Details
Series
Date Approved
Date Last Amended
Office(s) Responsible for Rule
Office of the Chancellor
Office of Academic Affairs
Office of Health Affairs
1. Title
Presidents
2. Rule and Regulation
Sec. 1 Presidential Selection. The Board of Regents selects the president of each institution.
1.1 Presidential Search Advisory Committee. When there is an imminent or actual vacancy in the office of a president, an Advisory Committee will be established to recommend candidates to the Board. No potential candidate for the vacancy may serve on the Advisory Committee. Committee membership is as follows:
(a) At least two Regents appointed by the Chairman of the Board, one of which will be designated to serve as Chairman of the Advisory Committee.
(b) Two presidents from U.T. System institutions appointed by the Chairman of the Board.
(c) The Chancellor and the Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic or Health Affairs, as appropriate.
(d) Three faculty members from the applicable institution following a method of selection determined by the institution’s faculty governance body. At least two of the members must have the rank of associate professor or higher.
(e) One Dean selected by the Deans’ Council of the applicable institution for academic institutions. At health institutions, the member will be the Dean of the Medical School or in the absence of that position the member will be a senior representative of the teaching program of the institution selected by the Chairman of the Board.
(f) One student, in good academic standing, from the applicable institution, following a method of selection determined by the institution’s student governance body or, if there is no student governance body, by the Chairman of the Board. If the institution does not have students, this category of representation may be omitted.
(g) The President of the alumni association of the applicable institution. If the institution does not have an active alumni organization, an alumnus of the institution may be selected by the Chairman of the Board.
(h) One nonfaculty employee of the applicable institution following a method of selection determined by the institution’s staff or employee council. If there is no staff or employee council, selection will be by the Chairman of the Board.
(i) At least two representatives of the institution’s external constituency who have demonstrated a deep interest in and support of the institution, its programs, and its role in community activities, appointed by the Chairman of the Board.
1.2 Appointment of Members. Unless there are unusual delays in faculty, staff, or student representative selection that postpone initiation of the committee process, the Chairman of the Board will make his or her appointments to the Advisory Committee after the institutional selections set forth above. The Chairman’s appointments to the Advisory Committee will be made following due consideration of input from members of the Board, the institutional leadership, and community leaders.
1.3 Selection Criteria. Selection criteria for the president must relate to the needs of the individual institution and the U.T. System.
1.4 Responsibilities of the Committee Chairman. The Committee Chairman will develop a timetable for the Committee’s work, in consultation with the Chancellor and the Chairman of the Board, and initiate processes to develop an appropriate candidate pool.
1.5 Review of Qualifications. Following an introduction and charge by the Committee Chairman, the Advisory Committee will assess the candidates’ academic, administrative, and business qualifications.
1.6 Interviews. The Advisory Committee will interview candidates as a part of its selection process.
1.7 Selection of Finalists. The Board Chairman will select candidates to be further interviewed by the Board following recommendations from the Advisory Committee Chairman and the Chancellor. Following the Board interviews, the Board may select a finalist or finalists. If none of the candidates interviewed are satisfactory to the Board of Regents, the Board in its discretion may either name a new committee or proceed to select a president under such other procedures that in its discretion it may deem proper and appropriate.
1.8 Alternate Process. When the Board of Regents would like to consider candidates from recent searches at other institutions, from within the U.T. System, or of national prominence from outside the U.T. System, the Chairman of the Board of Regents will appoint a Special Committee, composed as specified above for the Advisory Committee, to provide the Board with advice and evaluation consistent with that usually provided by an Advisory Committee. The Special Committee will not extend its consideration beyond those candidates referred to it by the Board of Regents without specific concurrence from the Board.
1.9 Confidentiality. The presidential selection process must be conducted in a manner that protects the identity of all candidates at all stages. Information about the process, other than statements or releases by the Chairman of the Board or the Chancellor, will be distributed only as required by the Texas Public Information Act (TPIA). Each individual participating in the search process, including U.T. System employees, members of the Board, search firm representatives, members of a Presidential Search Advisory Committee, and individuals asked to meet with candidates, must sign a confidentiality agreement in a form approved by the General Counsel to the Board and the U.T. System Vice Chancellor and General Counsel prior to participation.
An individual found to have violated the confidentiality agreement may be removed from the search process. A U.T. System employee found to have violated the confidentiality agreement is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
1.10 Confidentiality. The presidential selection process must be conducted in a manner that protects the identity of all candidates. Information about the process, other than statements or releases by the Chairman of the Board or the Chancellor, will be distributed only as required by the Texas Public Information Act (TPIA). Each individual participating in the search process, including U. T. System employees, members of the Board, search firm representatives, members of a Presidential Search Advisory Committee, and individuals asked to meet with candidates, must sign a confidentiality agreement in a form approved by the General Counsel to the Board and the U. T. System Vice Chancellor and General Counsel prior to participation.
An individual found to have violated the confidentiality agreement may be removed from the search process. A U. T. System employee found to have violated the confidentiality agreement is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination. A member of the Board found to have violated the confidentiality agreement is subject to sanctions.
Sec. 2 Reporting. The president reports to and is responsible to the Chancellor. The president is expected to consult with the Chancellor and the appropriate Executive Vice Chancellor on significant issues as appropriate and as soon as is practicable.
Sec. 3 Term and Removal from Office. The president serves at the pleasure of the Chancellor, subject to the approval of the Board of Regents. When circumstances warrant or require such action, the Chancellor may take interim action involving a president, including but not limited to suspension or leave of absence, in consultation with the Chairman of the Board.
Sec. 4 Duties and Responsibilities. The president is the chief administrative officer of an institution. Within the policies and regulations of the Board of Regents and under the supervision and direction of the Chancellor and the appropriate Executive Vice Chancellor, the president has general authority and responsibility for the administration of that institution. Specifically, the president is expected, with the appropriate participation of or in consultation with institution’s administrative officers or other staff, to:
4.1 Develop and administer plans and policies for the programming, organization, and operation of the institution.
4.2 Communicate and implement the System policies at the institution and promote the institution's programs and needs to the System Administration and to the public.
4.3 Develop and administer policies relating to students and, where applicable, to the proper management of services to patients.
4.4 Recommend appropriate operating budgets and legislative appropriation requests and supervise expenditures under approved budgets.
4.5 Appoint all members of the faculty and staff, except as provided in Rule 31007, concerning the award of tenure, and maintain efficient personnel programs.
4.6 Ensure efficient management of business affairs and physical property and recommend additions and alterations to the physical campus and facilities.
4.7 Serve as presiding officer at official meetings of faculty and staff of the institution and as ex officio member of each college or school faculty, if any, within the institution.
4.8 Appoint or establish procedures for the appointment of all faculty, staff, and student committees.
4.9 Develop and administer the rules and regulations for the governance of the institution and any related amendments. Such rules and regulations will constitute the Handbook of Operating Procedures for the institution. Any rule or regulation in the institutional Handbook of Operating Procedures that is in conflict with the Regents' Rules and Regulations or Systemwide policies is void and has no effect.
(a) Input from the faculty, staff, and student governance bodies for the institution will be sought for all significant changes to an institution’s Handbook of Operating Procedures. The institutional Handbook of Operating Procedures will include a policy for obtaining this input.
(b) Sections of the Handbook of Operating Procedures that pertain to the areas of faculty responsibility as defined in Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Rule 40101, Faculty Role in Educational Policy Formulation, will be explicitly designated in the Handbook of Operating Procedures. The president, with the faculty governance body of the institution, will develop procedures to assure formal review of these sections by the faculty governance body before such sections are finalized. The formal review should occur within 60 days or less.
(c) All rules and regulations or amendments in the Handbook of Operating Procedures must be approved by the president and by the institution’s chief legal officer or the Vice Chancellor and General Counsel, as needed.
4.10 Assume initiative in developing long-range plans for the programs and physical facilities of the institution.
4.11 Assume active leadership in developing private fund support for the institution in accordance with policies and procedures established in the Regents' Rules and Regulations.
4.12 Develop and implement plans and policies to ensure that the institution remains in compliance with any accreditation requirements appropriate to the institution or its programs, including, the accreditation of hospitals, clinics, and patient-care facilities, as appropriate.
For each institution of The University of Texas System that operates a hospital or clinic, the president will serve as the Health Care Governing Body, required by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, The Joint Commission, and/or other specialty accreditation standards or by other health care regulations (collectively, “Health Care Regulations”) if appointed as the Health Care Governing Body by the Chancellor. The Health Care Governing Body will have legal responsibility to oversee, manage, and govern hospitals and clinics in accordance with the Health Care Regulations and applicable laws, regulations, and Regents’ Rules.
A U.T. institution that operates a hospital will also have an organized, self-governing medical staff (the “Medical Staff”). The Medical Staff will operate independently and in accordance with Medical Staff Bylaws approved by the Health Care Governing Body, perform certain responsibilities, and be accountable to the Health Care Governing Body for the quality of medical care in the hospitals, as required by the Health Care Regulations. The Medical Staff may include faculty members in accordance with the Medical Staff Bylaws recommended by the Medical Staff and approved by the Health Care Governing Body.
4.13 Assume ultimate responsibility and authority for the operation, fiscal integrity, and personnel of the institution’s athletics program, including appointment and supervision of the athletics director(s), exercised in accordance with the oversight and broad policy
Sec. 5 Evaluation.
5.1 Within 12 months of beginning service as president, the new president will provide the Board with a statement outlining a vision and plans for the future of the institution. The presentation may be deferred for six months, if deemed appropriate by the Chancellor and the appropriate Executive Vice Chancellor after consultation with the Chairman of the Board.
5.2 Each president will have an annual performance evaluation, conducted by the Chancellor and the appropriate Executive Vice Chancellor, and presented to the Board for discussion.
5.3 Each president will receive a comprehensive performance review by the appropriate Executive Vice Chancellor, the Chancellor, and the Board at the conclusion of each five-year period, beginning after the first year of service as president. The review may include an interview with the Board in Executive Session during which the president will outline his or her renewed vision and plans for the future of the institution.
3. Definitions
Health Care Governing Body – an organized body or an individual that has legal responsibility for the operation of the hospital or clinic, as contemplated by Health Care Regulations, including 42 C.F.R. 482.12 or 42 C.F.R. 485.709.
4. Relevant Federal and State Statutes
Texas Education Code Section 65.16 – System Central Administration Office; Executive Officer
Texas Government Code Section 552.123 – Exception: Name of Applicant for Chief Executive Officer of Institution of Higher Education (excepting applicant names and identifying information from public disclosure but requiring notice of name or names of finalists at least 21 days before meeting at which final action is to be taken)
Texas Education Code Section 51.913 – Executive Search Committees
General Appropriations Act
5. Relevant System Policies, Procedures, and Forms
None
6. System Administration Office(s) Responsible for Rule
Office of Academic Affairs
Office of Health Affairs
