University policies result from several groups of decision makers interacting in complex ways, both formal and informal. These groups include the Board of Trustees; the President and the university administration; elected committees of the campus governance system; the corporate faculty and the boards that report to it; the Provost and Dean of the Faculty and the Dean’s Advisory Council (DAC); the academic departments and programs, which report to the DAC through division directors; and the Student Senate.
The Constitution of the Colgate Governance System was formally adopted by the faculty on April 16, 1979. The major components of the system include an Academic Affairs Board and a Student Affairs Board, on which faculty, students, and administrators sit; a Conference Board, which may be called into existence by the President when the occasion warrants; Liaison Committees in five defined areas; and, in extraordinary circumstances, special Task Forces appointed by the President of the University.1