Policy Compliance and Publication: 1:03:10:01

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Responsible Officer: 
Executuve Director of Office of Organizational Compliance and Enrichment (OCE) 

Responsible Executives: 

Executive Director of Organizational Compliance and Enrichment; Executive Vice President of Student Success; Executive Vice President of Workforce; Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs; Executive Vice President of Business and Finance 

 I. PURPOSE

This policy addresses the process for developing, proposing, revising, approving, retiring, implementing, and publicizing Motlow State Community College (Motlow State) policies. It applies to all faculty, staff, administrators, and students. 

This policy ensures that Motlow State maintains institutional policies required by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR), the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), federal and state law, and institutional operational needs. 

This policy further establishes the Motlow Policy Taskforce (MPT) as the institutional body responsible for oversight, coordination, governance, and facilitation of institutional policy processes.  

The MPT will ensure institutional policies are developed, reviewed, revised, approved, published, and implemented in alignment with the following: 

  1. The College’s Policy Management Process; 
  2. The institutional policy development process; 
  3. Applicable TBR policies and guidelines; 
  4. Federal and state laws and regulations; and 
  5. Accreditation standards and institutional best practices. 

The MPT provides institutional oversight of the policy process while maintaining divisional responsibility for policy ownership, implementation, compliance, and operational execution. 

II. DEFINITIONS

  1. Responsible Officer – the individual (or individuals) identified in each policy responsible for ensuring policy compliance and revision, creation, or deletion of those policies.  
  2. Responsible Executive – The Executive (or Executives) responsible for the Responsible Officer, and thereby also policy compliance, revision, creation, or deletion of policies.  The Responsible Executive shall be made aware of any revisions, deletions or creation of policies, and given the opportunity to help edit any policies, and may also request the Responsible Officer to act as their designee. 
  3. Motlow Policy Taskforce (MPT)- The institutional committee responsible for coordinating and overseeing institutional policy governance processes at Motlow State Community College. 

    The MPT is responsible for: 

        1. Facilitating institutional policy review cycles; 
        2. Assisting divisions with policy development and revision processes; 
        3. Ensuring policy formatting and institutional consistency; 
        4. Monitoring policy review timelines and compliance requirements; 
        5. Coordinating institutional review processes; 
        6. Supporting publication and archival procedures; 
        7. Assisting with communication and training related to policy processes; and 
        8. Maintaining alignment with TBR, federal, state, and accreditation expectations.
  4. MPT Representative - The designated member of the Motlow Policy Taskforce responsible for facilitating policy coordination, workflow management, document review routing, and institutional policy process support in collaboration with the Responsible Officer and Responsible Executive.  

III.TASKFORCE COMPOSITION

The MPT will include representation from key institutional divisions to ensure comprehensive review and coordination of institutional policies. 

  1. Membership: 

Representative(s) from Academic Affairs 

Representative(s) from Student Success 

Representative(s) from Workforce and Community Development- 

Representative(s) from Business and Finance 

Representative(s) from Human Resources 

Representative from Organizational Compliance & Enrichment (OCE) 

Representative from Institutional Research and Effectiveness  

SACSCOC Liaison 

Ex-Officio: 
President’s Office representative- The President of Motlow State Community College will serve as an Ex-Officio member of the MPT, providing institutional leadership oversight and ensuring alignment with the College’s strategic priorities and governance framework. 

IV.PROPOSING AND APPROVING POLICIES

  1. Every institutional policy shall be reviewed at least once every three (3) years unless a shorter review cycle is required by law, regulation, accreditation standards, TBR requirements, or institutional need. 

    Responsible Officers and Responsible Executives may request more frequent reviews in coordination with the MPT. 

  2. Compliance and Accreditation Oversight 

    The SACSCOC Liaison is responsible for ensuring institutional policy alignment with accreditation expectations and standards. 

    The Office of Organizational Compliance and Enrichment may provide guidance regarding institutional compliance obligations, federal and state requirements, accessibility considerations, and institutional governance alignment.

  3. Policy Requests and Submissions 

All requests to create, revise, review, retire, or dissolve a policy shall be submitted through the established institutional policy process and coordinated with the MPT through policy@mscc.edu.

Requests should include: 

    1. Policy name, number, and current link (if applicable); 
    2. Summary and justification for proposed changes; 
    3. Supporting documentation or regulatory guidance; 
    4. Applicable TBR, federal, state, or accreditation references; and 
    5. Identification of the Responsible Officer and Responsible Executive

D. Policy Development and Drafting   

When developing a new policy or conducting substantive revisions, the MPT Representative will coordinate with the Responsible Officer, Responsible Executive, and appropriate subject matter experts to develop draft language. 

The MPT may provide recommendations regarding: 

  1. Institutional consistency; 
  2. Formatting and structure; 
  3. Compliance alignment; 
  4. Governance considerations; and 
  5. Cross-divisional impact.

E. Institutional Review Process 

  1. Policies will be distributed (redline and clean versions of draft policies) to institutional leadership, including but not limited to: President; Executive Vice Presidents; Vice Presidents; Deans; Department Leaders; Council Chairs; SACSCOC Liaison; and Other identified stakeholders.
  2. Stakeholders shall generally be provided ten (10) business days to review and submit feedback unless an alternative timeline is approved by the Responsible Executive or President.
  3. All policy drafts shall adhere to the established institutional policy format and document standards.
  4. The Executive Director of OCE, Executive Director of Human Resources, Responsible Executive, or President may recommend legal or TBR review at any point during the policy process. 

 

F. Institutional Oversight Committee and President’s Cabinet Review 

Following institutional review, the Office of Compliance & Enrichment shall coordinate submission of policy drafts and clean version to the Institutional Oversight Committee (IOC) and President’s Cabinet for review and consideration. 

IOC and/or the President’s Cabinet may: 

  1. Recommend revisions; 
  2. Request additional stakeholder review; 
  3. Request legal or compliance consultation; 
  4. Return drafts for additional development; or 
  5. Advance policies for approval consideration. 
  6. Electronic review and voting processes may be utilized when necessary.

G. All academic policies will be submitted electronically to Faculty Council members for review prior to submitting institution review.    Faculty Council will hold a vote and then communicate their vote to the Academic Affairs EVP.  Once this period has ended, the IOC and President’s Cabinet will vote on the approved academic policy, as outlined above in Section IV E. 

 

V. SPECIAL POLICY CATEGORIES AND CIRCUMSTANCES

When the need arises due to mandated changes (such as those resulting from federal legislation, legal or TBR changes, or accreditation requirements), Compliance personnel, the EDHR, SACSCOC Liaison or President may consult with the MPT to draft changes.

  1. Temporary Policies
    1. The President’s Cabinet may approve temporary policies to meet unpredictable needs of the college;
    2. Any temporary policy that is to continue longer than six (6) months will be reviewed and voted upon by President’s Cabinet;
    3. Cabinet may vote to extend this 6-month period for the temporary policy;
    4. Votes may be electronic or in live meetings and will be recorded and preserved in meeting minutes.
    5. The IOC will be informed of any new temporary policies, or extensions of temporary policies.
  2. Editorial Changes

    1. Editorial changes include title changes, unit name changes, and other language alignment that might result from restructuring or a changing workforce and operating culture; 

    2. Editorial changes can be facilitated between the Responsible Officer (or their designee) and/or the Responsible Executive, and the Responsible MPT, and Executive Director of OCE; but must be approved by the President. 

    3. Policies with editorial changes shall be affirmed by the President’s Cabinet before publishing and announced to the IOC. 

  3. Retiring or Dissolving a Policy

    1. If a policy needs to be retired, the revoking of the policy shall be affirmed by IOC and the President’s Cabinet before unpublishing and being announced.

  4. Some policies require additional approval beyond the institution.  Policies requiring review by TBR or another body will not be published until these requirements are met. 

VI. POLICY PUBLICATION

Following approval of a new or revised policy, or deletion of a policy, the Office of Organization of Compliance and Enrichment will ensure coordination to update the Motlow State Policies webpage.  

SOURCES

HISTORY

Revised: February 10, 2021; editorial changes to align with new titles – August 5, 2021; August 29, 2022; January 22, 2025; May 24, 2026 

IOC Approval: April 30, 2021; October 14, 2022; June 24, 2026 

(IOC replaced Leadership Council in 2020; previous version approved by Leadership Council on February 3, 2017.) 

President’s Cabinet Approval: September 7, 2021 (editorial changes); September 27, 2022; editorial revisions affirmed June 6, 2023; TBD; July 14, 2026 

Policy Effective Date: September 7, 2021; October 14, 2022; June 6, 2026