Policy Administration

Roles and Responsibilities

The Policy Administration Office is responsible for:

1. Establishing an effective policy management process to minimize regulatory risks.
2. Providing an accurate, up-to-date, and useful IHOP resources for faculty and staff.
3. Maintaining consistency and transparency in the policy administration process.
4. Ensuring policies are routinely reviewed every three years.

An individual employed or associated with the Institution may propose a new or amended policy by emailing a Policy Impact Statement form​​​ to the appropriate Responsible Executive and to PolicyAdmin@uthscsa.edu​. View a sample​ Policy Impact Statement form.

Institutional Handbook of Operating Policies (IHOP)

Per IHOP policy 2.1.2 Policy Administration for Handbook of Operating Policies, the Institutional Handbook of Operating Policies (IHOP) is the official repository for University Policies. As such, the University Executive Committee (EC) must approve all new and substantially amended policies prior to the policy being published or republished in the IHOP. All IHOP policies are to follow the established policy template for a consistent format and presentation.

Discretionary Edits to the IHOP

The Institutional Compliance & Privacy Office (ICPO), in consultation with the Responsible Executive for a policy, is authorized to make discretionary (minor) edits to a policy without EC approval. Discretionary edits generally include; formatting, grammar, or punctuation corrections. Other discretionary edits are those that reflect organizational changes or provide added clarity. Such edits may not alter the original intentions of the IHOP Policy.

Overview of the IHOP Revision Process

The four main steps to revise an IHOP policy are initiation, development, approval and implementation. Follow the steps below for an overview of the IHOP revision process.

1. Initiation

• • Determine which of the following IHOP revision type is necessary:
    • new policy development,
    • technical or discretionary edit,
    • substantial revision, or
    • policy retirement; and
  • Identify the Responsible Executive (RE) who will advance and endorse the IHOP policy.

2. Development

• • The RE Submits a Policy Impact Statement form to the ICPO.
  • Developer prepares the draft policy using the approved IHOP policy template.
  • Developer seeks and incorporates feedback from stakeholders.

3. Approval

• • University Councils or Committees approve the draft.
  • Developer submits final draft to ICPO for review.
  • ICPO presents the policy to the Executive Committee (EC) who holds approval authority for new or amended IHOP policies.

4. Implementation

• • ICPO publishes the policy in the IHOP.
  • ICPO works with the RE to communicate policy updates.
  • RE educates and trains faculty, staff, students, or residents, as applicable.