COMPREHENSIVE STANDARD M3:

           The legal authority and operating control of the institution are clearly defined for the following areas within the institution's governance structure:

a. the institution's mission;

b. the fiscal stability of the institution;

c. institutional policy, including policies concerning related and affiliated corporate entities and all auxiliary services;

d. related foundations (athletic, research, etc.) and other corporate entities whose primary purpose is to support the institution and/or its programs.

STATEMENT OF COMPLIANCE: The Citadel is in compliance with Comprehensive Standard M3.

RATIONALE FOR JUDGMENT OF COMPLIANCE:

a. Legal Authority and Operating Control over The Citadel's Mission

The legal authority for determining The Citadel's institutional mission ultimately resides in the South Carolina state legislature. The legislature exercises its control through the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE), the agency responsible for approving the mission statements of all state-assisted colleges and universities in South Carolina.

The primary internal authority for the mission statement lies with The Citadel's Board of Visitors, which must approve the mission statement and submit it to CHE for ratification at least once every five years.

Operationally, the Board of Visitors depends upon its own Strategic Planning Committee and upon the separate Strategic Planning Committee of the college to work in parallel fashion to prepare a draft for the Board to consider. The President commissions the college's Strategic Planning Committee to study and update the mission statement as necessary and then approves the document (which has already been considered by the Board of Visitors' Strategic Planning Committee) before it is sent to the full Board.

This process last began in January 2002 and ended with CHE approval in June 2003. [See Core Requirement 4.]

 

b.  Legal Authority and Operating Control over The Citadel's Fiscal Stability

The legal authority and operating control over The Citadel's fiscal stability is assigned to The Citadel Board of Visitors by the South Carolina State Legislature [Reference 1].

Operationally, the Board of Visitors depends upon its own "Standing Committee on Finance, Budget, Investments, and Scholarships" and upon the senior administrators of the college to oversee the financial management of the college. The primary responsibilities of this committee include reviewing proposed tuition and fees in advance of the development of the annual operating budget of the college, and recommending adoption of such to the full Board of Visitors; reviewing the proposed annual operating budget of the college in advance of the start of each fiscal year, and recommending approval to the full Board; and, reviewing all proposed expenditures from the various and sundry trust, endowment, scholarship, and miscellaneous funds, and making appropriate recommendations to the full Board (College Regulations [Reference 2]).

The Citadel's President, charged by the BOV with the governing authority and the responsibility for the administration of the college, delegates the development and the operational control of fiscal matters to the Vice President for Finance and Business Affairs (VPFBA). As The Citadel's Chief Financial Officer, and with the assistance of his departmental directors (Director of Financial Services, Director of Budget and Analysis, Director of Human Resources, Director of Procurement Services, and the Director of Auxiliary Services), the VPFBA assumes responsibility for operational policies for fiscal matters, financial reporting, and budget control. [See References 3 and 4.]

Additional information regarding The Citadel's financial stability and budget process may be found in Core Requirement 11 , Core Requirement 5, and Comprehensive Standard R1.

c.  Legal Authority and Operating Control over The Citadel's Institutional Policy, Including Policies Concerning Related and Affiliated Corporate Entities and All Auxiliary Services

•  The legal authority over the institutional policy of The Citadel is assigned by law to The Citadel Board of Visitors by the South Carolina Legislature [Reference 5]. Operationally, the Board of Visitors exercises its control by (1) establishing policy — as published in College Regulations — and (2) implementing this policy through the President. The President carries out his responsibility to implement the Board's policy through the process described in Comprehensive Standard M8.

•  The legal authority over The Citadel's policies concerning related and affiliated corporate entities derives from the same source, and the operational control over these policies is maintained through the same channels, as the college's authority and control over all other institutional policy — as described in the preceding paragraph. That is, the South Carolina Legislature assigns the authority to The Citadel Board of Visitors [Reference 5]; the Board of Visitors delegates the authority to the President; and the President exercises it through the organizational structure described in Comprehensive Standard M-8.

•  Since all of The Citadel's auxiliary services are entirely internal, the legal authority over the college's policies regarding them is included in the broad powers granted The Citadel Board of Visitors by the South Carolina State Legislature [Reference 1]. The Citadel's President, charged by the Board of Visitors with the responsibility for the administration of the college, delegates operating control for auxiliary services to the Vice President for Finance and Business Affairs (VPFBA) [References 3 and 4].

Auxiliary services at The Citadel include the following:

Athletics	Dining Hall	Print Shop
Barracks	Faculty & Staff Quarters	Tailor Shop
Cadet Store	Long Distance Telephone	Infirmary
Gift Store	Laundry/Dry Cleaning

Income from The Citadel's auxiliary services is generated in one of two ways:  through fees (Barracks, Dining Hall, Infirmary, Faculty Quarters, and Laundry/Dry Cleaning), or through sales (Cadet Store, Gift Shop, Print Shop, Tailor Shop, and Long Distance Telephone). Athletics generates income in both ways. The VPFBA maintains operational control in either case because he is responsible not only for establishing the fees for all fee-based auxiliaries, but also for approving product markups for all sales-generating auxiliaries.

The institutional policies of The Citadel with respect to auxiliary services are based upon, and maintained in compliance with, South Carolina Legislation [Reference 6] and with covenants set forth in The Citadel Revenue Bond, Series 1997 [Reference 7]. The bond covenants require that all auxiliary funds, with the exception of athletic funds, flow through the State Treasurer's Office and that the college submit an annual budget for the use of the funds. The Department of Financial Services publishes policies and procedures that conform to these bond covenants [References 8 and 9 ].

 

d.  Legal Authority and Operating Control over The Citadel's Related Foundations and Other Corporate Entities whose Primary Purpose Is to Support the Institution and/or Its Programs

There are four corporate entities whose primary purpose is exclusively to support The Citadel and its programs. Each of these organizations is an independent, nonprofit entity whose legal authority derives from charters issued by the South Carolina Secretary of State [Reference 10]. Operationally, they are controlled by their own bylaws [References 11-14], and their relationship to The Citadel is legally defined by their statements of purpose, as follows:

The Citadel Alumni Association: an organization made up of Citadel alumni operating "exclusively for the benefit of . . . and to carry out the purposes of The Citadel" (Bylaws, Article I, Section 2) [Reference 11].

The Brigadier Foundation: an organization established "for purposes which are exclusively charitable . . . , and all funds shall be used to promote the welfare of The Citadel . . . ." ("Purpose") [Reference 12].

The Citadel Foundation: an eleemosynary corporation whose purpose is to "provide financial assistance and support exclusively for The Citadel" (Article III, Section 1) [Reference 13].

The Citadel Trust: a nonprofit organization governed by five board members named by The Citadel Board of Visitors whose purpose is "to provide scholarship and other financial assistance to The Citadel" (Article IV) [Reference 14].

 

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