Assessment Process for the Chief Executive and Governing Boards

of the University of North Carolina

Background

In 1996 the Board of Governors adopted an assessment process for chief executives and governing boards of the University. This revision of the assessment policy retains the philosophy that the assessment process should include the Board of Governors and the President as well as the institutional Boards of Trustees and the chancellors. This comprehensive assessment provides an opportunity for the Board of Governors to assess its own work as well as the performance of the President and for the institutional Boards of Trustees to comment to the President about their respective chancellor's performance as well as to review their own progress.

The objectives of these assessment processes are to build and sustain effective relationships within the University’s constituents, to promote consensus building and develop group strength, and to develop strategic directions for achieving the mission of the University and the mission of each constituent institution. Regular and systematic assessments, if conducted properly, will enable the governing boards and the chief executives to fulfill more effectively their respective roles and responsibilities. This process affords the trustees an opportunity to provide information to the President regarding their respective chancellors. Also, this process provides a method for monitoring any potential problems that may require attention.

I. Board of Governors

The Board of Governors should perform a self-assessment every four years, at a time to be determined by the chairperson of the Board of Governors, after consultation with the President. The Board of Governors should review the most recent long range planning document for the University when they begin the assessment process and shall review the goals achieved, the goals unmet, and the goals that need modification. Assessment tools such as those developed for the University of North Carolina in collaboration with the Association of Governing Boards (AGB) Self Study Criteria can be especially helpful in facilitating the goals of the assessment process. The Board of Governors should also review their previous self-assessment summaries. The Chairperson may appoint a committee and may retain an outside consultant to guide the Board in its self-assessment process.

II. Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees of each constituent institution will conduct a self-assessment every four years at a time determined by the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees after consultation with the chancellor and the President. The Board of Trustees should review the most recent institutional long-range planning document and the most recent long-range plan for the University adopted by the Board of Governors. After reviewing the goals achieved, the goals unmet, and the goals that need modification, the Board of Trustees will conduct a self-assessment. A review of these plans should provide the framework for the assessment. Assessment tools such as those developed for the University of North Carolina in collaboration with the Association of Governing Boards (AGB) Self Study Criteria for a Single Campus can be especially helpful in facilitating the goals of the assessment process. The Board of Trustees should also review their previous self-assessment summaries and may find the use of a consultant especially helpful. The chancellor and board chairperson shall submit a summary report to the President and the Board of Governors at the conclusion of the assessment. This report will provide a basis for improving the biennial trustee orientation, the trustee conference held in the fall of odd-numbered years and other programs of continuing education for trustees.

III. The President

The objective of the performance reviews of the President is to promote good communication and build strong working relationships between the President, the Board of Governors and the constituent organizations of The University. It is desirable for the Board of Governors to give informal feedback to the President on an ongoing basis. The more formal assessment of the President is designed to provide focused feedback and the opportunity for professional reflection and development. The performance reviews will be performed in accordance with criteria described below:

1. Every year the President will provide the Board of Governors with a report assessing goals and accomplishments and the Board will review the performance of the President. An assessment committee, consisting of the officers of the Board and the chairs of the Board’s standing committees, will review the report with the President and may prepare a written response, which would be placed in the President’s personnel file along with the President’s report.

2. Every fourth year the annual review for that year will be replaced by a comprehensive assessment that will include the Board, campus chancellors and heads of other University constituent organizations, University officers and staff, faculty, students and other internal and external constituencies. An assessment committee of the Board of Governors in consultation with the President will retain an outside consultant to guide the process, to gather written feedback from the Board, to conduct confidential interviews and to assist the committee in the preparation of a report. The final report along with any response from the President and the President’s report on goals and accomplishments would be placed in the President’s personnel file.

IV. The Chancellors

The objective of the performance reviews of a chancellor is to promote good communication and build strong working relationships between the chancellor and the President, the Board of Trustees and the campus constituents. The assessment of chancellors is designed to provide each chancellor with feedback from each of these and to provide the chancellor with the opportunity for professional reflection and development. The performance reviews of the chancellors will be conducted in accordance with criteria and procedures determined by the President on the following schedule:

1. Every year the chancellor will provide the President with a report assessing goals and accomplishments, a copy of which may be provided to the Board of Trustees. The President will review the performance of the chancellor. The chancellor’s report and any written response from the President will be placed in the chancellor’s personnel file.

2. In the second spring after the appointment of the chancellor, and every four years thereafter, the Board of Trustees will review the performance of the chancellor. An assessment committee of the Board of Trustees will ask each trustee to fill out a questionnaire developed by the President’s office. The results will be shared with the President and reviewed in a meeting of the chancellor, the chair of the Board of Trustees and the President.

3. In the fourth spring after the chancellor’s appointment, and every four years thereafter, the President and the Board of Trustees will conduct a comprehensive review of the chancellor’s performance that will include major campus constituencies such as faculty, students, and staff. The chairperson of the Board of Trustees will appoint an assessment committee. The Chairperson of the Board of Governors may appoint a member of the Governance Committee or another member of the Board of Governors to participate in the assessment. The assessment committee in consultation with the chancellor and the President may retain an outside consultant to guide the process, to gather written feedback from the Board, to conduct confidential interviews and to assist the committee in the preparation of a report. The final report along with any response from the chancellor and the President and will be placed in the chancellor’s personnel file.

For chancellors appointed prior to 2001 who have had a review by the Board of Trustees under the previous assessment policy, the reviews designated in paragraphs 2 and 3 above will be conducted in the spring of years in accordance with the existing biennial and quadrennial schedule.