January 25, 2007 | Read Time: 2 minutes
A sweeping set of guidelines aimed at improving the accountability of college and university governing boards was approved last week by a Washington group that represents higher-education trustees.
The Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges says the guidelines are the result of growing public pressure to tighten ethical standards for the bodies that oversee higher-education institutions. That pressure stems, in part, from recent controversies at colleges and universities over conflicts of interest, executive compensation, and financial oversight — controversies that have prompted increased scrutiny by Congressional committees and state regulators.
“We are hoping policy makers realize that it’s not for a lack of law and regulation, but it’s a matter of increased awareness and education among nonprofit boards,” said Richard D. Legon, the president of the the association.
With that in mind, his group spent more than six months drafting a 20-page document that spells out policies and practices boards should consider as they make decisions about their institutions’ finances and educational quality. It also prescribes proper policies for hiring, assessing the performance of, and establishing compensation packages for college presidents.
The guidelines, for example, recommend that new board members attend comprehensive orientation that focuses on their duties and covers their ethical responsibilities. They also say boards should conduct candid annual assessments of the president’s performance and schedule intensive and systematic reviews of performance every three to five years.
Those policies follow the recent controversy at American University over the severance pay and compensation package for the institution’s former president, Benjamin Ladner.
But while news of American University’s struggles are fresh, Mr. Legon says the document has a broader aim. He says college boards need to think about and improve their governance practices at a time when businesses and other nonprofits are increasingly aware of the importance of reinforcing ethical board behavior.
“Some boards are going to need [these guidelines] more than others. But I do think this will be useful contextually as a set of guidelines and principles,” Mr. Legon says. “This is such a voluntary sector that educating boards on an ongoing basis is always helpful.”
Copies of the report are available online. Printed copies are available free by sending an e-mail message to matts@agb.org.
