A University policy is defined as any policy that meets all of the following criteria:

• has broad application or impact throughout the University across colleges, schools, institutes and/or operating units, including policies whose subject matter or budgetary impact requires review and approval;
• seeks to ensure compliance with applicable laws, ethical norms, accepted best practices, promotion of operational efficiencies, enhancement of the University’s mission, and/or reduction of institutional risks; and
• mandates or constrains actions.

Employees engaged in developing University policies must follow the requirements outlined in The University of Alabama Policy Development and Management Policy for drafting, approving, and amending University policies.

Our University policies are meant to guide and enable our community members to uphold The University of Alabama’s values and expectations.

It is a goal of the Office of Compliance, Ethics and Regulatory Affairs to assist UA faculty, students, staff, volunteers and visitors understand and follow the many laws, regulations, policies and procedures that the University has implemented.

The University of Alabama has adopted PolicyStat as the primary policy management system for our university.  This system is used to collaboratively edit policy documents while ensuring that policy versions are captured and approvals are appropriately documented.

Per the Policy Development and Management Policy, the University policy coordinator is housed in the Office of Compliance, Ethics, and Regulatory Affairs, and is responsible for:

• Coordinating the review and approval process for policies from all divisions.
• Managing the policy document library.
• Ensuring that all University Policies are posted appropriately.
• Serving as the campus designees for policy review under Board Rule 108.

As the administrator of the UA Policy Management System, the University policy coordinator also assists in reviewing proposed policy drafts to ensure that there are no conflicts with existing policies or board rules, the language is clear, and the formatting meets University standards.

Contact the University policy coordinator for assistance with drafting new policies, revising existing policies, or to learn more about the policy approval process.

Contact: Kathy Brunot, policies@ua.edu, 205.348.9822

The Policy Advisory Review Committee (PARC) assists with policy review and advising. Membership will include the divisional Policy Contacts, with a representative from the Office of Counsel serving in an advisory role. Other individuals may be added to the PARC based upon recommendations to the President by an Executive Administrator. The PARC's role is to ensure that each policy is written clearly and does not conflict with other University Policy.

The Policy Contact for each academic unit (1) serves as the primary contact for policies within their college or unit, 2) acts as the liaison to the staff of their college or unit regarding the process for creating and revising policies, 3) ensures proposed policies or revisions are routed to the Policy Coordinator.

• Annual Policy Review Procedures
• How to Revise a Policy
• Creating a New Policy
• Managing Notification Preferences