Governance

Under Regulation 34/03 of the Act, the Council is responsible for the appointment of external governors to each of the college boards. There may be 12 to 20 external governors as long as the total is an even number. Four governors are elected from within the college representing students, academic, administrative and support staff. The college president is an ex-officio member of the board.

Nominated by the colleges, external members are candidates who have the skill and experience to assist boards in achieving their strategic direction.

Board members are appointed by the Council for a three-year term and are eligible for reappointment to a second three-year term. A member may serve a maximum of six consecutive years.

Protocol for Board Nominations and Appointments
This protocol was issued in 2003 and contains information on the roles and responsibilities of a board of governors, guides the nomination and appointment process and offers advice on effective governance.

Governors Resource Manual
This Manual provides information and resources to assist with key roles and responsibilities; outlines the legislation and regulation under which boards operate; and other pertinent information.

Enhancing Governance and Accountability Capacity
This report emanated from a 2005 project undertaken by the Council, Colleges Ontario (formerly ACAATO) and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. A survey of governance and accountability capacity within the colleges was conducted with a view to supporting and enhancing governance and accountability.

The Board Chair and President Relationship
College board chairs have periodically raised questions and expressed interest to the Council in knowing more about how other chairs carry out their role; others have indicated that a guide could be useful to new chairs or those contemplating taking on the role. These requests, as well as articles and reports emphasizing the centrality of the chair-president relationship to organizational success, were the impetus to the Council's development of this Guide "The Board Chair and President Relationship."

College External Board Members Recruitment Review
The Council undertook a review of board recruitment practices in late 2008. Our objectives were to understand how college boards recruit members, share best practices with the system and dentify challenges as well as possible areas for future research.
We contracted Strategic Leverage Partners Inc. to conduct the project to ensure objectivity and confidentiality of the findings. As you will see, findings confirmed that Ontario colleges are well governed.