The Rockaway College Concept Paper: Addendum-Administrative Governance

Democratic Education is all about individual responsibility in knowledge acquisition and collective responsibility in the operation of the learning community.  Thus, it follows that administrative governance should be a collective responsibility.  There are essentially two ways that happens: 1) administrative duties are integrated with instructional duties for the professional staff; 2) all administrative decisions are a school community responsibility to be proposed and resolved by way of school democratic meetings.  While policy governance is a program, school and institution-wide community obligation in the Rockaway College Concept, administrative governance remains the prerogative of the professional staff. 

Therefore, one would expect administrative duties to be portioned among the professional staffs of each of the two units of Rockaway College making the staffs collectively responsible for the construction, maintenance and operation of each unit.  And certainly, that would be the way in the instructional programs with processing, collecting and storing of student records, although such record keeping should be centralized in a “Records Office” for easy access of post residency requests and kept by individual staff as ready access demonstration of student performance and advancement, and as certain when it comes to instructional program capital and operating budget development and priority expenditures as the folks who are directly working the leaning systems with the youngsters this institution is serving know best what’s needed to make it all work in favor of their students. However, there is a great need with the limited funding anticipated in any such school to coordinate the inflow and outgo of money which is doubtful a decentralized administrative arrangement can suitably accomplish.  Thus, purchase ordering and disbursement of funds for the instructional programs would be centralized within an institutional-wide officer know as a “Business Manager”, although common sense suggests some immediate program needs require ready cash which would be available in a program petty cash account overseen collectively by the program staff and the lead unit administrator.

There are intended to be institution-wide ancillary support services such as IT/Library, Facilities and Grounds, Commons, and even Athletics requiring budgetary processes independent from the instructional programs.  Certainly staff within each support service would collaborate in budget development and priority expenditure. And like the instructional programs, purchase ordering and funds' disbursement for the needs of these supports would be centralized within the Business Manager’s office. And petty cash accounts would be set up here as well.

Other collective business duties such as donation and fundraising collection, registration in and tuition payments to the school, scholarship award management, payroll, insurance-both individual staff and school organization-and other benefit package obligations of all staff would be centralized within the Business Manger’s office.  While it may be of benefit in the future to establish a separate Records Officer supervised by a Records Manager, this paper currently places the centralized student records in the Business Office.

Coordination of administrative activity within each College unit would be fixed in lead administrators known as “Heads of School”.  The Heads of School facilitate the business side of the enterprise along with fulfilling daily supervisory and instructional responsibilities.  They are to see to the smooth operation of the management processes rather than as a strict overseer of obligation.  Rockaway College School and Rockaway College would each have a Head of School.

There is to be an institution-wide lead administrator known as the College Director which presently is the position of Project Director.  As the components of the institution become operational the Project Director would assume College Director duties until the institution is fully built out, at which time the title of Project Director would no longer apply or exist.

Under anticipated funding constraints the Heads of School and the Project/College Director would be obliged to accept instructional responsibilities along with lead administrator duties.  Admittedly, the close nature of the relationships of student to staff necessary for these unique environments to work to favor the population of this institution would place a greater burden on the lead administrators than if they were left just to manage.  And, surely at the earliest moment when funding allows, these managers will be relieved of instructional duties so they can dedicate themselves to the business of the school.

Coordinated administration for the institution as a whole would be vested in a “Head’s Council”.  The Council, comprised of the Head of Rockaway College School, the Head of Rockaway College and the Project/College Director would collaborate to see to the full compliance with appropriate and lawful practice concerning regulation, health, safety and business, to work with each program and general school community to assure policy governance continuity over time and to assure general learning environments and individual learning structures continuously align with the mission of the institution and the neuro-diversity of the student population, to coordinate facilities management and institution-wide budget development, to oversee the disposition and reconciliation of individual school component budget statements and accounts, to be the communication conduit to the Board of Trustees from the school communities, to work with Board of Trustees to secure the funding to satisfy both the business and the educational program needs of the institution, to be responsible for external relations, and for coordinating student recruitment. 

Management of student admissions would rest in the Head of whatever School to which a youngster applies.  But, the decision to accept or reject rests with the Head’s Council.  Management of the student scholarship application process would rest in the Head of whatever School to which the youngster requesting scholarship is registering.  But, scholarship decisions would be the sole responsibility of the Head’s Council.  Management of the instructional staff application process would rest in the Head of whatever School is recruiting.  But, the decision to accept or reject applications rests with the Head’s Council.  Management of the application processes to the ancillary support services rests with the Project/College Director.  But, the decision to accept or reject applications rests with the Head’s Council.  While the Board of Trustees officially extents acceptance into the school community, the actual decision on applications would rest entirely with the Head’s Council.

Additionally, the Head’s Council has student discipline duties.  A four step process is established within each program to provide social control over errant individual behavior.  Step one is an intervention of a peer ombudsman who takes the offender and anyone so offended through an informal resolution process.  If the errand behavior continues, step two would institute formal peer mediation along with an enhanced counseling from the mentors whose students are involved.  If these fail to remedy the situation, step three would bring the problem before the Morning Meeting of the program where the offense exists.  When all else has failed, step four brings the offending youngster, or youngsters, to be counseled by Head of School wherein the problem behavior resides.  Behavioral correction is structured through peer intervention and counseling without recourse to such punitive actions as involuntary community service, suspension, or dismissal. But, unfortunately, there may be times when errant behaviors are beyond the ability of corrective structures to abate.  Such as involuntary community service may be recommended, decided upon and accepted by the offending individual or individuals during a community meeting, but severe disciplinary actions such as suspension and dismissal from school can only be recommended by a Head of School in which the offense occurred and decided upon and enforced by the Head’s Council. 

General School Communities’ or General College Community’s recommendations of modifications of administrative governance to operate the institution more efficiently, especially, at lesser expense would be generously undertaken at any time by a necessary sensitive Head’s Council.

If either unit decides in General School Meetings to include their students in otherwise proscribed administrative governance, they may do so using what may be termed “administrative internships” where individually interested students assist staff in satisfying administrative duties.