The Mandate for the Greensboro Truth and Reconciliation Commission was written and approved by the Greensboro Truth and Community Reconciliation Project's (GTCRP) governing boards - the Local Task Force and the National Advisory Committee - in Spring 2003. It was published in the Greensboro News & Record on May 6, 2003, and sets forth the general parameters that shape the Commission's work. Considerations such as the spirit of this initiative, the time frame and the Commission's independence from the GTCRP are articulated in the mandate.

As the commissioners began planning how to accomplish their mandated tasks, they discerned a need to build on the Mandate by articulating their own underlying values. These values are reflected in the Guiding Principles.