Standards for Office Space

Summary

Space is a limited campus resource and, consequently, it must be managed responsibly and in a way that promotes the advancement of the College’s mission and the strategic priorities of the campus. Flexibility needs to be maintained to address changes in function, curricula, programs, and technologies. Accordingly, a comprehensive framework for assignment and management of space, including office space, has been established to achieve best utilization and respond to current and emerging needs.

This procedure provides general guidelines for the allocation of office space to the department/divisions within all areas on campus. “Office space” includes offices, office service, and conference rooms specifically assigned to support the College’s academic (instructional and research), administrative, and service functions.

These guidelines constitute a companion document to the Use of Assigned Space and Office Moves guidelines both documents should be consulted when making office space allocation and reallocation decisions.

Units should refer to these guidelines when planning new construction or renovations to ensure greater consistency with campus norms for office space. Delta College Facilities Management will refer to this document when working with units and architects during the design phase of all new construction or renovations. 

Note: Academic and administrative units with internal space policies or guidelines should ensure that their guidelines align with the information provided in this document.

Principles

• • All faculty and staff will be provided with a suitable working environment for the type of work they perform.
  • Office space will be provided to each department/division to support adequately their core missions and functional needs.
  • Office space, like all space, is College property that will be allocated to a given department/division, as available, in a manner that best advances College priorities. No department/division “owns” the space that has been allocated to it.
  • Office space allocations are made to department/divisions, not to individuals.
  • Office space, like all College space resources, should be deployed in the most efficient and effective manner to best serve programmatic and strategic goals.
  • Each department/division should manage its office space needs within the space that has been allocated to the department/division at any given time.
  • Existing office space should be used to maximum functionality and efficiency.
  • Shared office and open office arrangements are encouraged whenever possible to efficiently use the campus’ limited space.
  • Conference rooms and hoteling spaces are encouraged to be shared among one or more departments/divisions whenever possible to maximize space utilization.
  • Office space that has been allocated to a department/division can be reassigned to another department/division in response to college needs and priorities.
  • Responsibility for assignment and reassignment of office space will generally follow divisional hierarchy. The ability to allocate and reallocate office space within a given division resides ultimately with the corresponding division Vice President/Dean or his/her designee. Department/division leaders have the responsibility to address office space needs within their respective department/divisions.
  • Office space vacated due to a substantial reduction in program size, reduction in workforce, or program elimination resulting in office space being unoccupied (refer to next section for further guidance) reverts to the College space pool. The Director of Facilities along with the division Vice President is responsible for ensuring that a process for reassignment of vacant space is established.
  • Office space vacated due to a department/division’s relocation to another building, floor, or suite reverts to the College space pool. The Director of Facilities along with the division Vice President is responsible for ensuring that a process for reassignment of vacant space is established.
  • Conference rooms shall not be converted into permanent office space; however, requests for such use may be submitted and require review and approval by the Director of Facilities Management, the Vice President of Business and Finance, and the Vice President of the affected area.

Standards for allocation of office space:

• • In general, the office space allocation priorities are as follows:
    • tenured, tenure-track, and full-time non-tenure track faculty and department/division full-time staff requiring a high level of privacy for working on confidential matters or meeting with students, staff and others.
    • active adjunct, visiting and part-time faculty, and department/division part-time staff; and
    • active emeritus/retired faculty.

• • Offices may be private, shared, open, or in cubicles as appropriate and available.
  • The accompanying table outlines the recommended office sizes and types. For current offices, the types and sizes will necessarily vary from these recommendations due to existing building configurations and availability of appropriate spaces. For new buildings, these recommendations will serve as the standard for programming new space.
  • The following tables show the recommended assignable square footage for a person by position type. These guidelines are not a guarantee that an employee or affiliate of the College will receive a specific office type or amount of square feet but rather defines the maximum net assignable square feet (NASF) a person in a specific role should occupy. Net assignable square feet is defined as the area of a building suitable for occupancy measured from the interior walls, including closets and secondary corridors within assignable space. This excludes main corridors, bathrooms, and other non-assignable space.
  • Offices will be assigned based on need, availability, and suitability for use
  • When possible, if department/divisions desire to consolidate their space assignments for reasons of academic interaction and administrative efficiency, contiguous spaces will be provided. However, proximity cannot be guaranteed depending upon the space and financial resources available at any given time.
  • Periodic evaluation of office space allocation should be made by the department/division head to ensure that all office space is being used to maximum functionality and efficiency.
  • Official space inventory reports recording all office space allocations will be maintained by the Academic Systems and ISS Coordinator. They will work together with the Director of Facilities Management to determine office availability, and the Academic Systems and ISS Coordinator will track office occupants.
  • To support an accurate and complete record of space allocations, department/divisions will verify Facilities Management on an annual basis its office space allocation and names of personnel assigned to occupy specific rooms.
  • The President’s Office will periodically request Facilities Management to evaluate and analyze the adequacy of a department/division’s office space allocation based upon criteria such as the number and types of personnel, the location, functional layout, and changes in programmatic needs.
  • Office space may not be assigned to non-campus organizations without prior approval from the appropriate division head and the Vice President of Business and Finance.

Multiple offices

• Assignment of multiple offices for faculty and staff is prohibited. Hoteling space may be utilized at sites other than your primary location.
• Part-time faculty and staff should be assigned office space in a shared office arrangement.
• Each department/division should ensure that all offices are occupied. When offices are left unoccupied for significant periods of time, such as during sabbaticals or other leaves, department/divisions should use these spaces to alleviate pressing space needs. If an office space remains under-utilized for a period longer than one year, the department/division may be required to provide a justification for maintaining use of the space.

Emeritus/retired faculty

• Emeritus/retired faculty and staff may be provided with shared offices, if space is available within a department/division, if they remain engaged in department/division activities. These shared offices are intended to allow an individual to maintain contact with their department/division, discipline, and colleagues. An emeritus/retired faculty member actively engaged in teaching or research may retain a private office at the discretion of the department/division if space is available.

Definitions

Department/division
Broadly defined for this purpose as any operating entity within a division with some level of autonomy and can include a college, a school, a department, a program, a center, or an institute.

Office
A space housing faculty, staff, or students working at one or more desks, tables, or workstations configured as a private office, shared office, or open office with or without cubicles.

Private office
An enclosed workspace for one person, suitable for activities which are confidential, demand a lot of concentration or include many small meetings.

Shared office
An enclosed workspace for two or three people.

Hoteling office
Drop-in workspace

Open office
An open workspace for more than three people with or without cubicles.

Cubicle
A semi-enclosed workspace for one person within an open office.

Workstation
A workspace for one or more individuals typically without partition walls and within an open office.

Office service
A space that directly serves an office or group of offices as an extension of the activities in those spaces. Office service rooms include, but are not limited to, file rooms, break rooms, kitchenettes serving office areas, copy and fax rooms, vaults, closets, private rest rooms not available to the public, records rooms, department mail rooms, office supply rooms, first aid rooms serving office areas, student counseling rooms and testing rooms, and open and private circulation areas.

Conference room
A space serving one or more department/divisions and used primarily for staff meetings and department/division activities. A conference space is typically equipped with tables and chairs, is used by specific organizational department/divisions, and is principally used for activities other than scheduled classes.

Appendix A 

Space-per person standards

The following tables show the assignable square footage for a person by position type.  These standards are not a guarantee that an employee or affiliate of the College will receive a specific office type or amount of square feet but rather define the maximum net assignable square feet (NASF) a person in a specific role should occupy.  Net assignable square feet are defined as the area of a building suitable for occupancy excluding main corridors, bathrooms and other non-assignable space.  Some positions in a unit or department may require private office space, while a person with similar duties in another unit or department may not.

Notes

1. 1. Not all types of room occupants listed reflect official Delta College job titlesor classifications. They are listed strictly for the purpose of showing the relationship between role, space type, and net assignable square feet (NASF). The information is only to be used when making office space related decisions.
   2. Employees with job responsibilities requiring regular confidential meetings with students, faculty, or staff and/or the daily handling of confidential personnel or student records.
   3. The amount of office space for employees in this category is dependent upon the staff category and the job responsibilities. However, in general part-time employees are provided workspace equal to half that recommended for full-time employees in their staff category.
   4. Employees in this category are provided access to a shared workstation. Typically, a single workstation is provided for each organizational unit; but is dependent upon the number of personnel in a unit. The size of a workspace would vary from 25sf to 40sf.
   5. The amount of office space recommended for student organizations varies greatly dependent upon the nature of the organization and their needs.
   6. Visitors are typically individuals provided a temporary workspace in the conduct of college related business. An example of a visitor is a state auditor.
   7. NASF – Net Assignable Square Feet
       

Revision/review dates
02/26