What is Governance?
Governance involves how policies, practices or procedures are established to guide the operation of the college. Participatory governance is a collaborative goal-setting and problem-solving process built on trust and communication that involves representatives from appropriate constituent groups who engage in open discussion and timely decision-making.
Those who will be impacted, and those who hold responsibility, are invited into a process in which decisions are made through shared leadership that actively seeks consensus on the best way forward with respect to any given issue or opportunity. By seeking general agreement (consensus) rather than majority opinion, the College is able to maximize institutional effectiveness while fostering a continuing culture of participatory governance and shared leadership. The purpose of governance is to achieve valued outputs which are strategies, solutions, and/or recommendations that advance ARC in the direction of maximizing institutional effectiveness. Valued outputs are achieved through participation and dialogue.
ARC’s Institutional Governance Online Repository (IGOR) is where agendas, meeting notes, membership rosters, and other governance documents are stored. Anyone in the college community can view the details of recent governance activity via IGOR.
The governance structure has an Executive tier which is made up of the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and the President’s Executive staff (PES). These groups review and consider recommendations from the three chartered councils: Institutional Effectiveness (IEC), Operations Council (OC), and Student Success Council (SSC).
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Executive Leadership Team (ELT) |
Through collaborative consultation with the PES, provides oversight and guidance for council and project team charters; makes final recommendations to the President; provides ongoing accountability for councils and strategic project implementation; and ensures transparent communications to/from all governance and constituency groups |
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President’s Executive Staff (PES) |
Provides strategic direction and final decision making for all governance and strategic project implementation processes; supports the charters established by ELT with councils and project teams |
College President, Vice-Presidents, and Dean of PRT |
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Institutional Effectiveness Council (IEC) |
Provides coordination for integrated planning; informs research and decision support; integrates and coordinates institutional professional development; supports governance and accreditation to maximize institutional effectiveness; sponsors project teams |
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Operations Council (OC) |
Conducts planning, problem solving, and oversight for essential ARC operations and facilities functions including budget, capital improvements, technology, public safety, maintenance and similar; responds to support requests from the Student Success Council; sponsors project teams |
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Student Success Council (SSC) |
Develops and implements the Student Success Strategic Action Framework; sponsors project teams; identifies and communicates cross-functional Operations Council support needs; provides an effective process for leadership development for constituency participants; a critical focus is on leading change and engaging the college community effectively in support of student success outcomes |
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Participation
How are projects initiated?
Projects are sponsored by one of the councils, recommended by the ELT, and authorized by the ARC President. Please see the Project Initiation Flowchart for details. Project initiation usually happens each spring to identify and authorize projects for the upcoming academic year. In some cases, a project may be initiated in an expedited manner at a different time of year to allow ARC to be responsive and agile.
How are project team members selected?
The College President, in consultation with ELT, designates the Project Steward (aka project manager), Project Leads, and the expected composition of the team. Positions may be designated for potential inclusion based on role and responsibilities. The President indicates the number of representative appointments needed and individual appointments are determined according to the processes established by each constituent groups' representative body.
How do I get involved?
If you are interested in an upcoming project, please contact the leadership of your constituency to let them know that you would like to participate.
What can I expect?
Projects follow a predictable trajectory that begins with project initiation and progresses through project steps. The team is assigned work to complete in the project charter. The team works together on the deliverables which are submitted (delivered) to their sponsoring council.
Constituency group representing bodies assign representatives to councils and workgroups to ensure diversity and equity in addressing strategic ARC governance needs; addresses professional development needs of constituents; provides for ad hoc participation in meetings to deliberate issues not addressed elsewhere; operates in accordance with California Education Code, Title 5 Regulations, and Los Rios Board Policy. Visit constituency groups:
Constituency Group For Faculty
Constituency Group For Students
Constituency Group For Classified Staff
Management also acts as a constituency group and convenes as the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and Administrative Leadership Council (ALC).
Calendar and Meeting Schedule Overview
Scheduling Overview
Project meetings must be scheduled during open time blocks that do not overlap with existing governance group meetings.
For more information or Zoom links, please contact Amanda Lewis at lewisa@arc.losrios.edu.
The information below indicates the distribution of ARC governance meetings based on the regular schedule. The information is not based on weeks within the month, but rather the first occurrence of a particular day (e.g., first Wednesday).
Governance groups strive to keep to a regular meeting schedule as follows:
Academic Senate
- 2nd & 4th Thursday, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm
- ARC Board Room or Zoom
Associated Student Body (Student Senate)
- Fridays, 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
- ARC Board Room
Classified Senate
- 2nd Wednesday, 11:30 am to 1:00 pm
- ARC Board Room or Zoom
Executive Leadership Team
- 1st Monday, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm
- ARC Board Room
Institutional Effectiveness Council
- 4th Monday, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm
- ARC Board Room or Zoom
Operations Council
- 4th Tuesday, 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm
- ARC Board Room or Zoom
- Note: November and December 2026 meetings will be held on the 3rd Tuesday to accommodate holiday schedules.
Student Success Council
- 1st & 3rd Tuesday, 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
- ARC Board Room or Zoom
President’s Cabinet Meeting
- Tuesdays, 2:30 pm to 5:00 pm
- President's Conference Room - Invite Only