTCS policy website during onboarding through their respective Human Resources department.

VIII. Exceptions

1. In exceptional cases, the President may approve interim KCTCS policies and revisions to address urgent health, safety, legal, compliance, and/or operational needs within a time-period that does not allow for complete drafting and review as outlined in this policy.
   1. Interim policies shall be time limited and will be required to complete this process prior to becoming a permanent policy.
      
      
2. This process does not apply to non-substantive revisions to policies. Those revisions will be made by the Policy Administrator.
   
   
3. This process does not apply to procedures or other departmental documents that detail how a policy is to be implemented.
   
   
4. In the event that a statute, regulation, or other state, federal or local law conflict with an Administrative policy, the statute, regulation, etc. will supersede.

IX. Approvals

Approved by KCTCS President, Dr. Ryan Quarles on August 18th 2025.

X. Related Documents

1. KCTCS utilizes a standard regulation document template and review process to facilitate consistency and compliance with regulations.
   
   
2. KCTCS provides a “Policy Request Form” (PRF) to be completed by the Policy Owner or designee to initiate the policy process.

XI. Review and Revision History

This policy shall be reviewed every three (3) years from the date of the original adoption.