Guiding Principles of Spc. Mgmt & Univ. Spc. Plan

Guiding Principles of Space Management

The following are guiding principles which underpin campus space management efforts:

1. Space is considered as much a University resource as faculty and staff or budget dollars.
   • The physical facilities of the University are an enormous asset crucial to the operations of the campus. Indeed, the number, type, and condition of University spaces helps shape all aspects of campus programs and activities.
   
   
2. Space is a University property to be allocated in a manner which best advances University priorities.
   • No one unit, department, or division "owns" space. University space resources should be deployed in the most efficient and effective manner to best serve programmatic and strategic goals.
   
   
3. University space can and will be reassigned.
   • The University values flexibility and recognizes changing curricula, programs, and technologies. Accordingly, space assignments will change to achieve optimal utilization and respond to current and emerging needs.
   
   
4. University space needs will be evaluated in the context of traditional quantitative and functional considerations.
   • Space standards employed by the State University Construction Fund and the Research Foundation will be used to provide contextual information to gauge relative space needs.
   
   
   • For example, course enrollments, contact hours, staffing levels, etc. are some of the factors used in space needs assessments and general space standards exist for various types of space.
   
   
5. Responsibility for assignment and reassignment of space will generally follow divisional and departmental organizational hierarchies.
   • While any and all space assignments are subject to change based on the authority of the President and/or Provost, the ability to assign and reassign space is generally delegated to each of the Deans and Vice Presidents for their respective departments and programs.
   
   
   • This authority, which is contingent on compliance with applicable space guidelines and standards, is expected to provide flexibility to Deans and Vice Presidents to address the space needs of their respective units.
   
   
6. University owned and leased spaces shall be allocated and assigned under the following general parameters, exceptions to which require approval by the Executive Space Committee.
   • Student services and classrooms shall be given priority for the most central and easily accessed locations, such as the first floor of the Podium and the Campus Center.
   
   
   • These first floor locations and other most easily accessible areas should be prioritized for student services and/or serve as academic departmental offices and not be used for administrative and support functions.
   
   
   • Off-podium locations are best assigned to administrative back-office functions and not academic programs or student-related services.
   
   
   • Faculty and research spaces shall be located on upper, less trafficked floors.
   
   
   • Residence halls shall remain dedicated to student housing and/or student activity functions.
   
   
   • Faculty and administrators shall have only one office and the University, regardless of joint appointments, multi-campus activities, and/or span of control. Exceptions include Department Chairs, who shall be allotted one small additional office during his/her tenure and those instances where a faculty or staff member directs a lab, Center, or activity in a location outside of the Uptown, Downtown, Health Sciences Campus, or Fuller Road locations.
   
   
   • The University will endeavor to maintain adjacencies between departmental faculty, scholarly programs, and related administrative units where building architecture, scheduling and financing allow.
   
   
   • Where leased space is necessary, such space shall be devoted to stand-alone research, administrative, and academic functions with a relatively low level of daily university/campus interaction.
   
   
   • Leased space in the downtown Albany community is encouraged to advance University outreach and engagement objectives.
   
   
   • Space shall be generally allocated and reassigned in accordance with established space type guidelines (e.g., offices = 120 SF, etc.) where building architecture and construction conditions allow.