50: Temporary Administrative Governance

Revised: April 2009

In this section, "department" means any basic unit of the university (department, program, center, school, institute, etc.) and "chair" means the administrator of that unit.

Temporary Administrative Governance (TAG) is an intervention restricted to circumstances in which a department:

• Is not meeting its primary mission with regard to creative activities, research, teaching, and/or service; or
• Is not providing its faculty, graduate students, or undergraduates an environment conducive to meeting their expected potential.

Examples of conditions within the department that would justify TAG could include one or more of the following (not intended to characterize a complete set of circumstances):

• There is significant conflict among faculty of the department that is pervasive and cannot be resolved by the current chair;
• No internal change in leadership is deemed likely to remedy the situation;
• The chair vacates the position with no replacement chair acceptable to the department and the dean;
• An external program review recommends change in leadership and there is no candidate for chair acceptable to the department and the dean;
• Significant conflicts exist between the chair and the faculty of the department.

Procedures for Initiating TAG

TAG is an intervention of last resort and is initiated only after these actions have occurred:

• The executive vice president & provost and dean have informed department faculty that TAG is being considered, and have met with department faculty to discuss the matter with a view to resolving it and thereby avoiding TAG; and
• If the executive vice president & provost and dean subsequently decide to proceed with TAG, the dean shall submit a written explanation for initiating TAG to the Faculty Senate Executive Board and to the faculty of the department. That explanation shall include:

a. The date the executive vice president & provost and the dean met with department faculty to discuss TAG;
b. Specific reasons for initiating TAG; and
c. Specific criteria on which the department shall be judged in order to exit TAG.

The role of the Executive Board in reviewing the need to initiate TAG is to ensure that the conversation between the executive vice president & provost, the dean, and the department has occurred and that the written explanation of the reasons for initiating TAG and the criteria for exiting it are clearly stated.

Once the above steps have been completed, the executive vice president & provost shall provide the president all pertinent information regarding the need to initiate TAG of the department, as well as the criteria the department must meet to exit it. The decision to initiate TAG of the department rests with the president.

Procedures for Extending or Terminating TAG

At the end of each year the department remains in TAG, the executive vice president & provost and the dean shall conduct an annual review of the department. Each such review shall note specific progress made and any deficiencies found.

If the review recommends terminating TAG, it shall be forwarded to the president for a decision, with copies provided to the Faculty Senate Executive Board and the department.

If the review recommends extending TAG another year, it shall include specific reasons for doing so, and the specific criteria the department must meet to exit TAG. Each such review, together with the executive vice president & provost's decision, shall be forwarded to the Faculty Senate Executive Board and the department. The decision to extend TAG another year rests with the executive vice president & provost.

The executive vice president & provost and the dean may recommend termination of TAG at any time. Any such recommendation shall be forwarded to the president, the Faculty Senate Executive Board, and the department. The decision to terminate TAG of the department rests with the president.

Independent Assessment of TAG

If, at any time after an annual review of the department, a majority of the voting faculty of the department objects to remaining under TAG, then the Faculty Senate Executive Board or a committee appointed by it shall make an independent assessment of the department. That assessment will consider the executive vice president & provost and the dean's prior annual review(s) and the previously written criteria for exiting TAG, as well as any comments department faculty may provide the Faculty Senate Executive Board or its committee about the matter. If the Faculty Senate Executive Board or its committee recommends continuing TAG, it will forward its recommendation to the executive vice president & provost, the dean, and the department. If it recommends terminating TAG, it will forward its recommendation to the president for a decision, with copies of the recommendation provided to the executive vice president & provost, dean, and the department. The decision to continue or terminate TAG rests with the president.

Implementation of TAG

The person appointed by the president to administer TAG of the department shall be a tenured member of the university faculty who is not a member of the department, and whose role statement shall be adjusted to reflect the requisite administrative duties. Once a department is under TAG, the department's bylaws are suspended. The NSHE Code, the University Bylaws, and the department's major unit's bylaws shall remain in effect. TAG is not by itself a grievable condition.