The college board of trustees assumes a number of major obligations, including establishing institutional policy. A policy is an expression of beliefs or judgements derived from an assessment of a set of values adopted by the board as a guide to present and future action. As beliefs, judgements and issues change, policies must also change to remain relevant and legitimate. This does not mean that only new policies are relevant; but old policies need to be reviewed periodically and revised to meet current situations and to conform to current convictions of the board. Policy manuals play a role in creating and maintaining functional policies. To be usable, college policies should be bound together in a logically organized, properly indexed, and readable document. Several topics are common to policy manuals at most community/junior colleges, including policies related to legal provisions, the board, the president, the chairman of the board, the college's organization, and the college staff, students, programs, and business management. Though there are many commonalities, policies are relevant only if they are beneficial to a particular institution; many policies though relevant in one setting have no significance in another. Policies should establish boundaries for action and provide reasonable flexibility for the president in implementing them. In establishing policy, board members should use the resources offered by the college president, staff, and students, interested citizens, and professional associations. (Author/KL)