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Ideals and Instruments
Board of Trustees
Campus Students
Off-Campus Students
Faculty
Staff
Administration
Alumni/ae Association
IDEALS AND PRINCIPLES
"Democracy is a great word, whose history, Walt Whitman, "Democratic Vistas," 1871. 1
Governance at Goddard College strives to be democratic, an ever-evolving process reflecting the teaching of philosopher John Dewey, who believed that democracy is both a means with instrumental value, and an ethical ideal without absolute definition. 2 Democratic self-governance is experienced daily through the life and work of citizens in a community of scholarly affairs. The ideal, itself, requires that individuals return to the techniques each time the community meets, or the faculty deliberates, or the staff and administration act, or as the Board of Trustees carry out their responsibilities. In this way, and through the creative tension between what we know to be and what we believe ought to be, students, faculty, administration and Trustees clarify and deepen a sense of democracy's meaning. Goddard was intended by its founders to be "a Vermont College for living" and the earliest governance plans at the college drew, in part, upon the distinctive Vermont tradition of the town meeting as a model for citizen involvement. Because Goddard is a college organized to advance the principles of progressive education, governance has a central role in both the curriculum and the organization of college life. Thus, it is necessary to discuss and evaluate college governance from time to time, as this report will do. As Dewey encouraged, we are free "to criticize and re-make its political manifestations." Yet because we enjoy this freedom, there is a responsibility to be mindful of prudent ways to propose, debate, ratify, and implement political change. The college is an evolving, complex organization offering different types of educational programs. Its governance system is evolving as well. It has a campus program where traditional age undergraduates live on campus or nearby, and are expected to be active in campus governance by participating in committees and in community life. The college also offers low residence programs year-round to adults who travel to the campus from great distance to participate in brief, intense residencies. The forms of participation are different. As students come and go, the college also must function as a business that depends upon a stable core of staff and faculty.
Governance at Goddard seeks the appropriate balance between democratic participation in decision-making, and clearly defined lines of authority and responsibility. Goddard's governance system has evolved over 55 years. Many different experiments have tried to find the best balance between these two, sometimes competing, principles. Not all experiments have worked, nor should they have. The current plan, for example, combines representative democracy in having elected representatives on college-wide committees; direct, participatory democracy within various student, staff, and faculty groups; and collaborative democratic dialogue in in the planning of each student's education program. Governance at Goddard, in this way, is intentionally educative because every generation of people who pass through the college are asked to struggle with the ideals, the creative tensions, and the frustrations of striving for democracy. This educational motive is an integral part of the college's mission. The spirit of collaboration we are seeking is a balancing of formal authority and the actual use of that authority. We aspire to create a climate of consultation and persuasion rather than one of control or domination. We seek active, effective leadership and, at the same time, effective participation by all members of the community in committees and meetings. With such a system, creative tensions between the leader and the group - and within the group - will occur. Conflict is inevitable in a democracy, and this governance system is designed to manage conflict creatively.
Goddard is a small college in rural Vermont for plain living and hard thinking. Founded in 1863, Goddard is recognized for innovation in education. Its mission is to advance the theory and practice of learning by undertaking new experiments based upon the ideals of democracy and the principles of progressive education asserted by John Dewey. At Goddard, students are regarded as unique individuals who will take charge of their learning and collaborate with other students, staff, and faculty to build a strong community. Goddard encourages students to become creative, passionate, life-long learners, working and living with an earnest concern for others and the welfare of the Earth.
The mission and structure of governance at Goddard are undergirded by these values: Striving for democracy: The founders of Goddard College intentionally placed significant emphasis on the practice and theory of democracy in both academic and operational affairs. Their intent has not been forsaken. We strive to have every voice heard and count.The second section, which follows, describes the instruments and committees Goddard now uses to govern the college. After a general statement of how decisions are made, the governance plan is then described. The third and final section describes procedures by which the college can review and evaluate its governance plan, and make changes in an orderly way. These techniques are common to the political philosophy binding democratic civic life anywhere in the world.
CONTINUITY: GOVERNANCE TODAY "The genius of democracies is seen not only in the great number of new words introduced but even more in the new ideas they express." Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 1840. 3
The Board of Trustees delegates to the President responsibility for the overall administration and advancement of the college. The President has the authority to make or delegate operational decisions regarding college management. Major decisions such as setting tuition and fees, new academic programs, and major changes in personnel policies that bear upon the financial well-being of the college come forward through the President as recommendations to the Trustees for their review and decision. The President delegates specific authority and responsibility to senior administrators, or to specific groups or committees, whose areas of authority are outlined in the relevant sections that follow. Those administrators (or college officers) may, in turn, delegate authority to others or share authority with the committees, faculty groups, or individuals with whom they work. The faculty, chaired by the Dean for Academic Affairs, has authority over the academic matters of the college. Staff and students have the authority to elect representatives to most standing committees of the college, including the Board of Trustees. However, students do not sit on faculty, personnel, or graduate admissions committees. Students are expected to participate in governance as part of their learning. Because the college is student-centered in its basic philosophy, many forms of participation are offered.
Delegated authority means that a person or group has the authority to make decisions or create policies in regard to the area or issue in question, without the approval of the delegating person or group. It is expected, however, that those to whom authority has been delegated will consult with the delegating authority or committee in advance of important decisions. In regard to areas of clearly delegated authority or that involve regular management and operations of the college, decisions may be made by the administrator, director, team, or committee responsible for a particular area, as delegated by the President or other college officers, and do not need to go anywhere else for approval.
Shared authority takes several forms. A committee makes a recommendation to the administrator, director, or management team responsible for that area, following active, advance consultation with that administrator in regard to the issue in question. That leader does one of the following:
If the leader and group cannot find a way to resolve an impasse after several discussions, or if an emergency decision must be made, the leader only may decide the question if college finances, safety, or security are threatened. Standing committees make procedural decisions that staff and faculty implement. It is expected, however, that those to whom authority has been delegated or with whom it has been shared will actively consult with the delegating authority or committee in advance of important decisions in a collaborative decisionmaking process that makes later conflict unnecessary as the committee and administrator move toward agreement. It is the responsibility of the administrator or manager to make clear those issues or kinds of issues about which he or she would like to be consulted. In the same spirit, elected representatives are expected to report information back to their constituencies.
Goddard is experimenting with consent policy setting and decision-making. Decisions are driven by the quality of information, reasoning, and the assumption that all persons begin deliberations or, issues in agreement. Decisions in most committees are made by consent, and the leader's role is to assist the group to reach consent. Proposals, including resolutions, are considered accepted ;n the absence of reasoned objection. However, if there is reasoned dissent within the group, and if a decision must be made, a supermajority vote of 70 percent of these attending members is used to reach a decision.
Authority of the Board The Board of Trustees is responsible for the well-being and growth of Goddard College, and has sole legal authority to establish and to oversee the policies for the sensible, democratic management of the college. By law and in custom, Trustees are bound to give their undivided allegiance to the college and its mission, to serve Goddard College's interests with prudence and care, and to conform to all relevant laws. The Board of Trustees has adopted a Code of Expectations and Responsibilities, found in Appendix B. Beyond this fundamental warrant to fiduciary responsibility granted the Goddard College Corporation through Articles of Association by the State of Vermont, the Trustees themselves may determine how to organize the Board, how to share their powers and with whom, and to establish or to change the procedures by which they conduct business, including how often to meet. Trustees have full authority to contract for the services of a person to serve as President, or to terminate such a contract; for periodic evaluations of the President, annual budgets, strategic plans, and audited financial statements; to employ counsel; to enact or to amend bylaws which govern their own conduct.
The Goddard College Board of Trustees is organized as a partially self-perpetuating body of twenty-five persons, and currently meets three times a year. Members from the faculty, administrative staff, on-campus students, and off-campus students are elected by the entire community. Additionally, members of the Goddard College Alumni/ae Association elect one member to the Board of Trustees. All Trustees enjoy full voting rights on all matters save those in which they may have a conflict of interest, and also recuse themselves from matters in which they may benefit financially or otherwise, directly or indirectly. All who serve are responsible for representing the best interests of Goddard College. The Board of Trustees has established a Trusteeship Committee to resolve Board conflicts of interest. All Trustees are nominated and elected by seated Trustees, and serve one five-year term, except for students and alumni\ae who serve one-year terms, and faculty and administrative staff who serve threeyear terms. The Board of Trustees may increase or decrease the number of persons who may be seated as Trustees, and may establish advisory boards that enhance or support the college mission. The Chair of the Board of Trustees is selected annually for a one-year term by the Trustees. The candidates for the Chair submit a statement of values to the Board in advance of the annual election. The candidates also distribute a proposed slate for the Executive Committee with the expectation that the Board will ratify the elected Chair's selection of the Chairpersons for the standing committees and consider for election the at-large members of the Executive Committee. The statement and the proposed slate serve as the basis upon which Trustees can make an informed decision about selecting a Chair. The Chair is responsible for managing meetings of the Board of Trustees and its committees, for transmitting to the President policies adopted by the Trustees, for ensuring those policies are carried out, and for making certain that the Board of Trustees have full and timely reports from the President, both
The Board of Trustees has established four standing committees conforming to the broad functions of a business devoted to scholarly affairs: executive, academic and student affairs, finance, and development. The Executive Committee is composed of the Chair of the Board and the Chairs of the three other standing committees plus two Trustees elected by the full Board. Except for the Executive Committee, membership on standing committees is the voluntary choice of individual Trustees, subject to the condition that the numerical composition of all committees is balanced both by skill and by numbers. This condition is determined by the Chair. Unless a Trustee presents some good reason, she or he remains a member of their self-selected committee for their full term. When needed, the Board forms additional task forces to take up specific but short-term responsibilities. Except for service on the Executive Committee, Trustees may serve only on one standing committee and on one task force. The Executive Committee:
The Board of Trustees is dedicated to the ideal of separating and delegating authority, but by law must reserve to itself the responsibility of fulfilling the duties of care and oversight. To improve its own efficiency and productivity, the Board of Trustees uses the consent decision-making and management method. Board consent decision-making and management rests on four principles:
Every committee is expected to keep and to maintain minutes of meetings (prepared by the committee staff), to evaluate its work annually by objective measures, and to report on their work and their evaluation to the full Board in writing. The Chair of the Board typically has conversations with his or her committee Chairs about the business of the committees, and has regular conversations with the President about a wide scope of matters. The Board of Trustees and its standing committees or task forces will look at the functional aspects of their work to ensure that it is:
The President The Board of Trustees delegates to the President overall responsibility for the administration and advancement of the college, which includes overseeing all aspects of college life to ensure that the mission and priorities plan adopted by the Trustees are being followed. The President consults regularly with senior administrators, the faculty, and the College Executive Committee (CEC) in that general oversight. The President, in active consultation with the faculty and staff, is expected to use his or her office to nourish and advance the moral and intellectual vision of the college. The President's responsibilities are: The President also chairs the Presidential Advisory Committee, which reports to the President. Senior Administrators Senior administrators are delegated the areas of authority described below, and are expected to report to the President the decisions that have been made and the actions that have been taken in regard to these areas. All college officers serve on the College Executive Committee, along with other elected representatives. The Dean for Academic Affairs is the Chief Academic Officer of the college, is responsible for overseeing the development arid implementation of the college's academic programs, and is the final court of appeal in regard to academic matters. The Dean is also responsible for, the supervision and evaluation of the faculty, the Campus Leadership Team, the coordinators for the campus and off-campus programs, the Director of Continuing Education, and the Coordinator of College Counseling. He or she reports to the President and takes on the President's responsibilities and authorities when the President is absent. The Dean for Academic Affairs chairs the Core Faculty, and the following groups report to him or her: Core Faculty, Program Faculty Groups, Lead Faculty Group, Campus Leadership Team, Campus Community Life Committee, and the Work Program Committee. The Dean for Administration directly manages the full range of college functions related to employment, evaluations, benefits, training, affirmative action, compensation, and employee relations. The Dean, in conjunction with the department heads, is responsible for planning, budget preparation and review, and developing and evaluating performance management goals for the following departments: maintenance, housekeeping, food services, day care, office services, the switchboard, and security. The Dean is also responsible for developing a contingency plan to address budget shortfalls and emergencies in those departments. In addition, he or she is responsible for purchasing and for coordinating offcampus rentals. The Dean reports to the President, and takes on the President's responsibilities and authorities if both the President and the Dean for Academic Affairs are absent. The Dean for Administration chairs the Personnel Committee and the Facilities Committee, and both of these committees report to him or her. The Chief Financial Officer provides overall direction for the management of the financial affairs of the college. This is done through consulting with all college constituencies in the preparation and administration of the budget, through supervision of the Business Office staff, and through coordination of the annual financial audit. The CFO is also responsible for assisting in the preparation of major institutional reports and for providing support for the Board of Trustees Finance Committee. The CFO reports to the President. The Dean for Academic Services is responsible for reviewing and evaluating academic policies governing student records. This includes providing leadership for the development and maintenance of computerized records and registration systems, analyzing and reporting enrollment trends, and certifying student graduation. The Dean for Academic Services is also responsible for coordinating, with the Dean for Academic Affairs, the management and supervision of the college registration process. These Deans also consult to ensure that student semesters and program achievements are consistent with Goddard's distinctive standards. The Dean supervises the Director of Information Services, the Director of Educational Resources, the WGDR Station Manager, and three Records Office staff members. The Dean reports to the President.
The Director of Admissions is responsible for the enrollment of all new matriculating students, enrollment planning, and forecasting. This responsibility covers all areas of the admissions cycle, from inquiry, application, and review through actual enrollment. The Director also is responsible for the college publications and various advertising mediums. The Director supervises and coordinates the efforts of the Director of Financial Aid, the Associate Director of Admissions, the Recruitment Coordinator, the Office Manager, and Admissions staff. The Director reports to the President. The Graduate and Undergraduate Admissions Committees both report to the Director of Admissions.
The Goddard faculty is comprised of the Core Faculty, the Associate Faculty, and the Adjunct Faculty. It is chaired by the Dean for Academic Affairs, to whom the various faculty groups report and to whom they make recommendations in regard to academic policies, programs, and personnel issues. The Core Faculty are charged with responsibility for and oversight of the academic programs and policies for the college as a whole. The Associate Faculty are part-time employees whose responsibilities and authority reside in the program to which they are assigned. Adjunct Faculty are contracted, on occasion, to provide a service to a particular program; they have no governance responsibilities or authority. The President is an ex officio member of the faculty and may participate in faculty meetings and deliberations. In keeping with the democratic philosophy and principles of self-management that undergird Goddard's approach to education, the faculty has responsibility for a wide range of areas related to the design, development, and delivery of education. Areas of Authority and Responsibility The faculty, in collaboration with the Dean for Academic Affairs, has the authority:Proposals approved by the faculty and Dean for Academic Affairs that have budget implications or that clearly interface with other college offices or areas of authority (such as personnel), must be presented to the College Executive Committee, which will include the proposal in its budget and planning process and will route the issue to other appropriate committees or offices as needed. Proposals for new programs must be approved by the President and the Board of Trustees (see Appendix C). Organization The Core Faculty. This group is responsible for the development and oversight of the academic programs and policies of the college as a whole. Proposals relating to new program development, major policy changes, and all of the areas noted above under faculty authority and responsibilities may come to this group for discussion and review.
The Core Faculty makes its decisions by consent. If more time is required to allow debate to proceed or for reflection about the issue, the item may be tabled until the next meeting. If votes are necessary to reach a decision, 70% of the ballots must be in favor of the resolution. In such situations, secret ballots are used upon the request of any member of the group. The faculty consults with other constituencies of the college students, staff, administration, committees - as appropriate to the matters under consideration. The Program Faculty Groups. The faculty for each Goddard program includes a combination of Core Faculty and Associate Faculty. The faculty for each discrete program (the Program
Campus Leadership Team. The Campus Leadership Team (known as the Dean's Team) reports to the Dean for Academic Affairs, and advises and works with the Dean and the faculty in the operation of the campus program and the coordination of its academic, work program, and community life components. The Campus Leadership Team is also the judiciary body for the campus program, and makes recommendations to the Dean in regard to disciplinary action for student violation of campus life policies.
Lead Faculty Group. For each program, a member of the Core Faculty serves as Lead Faculty. This person has primary responsibility for the planning and coordination of her/his particular residencies and educational program. The Lead Faculty from the various programs are responsible as a group for maintaining consistency of policies, practices, and standards across programs, for coordination of responsibilities and functions of the Lead Faculty, and for peer supervision and support. Issues affecting college academic policy as a whole, or proposals that would significantly change the character or direction of an existing program are sent from here to the Core Faculty.
Student involvement in governance is encouraged at all levels. Campus students elect representatives to all committees of the college (except faculty, personnel, and graduate admissions committees). Campus and off-campus students are elected to serve on the Board of Trustees. In addition, all students are voting members of the Campus Community Life Committee. The campus program and each of the off-campus programs hold Community Meetings, described later in this section, which are forums for the ideas and concerns of the students. Students influence governance by exercising their right to assemble and to create proposals that they may present to any appropriate committee, including the Board of Trustees through the President. An ongoing concern has been how to include the off-campus students in issues immediately pertinent to the campus. Because of demographics, inclusion of off-campus students on committees is often difficult, and Board membership and search committees have been their main areas of involvement.
Most of the work of managing and governing the college occurs in the interaction between standing committees and the administration. The committees set or review, operational policies, and the administration implements those policies. Organization of Standing Committees Each standing committee includes elected faculty and staff representatives, and most include elected student representatives. In general, each committee is chaired by the administrator in charge of the committee's area of concern, although meeting facilitation may rotate among members of the group. While these committees and groups have as their main concern the implementation of policies in the day-to-day operations of the college, their work often leads them to make policy proposals to the administrators with whom they work or to the Board of Trustees through the President. A standing committee may reasonably alter its membership by consent of the committee membership, as long as the new configuration remains consistent with the purpose, guidelines, or processes as described above. Any such changes are announced through formal minutes and at the next available Campus Community Meeting, and recorded as addenda to this document. Task forces are sometimes appointed in an official capacity by standing committees or administrators because of a common need or perceived problem by a group within the college. The work of task forces becomes part of the formal committee structure through their reports to standing committees. The Board of Trustees and all standing committees are expected to keep formal minutes of their meetings, and to make them available to the community by posting them in various parts of the campus, including the Community Center governance bulletin board. Goddard expects to use INTERNET, a computer network, which will allow minutes of meetings and other communications to be posted electronically.
The College Executive Committee (CEC) is the primary planning and coordinating body for the college. Through weekly staff reports, the group reviews and plans major business. The group develops and monitors the priorities plan (in cooperation with other committees and offices), and, facilitated by the Chief Financial Officer, plans the college budget. The budget and the priorities plan are submitted by the President to the Trustees for final approval. CEC may also direct issues to committees or college officers for review or action, and in cases of conflict between other committees, CEC may intercede in order to clarify which committee should decide the issue or to help the committees reach a collaborative decision. Except where policies or practices may affect the college finances, safety, or security, the group does not make or change policies under the purview of other committees. It may, however, raise questions or concerns for other groups to consider. Decisions are reached by consent. It is the President's responsibility to lead the group towards consent. A formal agenda is used by CEC to order its business. Formal minutes are approved by the committee and published for the community.
The Campus Community Life Committee is the primary governing body for campus student community life issues. The committee provides a forum for the discussion of issues in community living and, when appropriate, develops and presents proposals to the Carnpus Leadership Team in regard to such issues. The committee is specifically responsible for: the allocation of the community activities budget; conducting elections for student representatives to college committees and task forces; creating additional student committees or task forces as needed; developing proposals in regard to community living norms and policies; and other tasks delegated to it by the Campus Leadership Team.
Work Program Committee This committee supervises the Goddard work program, a required part of being a student at Goddard College. The committee also assists in the management and operation of the work program and in assuring its fairness and consistency. The committee may suggest policies or policy revisions to administrators, other committees, or the Board of Trustees. One area of its work is dealing with exceptions to policy: considering and making operating decisions about requests by individual students that work program requirements be waived or reduced, and considering and deciding about requests that work program credit be granted for particular Goddard activities not currently understood as fulfilling work program obligations. The committee also deals with the administration of the work program: the responsibilities of crew chiefs, how to assure and certify fulfillment of work program requirements, arid how to evaluate work program performance in such a way as to give educationally useful feedback to individual students, crew chiefs, and the college community at large.
This committee's area of concern is the maintenance and improvement of Goddard's physical plant, buildings and grounds. The committee may make operational decisions abou priorities for Goddard's maintenance personnel, and may recommend major building repairs and renovation or grounds improvement, such as the recent transformation of a tennis court into an outdoor meeting place.
Diversity Committee This committee is responsible for helping the college recruit students and employees from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds. It also encourages programs, workshops, and seminars that would enhance multicultural education. The Diversity Committee also may suggest and propose scholarships and may attempt to attract grants and other funds to support its initiatives.
This committee makes decisions on applications for admission to the undergraduate campus and undergraduate off-campus, low residency program.
Graduate Admissions Committee This committee makes decisions on applications for admission to the graduate offcampus, low residency programs. Lead Faculty of the various programs may recommend acceptance or denial to the college, and the Associate Director of Admissions collaborates with each area to ensure adequate input. The Admissions Counselor and Director provide additional input on applications as needed.
Human resources are the main focus of this committee. All employees, through their elected representatives to this committee, discuss issues or concerns related to morale, hiring practices, compensation and benefits, and legal issues related to work. They may make recommendations to administrators, other committees, or the Board of Trustees through the President. From time to time, this committee will dialogue with other colleges to see how they handle human resource development at their institutions. The goal of the committee is to be proactive in handling all issues concerning employees.
When needed, representative search committees are formed, which operate according to established personnel policies to include representatives from the faculty, students - mostly campus but occasionally off-campus students - staff, and administration. These committees make recommendations to the administrator who will supervise the person being sought. Hiring decisions are then made according to the shared authority and mutual consent process described earlier in this document. The administrator to whom the new employee will report should serve as an ex-officio member of the search committee, participating in interviews and deliberations, at least when the search reaches the finalist stage. WGDR Radio Station WGDR's license is held by the Board of Trustees of Goddard College. WGDR is a non-commercial educational, college and community radio station that broadcasts in the Central Vermont area. It is supervised by the Radio Coordinator, who reports to the Dean for Academic Services. Every two months, the WGDR radio programmers, who may be students or community volunteers, hold a staff meeting to advise the Radio Coordinator. In addition, , Community Advisory Board meets every three months to suggest public service programming. This advisory board complies with the Federal Communications Commission guidelines.
The Campus Community Meeting is the forum for the students, faculty, staff, and administrators of the campus undergraduate program, and is currently scheduled to meet the first Monday evening of each month of the campus semesters. The Campus Community Meeting is organized and staffed through the Campus Community Life Committee, which can call additional Community Meetings as needed. The Community Meeting receives reports from all campus related committees and can focus community interest, concern, and action on issues. The President and other senior administrators are often invited or asked to report. The Community Meeting can assign issues to committees, and may recommend policies or policy changes to the planning and policy making groups. Each of the Off-Campus programs (Social Ecology, Psychology, M.F.A. in Writing, Education, and Individualized B.A./M.A.) schedules its own Program Community Meeting during its week-long residency that begins each semester. Feedback about student experience is an important part of the meetings. These meetings receive reports from the program faculty on the latest developments and pending issues. Specific program changes may be discussed for possible recommendation to program faculty and staff or to planning and policy-making groups.
The Board of Trustees instructs the President to outline a plan for designing and implementing a nonadversarial judicial branch for Goddard College. Elements to be considered should include grievance procedures, negotiation, mediation, arbitration. and an appeals process. The system must be capable of providing for resolution of disputes in:
Once adopted by the Board of Trustees, the President will be responsible for a final review of the proposal and for establishing a non-adversarial system of dispute resolution.
1. Walt Whitman, "Democratic Vistas" (1871), in Walt Whitman:
Complete Poetry and Collected Prose, (New York: Library of America, 1982). 2. This summary reading of John Dewey's ideas is taken from
Robert B. Westbrook, John Dewey and American Democracy,
(Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991), pp. 38-51, 306-318. 3. Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, (New York:
Colonial Press, 1900). Originally published in 1840.
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