Delegation of the President’s Authority (V.B.5)

Volume V: Governance
Chapter B: Governance
Responsible Executive: President
Responsible Office: Office of the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance
Date Issued: January 1, 2013
Date Last Revised: May 1, 2023

Contacts
Statement of Policy
Reason for This Policy
Individuals and Entities Affected
Exclusions
Responsibilities
Definitions (defined terms are capitalized throughout the document)
Related Documents, Forms and Tools
Website Address for This Policy
History and Updates
Appendix

Contacts

Policy Clarification

Vice President for Ethics and Compliance
765-494-5830 | vpec@purdue.edu

Statement of Policy

The Board of Trustees, which by law is granted all powers and responsibility for the operation and management of the University, has in turn made specific delegations of authority to the President.

The President of the University is the chief executive officer of the University system and, subject to the control of the Board, manages, directs and is responsible for the conduct of all the affairs of the University system. The President is assisted by a number of administrative officers and by this policy, and makes assignment of specific administrative responsibilities to positions reporting directly to the President.

The following authorities are retained by the President:
1. All matters involving the Board, except those assigned to the Treasurer or other officers of Purdue University by either federal or state statute, regulations or policies of the Board.
2. All matters requiring a recommendation from the President to the Board for approval or ratification, including, but not limited to:
  1. University budgets.
  2. Appointment actions for senior academic and administrative positions, including chancellors, vice presidents, Director of Audits, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Head Coaches of Football and Men’s and Women’s Basketball.
  3. Appointment of distinguished professors, named professorships, endowed professorships and faculty promotions as a group.
3. Approval of appointments and employment actions for positions reporting directly to the executive officers who are direct reports to the President, other than those positions requiring approval by the Board as noted in B2 above.
4. All matters related to the development and implementation of the University strategic plan.
5. All matters related to Purdue Applied Research Institute.
6. All matters related to the Purdue for Life Foundation.
7. All matters related to Purdue International, Inc.
8. All matters related to the Purdue Research Foundation.
9. All matters related to Purdue University Global.
10. All matters related to the Ross-Ade Foundation.
11. Assignment of the above authorities and delegation of other duties to vice presidents and chancellors for assistance as deemed necessary.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs to assist and act for the President:
1. Chief academic officer for the University system with the authority to perform the duties usually attached to that office and as may be prescribed by federal or state statute, regulations or policies of the Board, and the President of the University.
2. University system responsibility for all academic matters, including graduate education and continuing education.
3. Responsibility for the following on the West Lafayette campus:
  1. Instruction and learning mission, including undergraduate instruction, distance education, study abroad and related support responsibilities (e.g., student services, student housing and food services, libraries and international programs).
  2. Extension and engagement mission in collaboration with the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer and the Office of the President.
  3. Faculty and faculty affairs, including recruitment, retention, promotion and tenure.
  4. Research faculty affairs in collaboration with the Executive Vice President for Research.
4. Responsibility for curricular and faculty affairs on the Regional Campuses and at Purdue University in Indianapolis.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer to assist and act for the President:
1. Chief financial and operating officer for the University system with the authority to perform the duties usually attached to that office and as may be prescribed by federal or state statute, regulations or policies of the Board, and the President of the University.
2. Receive, take charge of and manage all securities, properties and funds, including trust funds, belonging to Purdue University.
3. Business services, including all financial activities related to budgets, accounting, collections, purchasing, payroll, contracts and grants.
4. Investment strategy and treasury functions, including building and construction financing.
5. Internal audit, except those duties assigned by either state statute or by the Board.
6. Human resource services, including employment, salary administration, benefits and employee relations.
7. Financial relationships with corporations affiliated with Purdue University.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Executive Vice President for Research to assist and act for the President:
1. Chief research officer for the University system.
2. Research mission through support and collaboration with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Diversity and the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
3. Relationships with granting agencies.
4. Sponsored programs in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
5. Research faculty in collaboration with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.
6. Administration of all programs, centers and institutes within Discovery Park in collaboration with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Diversity and the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
7. Research-related policies and compliance in collaboration with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance.
8. Technology transfer in coordination with the Purdue Research Foundation.
9. Applied research activities in coordination with Purdue Applied Research Institute, LLC.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer to assist and act for the President:
1. Relevant matters related to the engagement mission in collaboration with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs.
2. Marketing and media, including community and public relations activities and University news services.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Senior Vice President for Administrative Operations to assist and act for the President:
1. Physical facilities, including on- and off-campus grounds and facilities, utilities, renovations and construction.
2. System-wide campus safety and security.
3. Space management for the West Lafayette campus, including the assignment of new and remodeled facilities to serve campus space needs, in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer and the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Diversity.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Senior Vice President for Partnerships to assist and act for the President:
1. Establishment and fostering of government, industry and foundation relationships to support the University’s strategic research and development, manufacturing, education, and infrastructure initiatives in coordination with the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Executive Vice President for Research, Purdue Applied Research Institute, Purdue for Life Foundation and Purdue Research Foundation.
2. Identification and vetting of public-private partnership opportunities in the Discovery Park District in coordination with the Executive Vice President for Research, Purdue Applied Research Institute, Purdue for Life Foundation and Purdue Research Foundation.
3. Global affairs programs in coordination with Purdue International, Inc.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Senior Vice President for Purdue University Online to assist and act for the President.
1. The Purdue University Online business model in support of the University’s learning mission.
2. Approval of the non-academic component of all online courses and programs, both credit and non-credit, in collaboration with the Chancellors, as applicable.
3. Administration and delivery of all online education offerings, both credit and non-credit, for the University.
4. Vendor engagement for online education, including all equipment, software and services related to developing and delivering online courses and programs.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance to assist and act for the President:
1. Chief ethics and compliance officer, equal opportunity officer and Title IX officer for the University system and related duties as assigned by federal or state statute, regulations or policies of the Board, or by the President of the University.
2. Ethics and compliance programs.
3. Affirmative action programs.
4. University System policies, including review, integration and process management.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Vice President for Information Technology to assist and act for the President, while reporting to the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer:
1. Chief information officer for the University system.
2. Information assurance and security of information technology systems in collaboration with the Chancellors.
3. Purchase or acquisition of all equipment, software and services related to IT in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics to assist and act for the President:
1. All matters related to intercollegiate athletics on the West Lafayette campus.’
2. Big Ten and NCAA compliance relating to the West Lafayette campus in collaboration with the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to the Chancellor of each Regional Campus to assist and act for the President:
1. Chief executive officer for each of the Regional Campuses.
2. All matters related to intercollegiate athletics, including compliance with NCAA (or other governing body) and athletic conference rules, with respect to the Regional Campus.
The following assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are hereby delegated to General Counsel to assist and act for the President, except for such duties as may be assigned directly by the Board:
1. Chief legal officer for the University system.
2. Management and oversight of the University’s legal function.
3. Delivery of legal services to the University, including internal legal support and procurement of legal services by external providers.
4. Review of University System policies in collaboration with the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance, including comprehensive review of existing policies and policy-making process.
The following general assignments of administrative authority and responsibility are delegated to the officers who report directly to the President for their specific areas of organizational responsibility:
1. Programmatic mission and responsibilities of organizational units.
2. Budget development and management in accordance with Purdue University policy and guidelines and all applicable statutes in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
3. Employment and appointment actions for all staff, other than direct reports, in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.
4. All other operational duties related to the management of the areas of responsibility including, but not limited to, salary and travel in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer.

Any changes, temporary or permanent, in the delegations of authority and responsibility to members of the executive staff of the University as set forth in this policy must have advance written approval from the President.

Authority and responsibility may be further delegated in accordance with the procedures for Managing Delegations of Authority.

Reason for This Policy

This policy delegates specific administrative responsibilities to members of the executive staff of the University.

Individuals and Entities Affected

President
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
Executive Vice President for Research
Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer
Senior Vice President for Administrative Operations
Senior Vice President for Partnerships
Senior Vice President for Purdue University Online
Vice President for Ethics and Compliance
Vice President for Information Technology
Director of Intercollegiate Athletics
Chancellors
General Counsel

Exclusions

There are no exclusions to this policy.

Responsibilities

Each officer named in this policy is responsible for carrying out their duties as assigned in this policy.

Definitions

All defined terms are capitalized throughout the document. Terms may be found in the central Policy Glossary.

Website Address for This Policy

www.purdue.edu/vpec/policies/governance/vb5

History and Updates

May 1, 2023: Moved responsibilities for Purdue University Online from section II to section VIII. Moved responsibilities for global affairs programs from section IV to section VII. Updated position titles throughout.

April 8, 2022: Title in section VIII of the Statement of Policy updated to Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer.

August 1, 2021: Added Purdue Applied Research Institute, Purdue for Life Foundation and Purdue University Global to list of authorities retained by the President. Moved responsibilities for Senior Vice President for Purdue Online under the Provost. Added applied research to the Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships entry. Updated the title under item VIII. Memorialized reporting relationship of Vice President for Information Technology to Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Added entries for Senior Vice President for Administrative Operations and Executive Vice President for Strategic Initiatives.

January 1, 2019: Changed title and updated responsibilities for Vice President for Public Affairs (now Executive Vice President for Communication). Added responsibilities for Executive Vice President for Purdue Online. Changed Legal Counsel to General Counsel.

January 29, 2018: Updated title for Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Diversity.

June 19, 2014: Title of Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships updated and responsibility for global affairs programs added. References to Purdue Foundation changed to Purdue International, Inc., throughout.

June 1, 2014: Title of Executive Vice President of Business and Finance and Treasurer changed in accordance with action taken by the Board on April 4, 2014. Delegation to Vice President for Development removed in accordance with action taken by the Board on November 1, 2013. Updates to section I.B reflect action taken by the Board on July 19, 2013. Authority for academic space management and student housing on the West Lafayette campus moved and campus safety and security added. Link to procedures for Managing Delegations of Authority added. Policy reformatted into current template.

November 1, 2013: Assignments to the Vice President for Information Technology added. Assignment of marketing and media responsibilities reassigned to the Vice President for Public Affairs.

March 22, 2013: Assignments to Legal Counsel to the University added.

January 1, 2013: This policy supersedes Executive Memorandum No. C-10, Delegation of Administrative Authority and Responsibility to Officers Reporting to the President of the University, dated July 31, 1987.

Appendix

There are no appendices to this policy.