B4000.01 Board Information Request

Statement

The Board has the right to receive information regarding College operations in order to perform its duty as an oversight body and make policy decisions. Moreover, individual Trustees have the right to receive information in order to perform their duties as trustees.

These procedures are designed to ensure the Board receives complete, accurate, and consistent information in a timely manner.  Except for situations that are pre-determined and mutually agreed upon by the President and Board, the Board or any individual Trustee will direct information requests to the President.  The President may (in their discretion) direct College employees to respond directly to Board or Trustee requests.

Requests for information are made in two ways:

1. By Board Action/Resolution or
2. By individual Trustees in the performance of their duties as defined by the Illinois Community College Act and the Trustee Roles Board Policy.

Requests for information can be categorized as follows:

1. Existing Information – documents or reports that are already prepared.
2. Customized Information – documents or reports that need to be modified to meet the needs of the Board or a Trustee, which requires staff effort to prepare.
3. New Information – the development of a document or report, to meet the needs of the Board or a Trustee, where data from one or more sources requires significant staff effort to collect and prepare.

The process for Board requests is:

1. By Board action or resolution.
2. If the request is made for existing information, the President will provide the information to the Board as soon as it is practical to do so or within five business days from the properly noticed meeting in which the request was received.
3. If the request is for customized or new information, and deemed reasonable and feasible by mutual consent of the Board and President, the President will provide the Board with a projected timeframe for the completion of the information within five business days from the properly noticed meeting in which the request was received.
4. In the event the President needs additional information from the Board to respond to the Board’s request for customized or new information, the President may contact the Chair for clarification and a revised timeline for completion may be established.
5. In the event unforeseen circumstances arise or changing priorities impact the President’s ability to provide the customized or new information within the agreed upon timeframe, the President will notify the Board and will provide a revised time for completion.
6. The Board may withdraw a request for customized or new information by Board action or resolution at any properly noticed meeting.

The process for individual Trustee requests is:

1. A written request is made to the President.
2. If the request is made for existing information, the President will provide the information to all Trustees as soon as it is practical to do so or within five business days from receipt of the request.
3. If the request is for customized or new information, the President will acknowledge the receipt of the request in writing to all Trustees for the purpose of facilitating transparency and communication among all Trustees.
4. If the request is for customized or new information, and deemed reasonable and feasible by the President, the President will provide the information to all Trustees in a timeframe agreed to by the Trustee and President. If the President decides that the request for customized or new information is not reasonable and/or feasible, the President will direct the requesting Trustee, if they choose to pursue the request, to make the request at the next properly noticed Board meeting so that the Board can have input on the request. In the event unforeseen circumstances arise or changing priorities impact the President’s ability to provide the customized or new information within the agreed upon timeframe, the President will notify all Trustees and will provide a revised time for completion.
5. If the Board deems an individual trustee request for customized or new information is not reasonable and/or feasible, the Board may (at a properly noticed meeting) act to delay, suspend and/or direct the President not to respond to the request.
6. The Trustee may withdraw a request for customized or new information at any time and in writing.

The following guidelines will be observed:

1. Trustee request for information shall be limited to information related to their role as individual trustees as noted in the Trustee Roles policy and shall not use the services of College staff to conduct investigations, perform research, or obtain information for personal purposes.
2. In situations other than those predetermined by the Board and President, if a Trustee contacts an employee for information, the employee will refer the matter to the President or Cabinet-level supervisor. The purpose is to ensure the Trustee receives a timely, accurate, and complete response.