Loyalist College Policy

Policy Number: ACAD 105

Policy Title: Program Advisory Committee

Supersedes Existing Policy? Y

Policy Owner: President’s Office

Associated Procedure: N

Date Last Approved: August 12, 2020
  1. Introduction and Purpose

To establish and guide the operations of Program Advisory Committees (PACs) as directed by the Minister’s Binding Policy Directive: Framework 3.0 for Programs of Instruction (the Ministry of Colleges and Universities (MCU) Framework for Programs of Instruction Directive). This policy is ancillary to the College By-Law 1 15.9 Program Advisory Committees.

  1. Application

This policy applies to all Ontario College credentials offered by Loyalist College and approved by the Credential Validation Service, the Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board and MCU.

  1. Definitions

Programs – a group of related courses leading to a certificate, diploma, advanced diploma, bachelor’s degree, graduate certificate or other credential awarded by the Board of Governors.

  1. Policy Statement
    • 4.1 In accordance with the MCU Framework for Programs of Instruction Directive, a PAC will be established for each program or cluster of related programs offered at the college.
    • 4.2 The PACs provide liaison between the College and relevant business, industry, government and stakeholder groups.
    • 4.3 Program Advisory Committees will meet twice per academic year; additional meetings may be scheduled as appropriate.
    • 4.4 College staff and students may serve as resource persons to the Advisory Committees but have no voting rights, i.e. act as ex-officio members.
    • 4.5 In semesters where PAC members are employed in the college, these members may continue to sit on the PAC, however they are not considered voting members during the period of their employment.
    • 4.6 The PAC’s successful function depends greatly on the contributions and participation of members at meetings, therefore regular attendance is required. The college will review member attendance and continuance on the committee should attendance be sporadic.
    • 4.7 The specific terms of reference for Program Advisory Committees are articulated in Appendix A.
  1. Role of Senior Vice President Academic

The Senior Vice President Academic will:

    • 5.1 Ensure that effective performance requirements are in place in each School of the College to ensure that PACs are created for every program of the College and that they are functioning in accordance with the Ministry Binding Policy Directives.
    • 5.2 Ensure that the President receives a summary report of each PAC’s activities in April of each academic year.
    • 5.3 Provide an annual report to the President, who will present the report to the Board of Governors through the Academic Committee in May of each academic year.
    • 5.4 Coordinate on behalf of the President, an annual meeting with PAC chairs and College Leadership Team to discuss opportunities to build program quality and enhance student learning and satisfaction.
  1. Other Roles and Responsibilities
    • 6.1 President
    • The President is responsible for the overall management and operation of the College. The President ensures that this policy is implemented, and that compliance is monitored through the Senior Vice President Academic. The President approves PAC membership in alignment with this policy and presents PAC recommendations to the Board.
    • 6.2 Deans or Designate
    • Deans or respective manager, in conjunction with Academic Chairs and Program Coordinators, will ensure that PAC meetings are held in accordance with this policy and the associated terms of reference.
  1. Related Documents
  • PAC Agenda Template
  • Minister’s Binding Policy Directive: Framework 3.0 for Programs of Instruction
  • Loyalist College By-Law 1 15.9 Program Advisory Committees
  • Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board Manual for Ontario Colleges.

APPENDIX A

Program Advisory Committee

Terms of Reference

Mandate

Program Advisory Committees (PACs) provide important liaison between the College and business, industry, government and other relevant organizations.

  1. PACs participate in the ongoing review of programs by
  • Advising on consistency with College direction and Strategic Plan.
  • Advising on content currency and revitalization, identifying graduate skill profiles necessary for graduates to be successful.
  • Reviewing the Annual Quality Assurance and Sustainability Report prepared by the program team and making recommendations on potential actions.
  • Providing recommendations to the College on facilities and equipment needs of the program.
  • Advising on external certifications / micro-credentials as appropriate.
  • Identifying future directions and potential areas of growth for the specific business, industry or sector and specifically demand for graduates.
  • Assisting with student recruitment and student experiential learning opportunities.
  • Identifying and developing new programs, or pathways, in response to the needs of the specific business, industry or sector.
  1. PACs are advisory and not administrative or executive in nature and are not in any way responsible for the allocation and utilization of College resources.

Membership

Each PAC must be comprised of a minimum of eight members who are employers, specialists, professionals, community representatives or recent graduates that represent the related field associated with the program or program cluster. PAC members must have relevant backgrounds and experience related to the program or cluster area. The College aims to achieve equitable and inclusive representation in its PAC membership. PAC members are appointed for a three-year term, renewable once if no replacement is available from the respective service/ professional area.

Program Advisory Chair

The Chair must be an external member of the Committee, who is elected from the voting members of the PAC. The Chair serves a three-year term, renewable once.

Meetings

PACs will meet twice per academic year; additional meetings may be scheduled as appropriate. It is the responsibility of the Deans to ensure that meetings are scheduled and PAC members are advised of the date, time and logistics at the start of each semester.

Quorum is required to make and vote on motions and is defined as 50% of the voting members. Provisions may be made to accept electronic votes.

Where physical travel to meetings is not feasible, consideration will be given to the use of technology to enable members to attend.

The Chair will set and approve the agenda.

Deans will ensure that minutes are taken at PAC meetings for recording purposes. Meeting materials will be distributed to PAC members through the Office of the Dean.

Reporting

In April of each academic year, the Vice President Academic will prepare and share with the President a summary report of each PAC’s annual report. Annual reports from committee chairs will be submitted to the President in May of each year.  The report will document the activities of the committee over the past year (September to May), and identify priority issues and resolutions that were decided by the committee in addressing the issue(s), and whether or not the committee is satisfied with the outcome of those decisions.  In June of each academic year, the President will present the report to the Board of Governors through the Academic Committee.