G-6-2 College Affairs Committee (CAC)

Updated: 6/6/2023

CHARGE: The purpose of the College Affairs Committee is to function as a forum for College-wide issues and to manage the consensus-building process for key issues and functions of the College.

Additionally, the College Affairs Committee is responsible for administrating and awarding the Louis B. Bart Queary Lifetime Achievement in Higher Education Award (see G-25-0) and approving new or changes to existing course fees.

The College Affairs Committee may initiate studies, accept recommendations from committees or refer matters to other committees. It provides a forum where College-wide concerns and opportunities can be reviewed by all constituencies.

The committee acts as a sounding board for the COCC president, helping both to stay abreast of current campus issues and to get input from a cross-section of the campus.

All members of the Committee (except the Board member) are voting members* and recommendations of the Committee are recommendations to the President.

Appointments shall be made annually with staggered two-year terms unless specified by a position (i.e., Faculty Forum Executive Committee Member). Student appointments may be made quarterly to maximize attendance and to accommodate schedules. During the last CAC meeting of the Academic Year, an election will take place to determine the chair of CAC for the following academic year. Nominees are to be current CAC members who will be on the CAC the following academic year.

Membership, Voting Status and Terms

Administrator (2) Appointment by the President Voting Two years

Any Faculty Forum Executive Committee Member

Automatic Non-Voting One year
Faculty Member At-Large Elected by Faculty Forum Voting Two years
Faculty Member At-Large Elected by Faculty Forum Voting Two years
President of the Classified Association (or designee) Automatic Voting Two years
Classified Staff

Selected by CACOCC President or designee

Voting Two years
ASCOCC Representative ASCOCC President Voting One year
Student (At-Large) Representative

Appointed by ASCOCC Student Council

Voting One year, but may be appointed quarterly as needed
COCC Board Member

Appointed by COCC Board of Directors

Non-Voting Two years

*With the exception of voting for Louis B. Bart Queary Lifetime Achievement in Higher Education Award recipients where only voting members who are also College employees participate in the vote.

Committee Process:

All presenters will need to complete a Presentation/Proposal Form (found on the College Affairs website), and e-mail it to the College Affairs Chair and the Committee Specialist for College Affairs no later than the Friday prior to the scheduled College Affairs meeting. Please consult the Instructions for Completing the Presentation/Proposal Form, as a reference for completing the Presentation/Proposal Form (also found on the College Affairs website).

Types of items on the Presentation/Proposal Form:

  • Information Items
    • Presenters may simply want advisory input or to notify the committee of campus discussions. It is recommended presenters fill out the Presentation/Proposal Form (found on the College Affairs website) to facilitate the discussion. These presentations do not require a decision by the committee. In these situations, the Committee may advise and/or approve support, but no first or second reading is required. These situations will be noted in the Minutes. Information Items are subject to the approval of the College Affairs Chair and if presentations include issues not relevant to College Affairs, presenters will be referred to appropriate campus resources, including other committees.
  • Action Items: Presenters are required to complete the Presentation/Proposal Form (found on the College Affairs website). Presenters should plan on attending at least one College Affairs meeting to be available for questions from Committee Members. Action Items may receive any of the following options:
    • Approve the proposal as submitted
    • Approve an amended proposal
    • Vote against a proposal
    • Create a task force, change the membership of a taskforce, and/or modify the task given to a task force.

Approval of Presentation/Proposals

Final approval and communication of Actions and Recommendations of the College Affairs Committee shall be subject to the policies defined in G-6-1.3 and G-6-1.4.

Items and information added to the General Procedure Manual due to state and/or federal mandates and typographical corrections may be approved by College Affairs without requiring a first and second reading. A second reading will not be waived if the first reading vote is not unanimous. In these instances, College Affairs will function to review and clarify language and to facilitate communication of changes to the larger college community.

College Communication

The College Affairs Chair will post agendas to COCC Headlines at least three business days prior to the scheduled meeting. Agendas include topics, first and second readings, action items, and time and location of coming meeting.

Approved minutes will be shared publicly on the College Affairs website.

Any approved substantive change to the General Procedure Manual shall be announced by the College Affairs Chair on COCC Headlines, in addition to announcing to the current presidents of the Faculty Forum, ABS Union, and CACOCC-Classified Association within two weeks of the College President approving the change, in order for them to notify their respective members. The College Affairs Chair shall post a summary of all changes to the General Procedure Manual COCC Headlines each quarter.

College Affairs Committee Website:  https://www.cocc.edu/committees/college-affairs/default.aspx