UMass Amherst Campus Procedures for Centers and Institutes

(Doc. T96-096)

Preamble

The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees approved a University-wide policy on Centers and Institutes (Trustee Document T96-096, August 7, 1996, revised on October 9, 1996). The Amherst campus policy on Centers and Institutes amended to conform with the University policy was recommended by the Faculty Senate on February 20, 1997 (Doc. 97-027) and approved by the President in June, 1997.

A. Definitions and Distinctions

Centers and Institutes are organizational units on the Amherst campus created to implement academic and training programs, clinical or community service, or research activities that cannot ordinarily be accommodated within existing department structures. Centers and Institutes cannot award degrees or offer majors or courses for regular University credit, nor can they hire tenure-track or tenured faculty.

Institutes
An institute is a distinct and free-standing unit of substantial size. Institutes may engage in a wide variety of research, public service, and instructional activities, typically in areas of broad concern. Institutes are frequently interdisciplinary and embrace ideas and personnel from various departments, colleges, and schools. Ordinarily Institutes on the Amherst campus report to a Vice Chancellor or Provost. Clear reporting lines and structure for responsible oversight must be established. Institutes may make personnel appointments within this reporting structure, but only degree-granting departments can make official faculty appointments. Institutes traditionally occupy their own identifiable physical space and have the opportunity to bring to it researchers, specialists, fellows, and other associates. The mission of an Institute is the promotion of research in knowledge of some science or subject of broad concern and, often, the communication of this knowledge to a broader public.

Centers
A Center is ordinarily a subordinate unit within an existing department, school, college or institute whose department head/chair, director or dean has management oversight and appointing authority. Centers should make a significant contribution to the major academic unit of which they are a part.
All documents and publications should clearly identify the Center as being part of the parent unit. Any commitment of personnel, space and other resources should have the prior approval of the appropriate chair and dean. Centers should be established for the purpose of concentrating research, teaching and/or service efforts within a clearly defined academic area. They should have an adequate concentration of talent to carry out their mission. Centers, Institutes, and similar organizations share the following characteristics: their activities are linked to the educational mission of the University and its long range plans; their activities extend beyond the campus in some way, either through public service, funding or other resource arrangements; and their resources are sufficient to carry out their stated mission.
Scope of Campus Authority Concerning Centers and Institutes
Every Center or Institute, whether free-standing units or sub-units of schools, colleges, departments or other organizational units, and regardless of its source of funding, shall be included within the purview of the campus policy.

There are two exceptions on the Amherst campus that involve the use of the name center or institute that do not conform to the definitions above. The first are entities called "centers" whose purpose is to provide services to the campus community, including day care centers or computer centers, such as the Center for Teaching, the Fine Arts Center and the Learning Resources Center. The second involves names that have been "grandfathered" because of historical usage or permitted when required by an external agency, such as the Social and Demographic Research Institute/ SADRI, located in a department.

B. Creation and Approval of Centers and Institutes

Campus approval of new Centers and Institutes shall be based, at minimum, on the appropriateness of the Center or Institute to the mission and goals of the campus, and adequacy of resources, including capital investment. The establishment of a new center or institute shall require the approval of the University President upon recommendation of the campus Chancellor and the Provost or other Vice Chancellor, following review and recommendation by the Faculty Senate according to its Approval Procedure Guide (June, 1997).

Interim approval can be granted, temporarily, pending confirmation of funding, by the Chancellor and Provost, based on a written request by the proposers which includes all information necessary for Faculty Senate review. This Interim approval is conditional and temporary, and requires subsequent formal Faculty Senate recommendation and formal approval by the Provost, Chancellor and the University President.

Proposal Content (General)

A proposal to establish any center or institute may be initiated by one or more faculty members or by the University administration. All proposals should provide the information described below. If responses to the items in the Institutes and Centers Approval Form (Form T) do not do so, other parts of the proposal should clearly address the following points:

the purpose to be served and the needs to be met by the proposed entity;
the existence of an adequate concentration of talent;
the consistency with departmental college and or campus long range plans;
the proposed relationship with other academic units on the campus, including the use of faculty on released time.

Resource Implications

Such proposals should also address the potential resource needs of the proposed unit, including personnel, equipment, office and other space, telephones, library resources and use of the University Computing Center.

Approval Procedure

The formal approval process will begin with the submission of 50 copies of a detailed proposal (Form T) New Institutes & Centers Approval Form, to the Rules Committee of the Faculty Senate, with (Form S) New Institutes & Centers Signature Sheet, and a brief executive summary. The summary will be used in a 30-Day Letter. The proposal must then be reviewed at the following levels (See Form S):

By the Faculty governance structure, including appropriate Faculty Senate councils and or committees, culminating in the approval by the Faculty Senate. If the proposers have not named a department or college affiliation for the new unit, Faculty Senate councils or committees shall consult the relevant academic department(s) and obtain the approval thereof.
By the Provost
By the Chancellor
By the University President

If the proposal is approved, a copy of the signature sheet (Form S) and any conditions of formation will be forwarded to the originators of the proposal and all who signed it. If the proposal is not approved, a written statement will be sent by the Provost to the originators and the signers. In either case, all memoranda, the original proposal and the signature sheet will be placed in the permanent file for this proposed entity, held in the Provost's Office. If any institute or center is proposed to be housed on the Amherst campus by some outside agency, legal body, or office (persons other than faculty members or administrators on the University of Massachusetts at Amherst campus), the date and circumstances must be recorded in writing, along with an official submission to the Faculty Senate as described above, and records relating to it placed in the Provost's Office.

Appointments

Regardless of the source of funds, all tenure-track appointments affiliated with institutes, centers or similar organizations carry academic rank shall be reviewed and recommended by appropriate faculty peer groups (i.e., Departmental Faculty personnel and School or College Faculty personnel committees). In the case of other professional appointments, the appropriate school or college administrator and Department administrators shall be advised of the appointments.

Allocation of Space

The allocation of space for Institutes, Centers or similar organizations shall be treated in precisely the same way as other academic units.