Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 80.87
Liaison Megan Butler
Submission Date Jan. 26, 2024

STARS v2.2

Macalester College
PA-3: Inclusive and Participatory Governance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.75 / 3.00 Patricia Langer
Vice President of Administration and Finance and CFO
Administration and Finance
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Shared governance bodies

Does the institution have formal participatory or shared governance bodies through which the following stakeholders can regularly participate in the governance of the institution?:
Yes or No
Students Yes
Academic staff Yes
Non-academic staff Yes

A brief description of the institution’s formal participatory or shared governance bodies:
Students can run as class representatives or for executive positions in MCSG (Macalester College Student Government). Furthermore, all MCSG members are appointed to different subcommittees. MCSG appoints student members to faculty, standing, and trustee committees.

Student representatives sit on most Board committees. The representatives for each Board committee are selected by Macalester College Student Government leaders. Students submit applications; finalists are interviewed by students and one is chosen for each seat.

The college has a Student Liaison to the Board of Trustees that rotates each year. The proposed student is vetted by a student committee chaired by the sitting Liaison. The President has final approval.

The Staff Advisory Council solicits nominations for staff committee appointments.

All full-time faculty, whether contingent or tenure-track, are eligible to run for committees. Macalester also has a Faculty Advisory Council

Part 2. Campus stakeholder representation in governance

Total number of individuals on the institution’s highest governing body:
31

Number of students representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
1

Number of academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
0

Number of non-academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
1

Part 3. Gender equity in governance

Number of women serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
13

Percentage of official members of the highest governing body that are women:
41.94

Website URL where information about the institution’s highest governing body may be found:

Part 4. Community engagement bodies

Does the institution host or support one or more formal bodies through which external stakeholders have a regular voice in institutional decisions that affect them?:
Yes

A brief description of the campus-community council or equivalent body that gives external stakeholders a regular voice in institutional decisions that affect them:
The High Winds Fund meets quarterly with the commercial businesses around the campus to gain feedback. The staff encourages feedback through an email list of messages that also invite the community to participate in campus activities, where appropriate. Another strategy of the High Winds Fund is to partner closely with the St. Paul Community Councils, a separate quasi-government structure that is utilized by the city to gain community input and involvement. The High Winds Fund provides funding to the two Community Councils where our campus is located and where many of our students live off-campus. The High Winds Fund staff meets monthly with the Executive Directors and participates in committee meetings with neighborhood volunteers on a variety of subjects including sustainability and transportation. This has been a great way to leverage our impact and the feedback that is received from the community in the work of the High Winds Fund. Whenever there is a new development planned on campus (ie a new campus building), Macalester hosts community listening sessions to address concerns and share specific plans with the local community. Additionally, each July the High Winds Fund hosts a neighborhood appreciation party, which is another place they solicit feedback.

Optional Fields 

Number of people from underrepresented groups serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body.:
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Website URL where information about the institution’s governance structure is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.