Policy Writing Guide

What is a College Policy?

A College Policy (or “Policy”) is a statement of the management purpose and guidance for the conducting of College business, established to provide direction to the College community and explanation about College practices and resources. A College Policy is a governing principle that mandates or constrains actions, has institution-wide application, changes infrequently and sets a course for the foreseeable future, helps ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations, reduces institutional risk, and is approved at the executive levels of the College (president, provost, vice presidents) or Board of Trustees.

College Policy Development

Before you begin developing a new policy document, check to be sure you are not duplicating existing information. There may be a policy that could be expanded to include the information you are developing, or there may be related policy documents that will help inform the policy you are developing. It is important to consult with primary stakeholders in the policy to determine existing processes and problem areas who play a role in the policy you are developing and with those units and individuals whose regular business may be dramatically affected by the developing policy. By gathering this information in advance, you will know where you can cross-reference rather than repeat information, and you can be sure the policy document you develop corresponds with existing policies and procedures.

Once the need for a policy has been identified and communicated to the Policy Custodian, the Custodian shall assign a Designee to develop a draft policy that is best aligned with the topical issue. For the definitions of these rolls, please refer to the bottom page of the guidance.

Policy Format

The Office of Legal Affairs has developed a recommended policy format that organizes the information in a way consistent across all policies. Please use this format when you begin drafting your new policy:

Header Information. Delineation of the College Policy name, Policy Category, Subject, Responsible Division, links to associated Procedure(s), and links to any related College Policies. Sample Header:

Policy: [Insert Title Here]

Audience: [re-state Volume as audience]

Policy Contact: [Designee or other appropriate contact] – Include Division, where appropriate

References: [Insert links to applicable Procedures, external references, and/or IC web pages here]

Related Policies: [List and link all related Policies here]

Last Review Date: [last review date, not same as last update] (Not applicable to Faculty Council and some others)

Scope. Identification of parties governed by the Policy and any groups whose business or conduct is directly addressed by the Policy.
Policy Statement. Purpose of the Policy and the statement of the rule, position, rule, regulation or direction.
Definitions. Meaning and interpretation of critical terms used in the Policy.
Requirements. Description of the actual Policy in outline format, covering topics which include duties assigned to responsible parties and other parties as necessary; other information specific to a particular Policy subject as needed; and a description of the compliance review process and specific authority to impose penalties or other remedies when noncompliance occurs, if applicable.
Violations. A statement of possible consequences for violations. Often delineated by group (faculty, staff, student, org, etc.) and may include interim consequences such as loss of access to or eligibility for certain privileges.

The Office of Legal Affairs is a resource to support you in your effort, whether to review drafts, or guide you through the full policy development process.

Tips for Policy Writing

The institutional policies are intended to be practical, administrative guides, with both style and content determined by user needs. The only way this can be the case is if each and every policy and procedure document is developed, written, and updated with the user in mind. When writing your policy, keep in mind that you are an expert in the area on which you are writing, but that the users of your section will not be. Many people referring to your policy may be new to their current position, or new to the college altogether. This means you need to keep your procedures as simple and straightforward as possible.

Do not confuse "policy" with "procedures" or "guidelines." The term "policy" refers to a very specific aspect of the policy template. That part should include only the governing principles that explain the reason why the remainder of the template sections exists. It explains why we have certain procedures or guidelines, but not how to accomplish tasks. Procedures are the required steps a user must take to be in compliance with policy, while guidelines are recommended best practices for departments to accomplish tasks but are not required to be in compliance.

Remember that policy documents are not marketing documents or creative writing pieces. The goal of a well-written policy is to explain clearly how to accomplish a specific process at the college with minimal problem, aggravation or risk of non-compliance.

Finally, when it comes to writing policy, less is more. Don't use ten words to say what could be said in four. Keep your statements clear and to the point. If you are able to develop a user-friendly policy, you increase the likelihood that users will refer to the policy rather than call you, will work to stay in compliance, and will contribute to increasing efficiency across the college.

Remember the difference between policies and procedure	Policies Describe the rules that establish what will or will not be done. Can range from broad philosophies to specific rules. Are usually expressed in standard sentence and paragraph format. Include WHAT the rule is, WHEN it applies and WHO it covers.	Procedures Describe the critical steps undertaken to implement a policy and achieve the policy intent. Are succinct, factual and to the point. Are usually expressed using lists. Include HOW to achieve the necessary results.
Be mindful of the audience	Because the audience for a policy is generally the entire college community, the language used must be accessible and understandable to all, not just technical experts. Writers may assume that readers have basic knowledge of the campus and college community and no knowledge of specific policies or procedures. Use clear and precise words, short sentences, and common terminology. If industry terminology or words with specialized meaning must be used, define them in the policy definitions section. Use “must” instead of “shall.” Be intentional when using “should” – it means that something is not required but merely a suggestion. Keep in mind that most college policies are requirements and not simply statements of best practices. Keep it general. Policies cannot anticipate all possible situations. Because of this, they should be relatively general and clear enough to apply to varied unforeseen circumstances. Make it helpful. The policy should tell the reader why it exists, who it affects, its major conditions and restrictions, when and under what circumstances it applies, and specifically how it is to be carried out.
Use everyday language that readers will easily and immediately understand	Keep it simple. Policies are not law and should be written in plain language – not legalese. It should be easily understood by the entire college community. Keep language simple and direct and use common words (e.g. "use" instead of "utilize"). Avoid the use of jargon, unnecessary technical expressions and fancy vocabulary. Use active rather than passive voice (e.g., instead of “it is the ultimate responsibility of the department manager to…,” use “the department manager must…” or instead of “candidates who are barred from employment should be notified…’” use “notify candidates who are barred from employment…”). Active voice clearly specifies who performs the actions. Omit unnecessary words (e.g., say “Faculty and staff must…” instead of “All faculty and staff must…”). Use proper grammar and punctuation. Use pronouns to help the reader relate to the document (e.g., instead of “Receipts must be provided…” say “You must provide receipts…”). Spell out initials and acronyms the first time, following with the initials or acronym in parentheses and subsequently follow with the initials or acronym. Do not use “institution” and “college” interchangeably; use one term consistently.
Keep the structure simple	Use short sentences and paragraphs. Use numbering to facilitate easy referencing. Remove words that don't add meaning. Use the college recommended policy template.
Be specific - mean what you say and say what you mean	Rather than "submit the appropriate form" say "Submit the Withdrawal from Program form". If action is mandatory "must" or "will" is used. If the action is recommended or valid reasons to deviate from the requirement may exist in particular circumstances, then 'should' is used. If the action is permissive "may" is used. The word "shall" must be avoided unless there is a legislative requirement that prescribes its use. This word causes confusion between whether an action is mandatory or recommended.

Review and Approval of College Policies

The Office of the General Counsel will review the draft policy and recommend legal or compliance-related changes, as appropriate, and assess whether draft meets the criteria of a college policy.
The Custodian will circulate the draft to the President’s Council for review and discussion.
After President’s Council review, the custodian or designee will disseminate the draft policy (as revised) to any identified stakeholders or stakeholder groups to gather feedback on the President’s Council-approved draft. The Custodian will determine whether the draft policy will be rejected, returned for revisions, or proceed for final review and approval based on any additional feedback received from stakeholders.
When the draft policy is ready for final review and approval, the Custodian will submit the draft policy along with a decision memo to the President.
Certain policies requiring Board of Trustee approval, pursuant to law or the guidelines found in Section 1.8, should be forwarded by the Custodian to the Board Secretary for placement on the Board’s meeting agenda.
Once the President and, if required, Board of Trustees approve the policy, the policy Designee will notify the campus community, and provide the final version to Legal Affairs (policies@ithaca.edu), which will publish on the Ithaca College Policy Manual website and archive any replaced policies.

Policy Roles/Definitions

Policy Custodian: The Policy Custodian is the executive officer (president, provost, vice president), whose jurisdiction covers the subject matter of the policy. A policy should identify the Responsible Division, which is the appropriate office of a College executive officer (president, provost, vice president), whose jurisdiction covers the subject matter of the policy.

Policy Designee: The Policy Designee is the individual designated by the Policy Custodian to develop and administer a policy, communicate with and train the College community in its requirements, and execute its timely updating and revisions.

Stakeholder: Stakeholders, as used herein, are College community members who are affected by the policy being developed.

Stakeholder Groups: The Stakeholder Groups are specific College committees and representative organizations that are routinely provided with formal notice of policy changes including Student Governance Council (SGC), Faculty Council, and Staff Council among others (such as Academic Policies Committee, College Advisory Committee on Campus Security and Campus Life, Committee for College-Wide Requirements, etc.).

Policy Responsibilities

The Custodian or Designee is responsible for coordinating any necessary communication about a new policy to specific Stakeholders.
The Custodian or Designee is responsible for coordinating any necessary training and education of Stakeholders and other members of the campus community as needed to comply with the policy.