Centers and Institutes

Policy Administrator: Executive Vice President and Chief of Staff
Authority: N.J.S.A. 18A:64-8
Effective Date: June 22, 2021; July 1, 2026
Index Cross-References:
Policy File Number: 1170
Approved By: Dr. Joe Bertolino, President

Stockton University recognizes the value of Centers and Institutes that bring faculty, staff, students, and community members together to advance teaching, research, and meaningful community engagement initiatives. This work should align with the University’s mission and Strategic Plan as well as local, national and global trends, and provide academic, scholarly, and community engagement benefits to individuals, groups, and the public good.

This document provides procedures for the creation, maintenance, and closure of Centers and Institutes. In forming these procedures, five key questions should serve as guiding tenets:

1) Is the Center or Institute intrinsically linked to the University’s mission?

2) Is there now – and will there continue to be – sufficient interest among stakeholders?

3) Is the Center or Institute achieving distinction by serving an innovative and a clearly defined purpose on campus and/or in the broader community, thereby enhancing the University’s reputation locally, regionally, nationally, and/or internationally?

4) Can the Center or Institute be operated through self-sufficient, sustained funding?

5) Does the Center provide opportunities for significant student participation in ways that support their educational goals?

I. Definition and purpose.

Centers and Institutes are designed to fulfill a specialized need in support of the University’s mission. In many cases, these entities are research or service-oriented and allow the University to provide specific and focused data, insight, and support material to a wide range of stakeholders, both internal (students, faculty, staff, and administrators) and external (community leaders, business professionals, legislators, academic researchers, the media, educators, etc.)

The purpose of a Center or Institute may include, but is not limited, to:

• Research, production, and dissemination of scholarly information;

• Sponsorship of seminars, symposia, or workshops that benefit internal and external stakeholders;

• Development and administration of grant and contract-support programs;

• Provision of services to campus or community groups;

• Preservation, curation of archives, collections, and other culturally or historically significant materials.

II. Guidelines.

Generally, unless stipulated by a specific grant to initiate the Center or Institute, the following guidelines are applied when creating new Centers and Institutes:

• Center: refers to an internally-funded or primarily internally-facing entity, and/or where the physical structure warrants naming as a Center (i.e., Performing Arts Center); the focus of the work is on internal activities to serve students, faculty and/or staff. Often such Centers will be sustained through University-provided operating budgets and may be supplemented by gifts and grants.

• Institute: refers to externally-funded entities, and those with a significant mission to serve and engage external communities.

III. Center or Institute creation.

Through a written proposal, outlined below under “Criteria,” the formation of a Center or Institute will be recommended by the appropriate divisional executive where the Center or Institute will reside, in consultation with the Senior Leadership Team, and with final approval of the President or designee.

After inception, modifications of the mission of a Center or Institute may be enacted, upon review and approval of the Center or Institute’s advisory board and the appropriate divisional executive with final approval of the President or designee.

IV. Criteria for formation.

A proposed Center or Institute must adequately meet the following criteria for formation:

(A) Mission

i. A clearly-defined mission related to the University’s mission. Those within the division of Academic Affairs must demonstrate engagement of students and faculty, connection to academic program/s, and leverage faculty expertise.

ii. When applicable, a purpose that specifically relates to an emerging issue, trend, need, or problem.

iii. Clearly defined outcomes with key performance indicators (KPIs) that measure demonstrated impact in annual and six-year reporting cycles.

(B) Resources

i. Budget and finance: an annual budget indicating all sources of funding, both internal and external including current grant funding and advancement gifts, and a financial plan addressing long-term operational sustainability. Institutional contributions or matches must be clearly articulated.

ii. Personnel: a summary of the anticipated personnel resources needed including: the director (see Section 5 below for additional details), faculty support (see Section 6 below for additional details); professional staff, clerical/administrative staff; and anticipated graduate and undergraduate student support.

iii. A detailed description of the space/physical resources required.

iv. A detailed description of the equipment/supplies/materials required.

(C) Reporting and Organizational Structure

i. A transparent process of governance and review,

ii. A commitment to administrative best practices,

iii. A summary of the internal reporting relationship to a department head, dean, divisional executive or individual or unit of acceptable supervisory level, and

iv. An organizational structure that includes an advisory board. The constitution of an advisory board for Academic Centers and Institutes is described in Procedure 2225.

V. Leadership.

Centers and Institutes will have the equivalent of a “director” who will assume leadership, managerial, supervisory, and budgetary responsibilities. Leadership can be an administrative position or a union-negotiated faculty or professional staff position depending on the needs of the Center or Institute.

VI. Personnel.

Additional personnel such as postdoctoral fellows, visiting scholars, etc., can exist, but only if self-funded by the Center or Institute.

VII. Review.

All Centers and Institutes will undergo the self-study and external periodic program review process every six years in alignment with institutional program or unit review processes.

VIII. Closure.

The recommendation to close a Center or Institute is based on alignment to the University’s mission, goals, and Strategic Plan with evidence of impact through meeting established goals and metrics, financial sustainability, and continuous improvement. The recommendation is made by the appropriate divisional executive, in consultation with the constituted advisory board and Senior Leadership Team, and with final approval of the President.

Review History:

Procedure Administrator 05/03/2026

Divisional Executive 5/6/2026

General Counsel 05/27/2026

Senior Leadership 06/25/2026

President 07/01/2026