Mary M. Barnett, Virginia Community College System, is president of the Association of College and University Auditors. Mark Paganelli, of the University of Tennessee System, is the immediate past president of that organization. In Business Officer they explain and take a look at the growth of Internal Audit Committees and some ramifications.

This is an excellent source of information if your planning role will in any way intersect with these issues, as it most likely will.

These good resources are shared at the end of the article:

To start work on a strategic risk assessment, consider these useful resources:

• Risk assessment toolkit. Click here  to access NACUBO's materials and guidance on risk management. 

• Searchable database. To also assist with ERM, the Association of College and University Auditors (ACUA) has created a risk "dictionary," listing hundreds of risks facing higher education institutions, as well as the corresponding controls to help mitigate those risks. The dictionary (available for ACUA members at the ACUA Web site) is a searchable database that is updated often and is an important resource when implementing an enterprise risk management process at a university or college.

• ERM map. David Crawford, audit manager emeritus for the University of Texas System, has created a risk assessment application. Risks and controls are mapped to the institution's mission and presented in a "heat map," a graphic representation that highlights data with different colors. Such a visual is easy to present to the board and senior management and clearly shows the areas of greatest concern. This methodology has been used at several institutions in Texas and Tennessee and is currently being used at the Virginia Community College System.

• Overview and case study of ERM activities in higher education. Read the cover story, "Ensemble Performance," and a companion article, "Learning to Harmonize," in the December 2008 Business Officer.