5 year strategic plan university

Strategic Plan

Introduction

On November 2, 2016, the Campbell University Board of Trustees adopted a new 5-year strategic plan to guide the University into 2021. The overarching goal of the strategic plan is to present a series of Aims and supporting Initiatives that are targeted at specific needs of the University to include: Academic Quality; Student Success; Extend the Influence; and Strategic Growth. These articulated initiatives serve as a guide to fulfill the university’s primary mission to graduate students with exemplary academic and professional skills, preparing them for purposeful lives and meaningful service.

school Academic Quality

• Develop and support learning experiences that attract and retain an increasingly strong student body.
• Balance the enduring value of the liberal arts with professional preparation in the context of traditional, residential undergraduate and nontraditional student education.
• Secure gains in academic quality, student engagement, student accomplishment, and faculty development.
• Develop faculty to become better teachers and scholars.

Initiatives

• Improve the quality of the undergraduate student body
• Increase experiential learning opportunities
• Revise the partnership between TAR UC and Campbell University with an exploration for future possibilities
• Design and implement an international admissions recruiting plan
• Establish a student research program for undergraduate, graduate, and professional students
• Establish a program for teaching excellence
• Develop a speakers program that brings to campus noted authorities in their respective disciplines or professional fields
• Faculty Development Grant Program
• Faculty Summer Research Grant
• Affiliate with local, state, and national organizations of prestige

check Student Success

• Enhance the quality of the student experience to foster harmony between body, mind, and spirit.
• Provide support for student success to improve retention, persistence, graduation rates.
• Prepare students for the world of work, service, and leadership.
• Construct a new student union facility
• Implement a comprehensive program of academic advising to include career planning
• Launch a comprehensive career development program
• Enhance academic success programs and resources
• Develop a residence life program to include living/learning communities that   promotes social integration, fosters personal development, and facilitates learning
• Develop community engagement and leadership program
• Enhance support for an increasingly diverse student population
• Develop a health and wellness program stressing body, mind, and spirit with a focus on faith, food, fitness, and finances

public Extend the Influence

• Strengthen the base of recruiting in North Carolina and extend into new markets.
• Expand the Campbell brand throughout the northeast, southeast, and other selected regions.
• Enhance the University’s influence in regional development through strategic partnerships.
• Achieve athletic success with integrity.
• Explore and develop opportunities to support global engagement and learning.
• Market Campbell as the private school of choice in North Carolina while expanding into new states
• Launch a comprehensive communication and marketing plan including actions specifically for Raleigh, the RTP region, and Fayetteville
• Position Campbell as a partner in regional economic and community development
• Leverage memberships and participation in civic, community, and governmental organizations and associations
• Increase the number of mission and service learning trips involving undergraduate, graduate, and professional students
• Develop a plan for employee development and increased workplace satisfaction

call_made Strategic Growth

• Plan growth in enrollment.
• Develop a financial growth plan.
• Create a plan for program growth.
• Construct an advancement and fundraising plan.
• Realize strategic growth in programs through continuous research, needs assessment, market analysis, assessing regularly existing programs, and conducting feasibility studies for at least three programs a year
• Increase revenue through growth in enrollment, tuition increases, new programs, prudent fiscal management, and other avenues of auxiliary income
• Develop a comprehensive plan for maintenance and expansion of technological resources for the entire campus to include all administrative and educational services
• Launch a capital campaign for advancement and fundraising
• Develop a long-term strategy for awarding federal, state, and institutional financial aid to minimize student debt and maximize enrollment
• Amplify alumni relations
• Continue campus development through the construction of new facilities to support new programming, the refurbishment and repurposing of existing facilities, and the demolition of structures no longer of service
• Develop a government relations strategy that supports the financial and policy needs of the University and select programs

Academic Strategic Plan

  Alert Content Goes Here

ASP-Inspired Major Campus Initiatives    Enhancing The Undergraduate Experience    Powering Trans-Institutional Learning and Creative Works

VISION PHASE

Action phase.

launched fall 2014

In 2014, Vanderbilt University moved into the action phase of the  Academic Strategic Plan. The following outlines some of the major accomplishments realized to date and what is on the horizon. 

ASP-INSPIRED MAJOR CAMPUS INITIATIVES*

Much like the process undertaken to craft the Academic Strategic Plan, each of these initiatives involved extensive campus input, committee recommendations and action plans. Together, these factors led to the creation of new programs, initiatives, administrative processes and structures. As these efforts continue to roll out, they impart a cumulative and lasting impact on our community of students, faculty, staff and far beyond.  Visit  vu.edu/provost  for more info. 

*Years indicate when the initiative was first launched.

• Library 2014/15
• Equity, Diversity & Inclusion 2015/16
• Mental Health 2016/17
• International Strategy 2016/17
• Humanities 2016/17
• Shared Governance 2017/18
• Data Science 2017/18
• Women’s Initiative 2018/19

ENHANCING THE UNDERGRADUATE EXPERIENCE

As laid out in the Academic Strategic Plan, we aspire to offer students an intellectually rich, diverse and dynamic education. To realize this vision over the past five years, we have innovated daringly, by drawing on Vanderbilt’s many distinctions, including our residential college experience, our physical proximity together on one campus and our global approach to research and discovery. By expanding our dynamic living-learning environments, we continue to further harness the strengths of our faculty and help all of our graduates grow, as scholars and as global citizens. Ultimately, our goal is to create and deploy the ideas, knowledge and leaders that drive positive change in the world. 

IMMERSION VANDERBILT

Immersion Vanderbilt enables undergraduate students to pursue their passions and cultivate intellectual interests through experiential learning. Featuring four pathways from which students can choose—civic and professional, creative expression, international studies and research—and culminating in a final project, Immersion Vanderbilt widens the parameters of where and how learning can occur.

Recent Strides

• In fall 2018, the university welcomed the first cohort of undergraduates who will experience Immersion Vanderbilt as a degree requirement. 
• With input from all schools and colleges, faculty developed an innovative governance model that has been vetted and approved by all four undergraduate schools.
• An infrastructure has been created to support the program—including the Office of Immersion Resources, an ImmersionHub for tracking experiences and an opportunities database to help connect faculty and students.
• All schools—including the professional and graduate schools—have mobilized resources and developed models for faculty engagement in the program. 
• Students have honed and developed new skills by working more closely with faculty, while faculty have been able to move research and projects forward with the help of undergraduates.  

WHAT'S NEXT

• Expanding opportunities on The Ingram Commons, through which first-year students can begin exploring ideas
• Bringing resources to upper-class students in the residential colleges
• Developing evaluation and assessment standards for Immersion Vanderbilt with the Immersion Faculty Steering Committee 

RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE SYSTEM

Our on-campus residential colleges bring the academic experience into residential life—extending a sense of community, learning, discourse and discovery beyond the classroom and among Vanderbilt’s increasingly diverse student body. 

• 2002 Academic Strategic Plan: “We recommend… a system of residential colleges where students and faculty from across the university live together in social, academic and co-curricular communities.”
• 2014 Academic Strategic Plan: “We must enrich the educational experience by completing and extending the residential college system and developing new infrastructure to foster further interconnections between discovery and learning.”

In addition to the physical buildout of new residential colleges, much work has gone into refining and enhancing the experience for undergraduate students and faculty:

• A committee developed a programmatic vision for residential colleges, identifying five key areas for growth enhancing a student’s overall learning experience: intellect, community, personal well-being, self-discovery and cultural awareness.
• To achieve these goals, residential colleges have been DESIGNED to build community, engage faculty and connect students to campus resources.
• Expanded staff support to minimize administrative burden has resulted in increased recruitment of research-active faculty as faculty directors and heads of house.
• Applying principles beyond the residential colleges
• Developing a global fellows program to bring distinguished guests to campus
• Engaging graduate and professional students
• Creating new signature events for community building

UNIVERSITY COURSES/CROSS-COLLEGE TEACHING

The University Courses program, launched in fall 2016, enables faculty members from different schools and colleges to work together in offering innovative, cross-disciplinary classes. The program is the perfect encapsulation of Vanderbilt’s dedication to collaboration and the harnessing of natural synergies to expand and intensify learning.

University Courses launched (or approved to launch) to date involving 36 faculty members 

students enrolled in UCs through spring 2019 

guest lecturers throughout the program

courses were defined as multicultural courses, designed specifically to advance Vanderbilt's initiatives in equity, diversity and inclusion while engaging students in exploring new avenues of investigation about the human condition

• University Courses
• Historic Black Nashville      
• The Nation's Health: From Policy to Practice   
• Justice, Mercy and Mass Incarceration      
• Design Thinking, Design Doing   
• The History and Science of Brewing   
• Tackling Big Questions with Mobile Cloud Computing
• Data Science Methods for Smart City Applications 
• Rhythm of Change: African Music and African Politics 
• Race, Place and Power 
• Social Entrepreneurship    
• Virtual Reality for Interdisciplinary Applications
• The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI)   
• Planetary Health, Policy and Social Justice
• From Academic Insight to Entrepreneurial Impact
• The Causes and Consequences of LGBTQ Public Policies   
• Cultural Heritage in Context: The Future of the Past   
• Fall 2019, the Center for Teaching will manage the program, leveraging synergies and expanding the resources they provide to faculty to develop new courses.
• Courses are supported through this program for three offerings, after which faculty will work with their schools and colleges to start the process of incorporating the courses into regular curriculum. 

THE WOND'RY, VANDERBILT'S INNOVATION CENTER

Located in the Innovation Pavilion adjacent to the newly LEED-certified Engineering and Science Building, the  Wond’ry is Vanderbilt’s center for innovation, creative collaboration, design and entrepreneurship. Through hosting Innovation Garages, launching social ventures and fostering campus support, the Wond’ry is a primary point of connection for many members of the Vanderbilt community—from engineers and scientists to entrepreneurs and artists. In 2018, the Wond’ry was named an Outstanding Emerging Entrepreneurship Center at the annual Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers conference.

David Owens, professor of the practice of management and innovation, will lead the next phase of this nationally recognized innovation center as the Evans Family Executive Director. 

POWERING TRANS-INSTITUTIONAL LEARNING & CREATIVE WORKS

“We aspire to generate new insights and discoveries, while training future leaders and scholars, by leveraging Vanderbilt’s distinctive resources and expertise from across the entire campus. Vanderbilt will take the lead in defining, addressing and solving important problems and questions facing society. To realize this vision, Vanderbilt must focus on critical challenges at the local, national and global levels, connect our diverse disciplinary strengths, foster increased collaboration and integration, enable and instill critical qualities in our students and provide an enriched environment that transcends disciplinary boundaries.” – 2014 Academic Strategic Plan 

TRANS-INSTITUTIONAL PROGRAMS

Vanderbilt’s Trans-Institutional Programs seek to interweave perspectives, features, methods and information from across our campus, ultimately creating new knowledge, collaborations and opportunities for discovery.

These programs—which span from established flagship centers and institutes to groundbreaking efforts still in development—share the common goals of addressing important challenges facing society and positioning Vanderbilt as a world leader in key academic areas.  

• Through this program, $50 million was allocated to be awarded over five years to new and existing trans-institutional initiatives, centers and institutes.
• As of spring 2019, $38 million had been awarded to 59 projects, allowing the initiative to be extended for another year.
• During the past five years, more than 500 faculty from all schools and colleges have been involved in TIPs-funded projects and more than 700 undergraduate students have been engaged.
• TIPs awards have resulted in more than $80 million in external funding for various Vanderbilt initiatives.

Two Categories of Support

Vanderbilt Initiative Awards (VIAs) — seed grants that serve as incubators for exciting new ideas.

Vanderbilt Re-investment Award (VRA) — provides renewed funding at a larger level.

Funding from TIPs Has Contributed to Numerous Successful Programs

• Planning is underway to develop 5- , 10- and 20-year strategies for our academic buildings and green spaces to ensure they foster trans-institutional collaborations and faculty-student engagement.
• A task force will assess the impact of the past six years of TIPs funding and will propose new ideas for investing in and supporting cross-campus collaborations.

Trans-institutional Health & Medicine Collaborations

“We aspire to be the world’s leader in developing and pursuing effective solutions to pressing health and health care problems through creative discoveries and pioneering educational initiatives.” – 2014 Academic Strategic Plan

United by our “One Vanderbilt” philosophy, faculty from across our schools and colleges work together to develop innovative solutions in health and medicine. Trans-institutional discoveries and initiatives from the past five years include:

• The Vanderbilt Brain Institute launched new projects in the area of mental health with VRA funding.
• Vanderbilt Institute for Surgery and Engineering (VISE) opened a 7,000-square-foot mock operating theater in Medical Center North.
• The Medical Innovators Development Program trains engineers and applied scientists to attain their M.D’s. so they can solve clinical problems through imaging, informatics and medical devices.
• Establishing the university as a leader in optical imaging technologies, the Biophotonics Center has built a Lattice Light Sheet microscope, a Scanned Oblique Plane Illumination microscope and a Multimodal Advanced Nonlinear and Thermal Imaging System, making Vanderbilt the only institution to house all three. 

CHANCELLOR FACULTY FELLOWS

The Chancellor Faculty Fellows program recognizes academic leaders early in their careers and provides a lasting foundation for their scholarly work. Such fellowship funding is a commitment to our faculty and their dedication to the discovery and pursuit of knowledge that drives Vanderbilt forward every day. Awarded on a competitive basis, the program funding provides recently tenured faculty with extra capacity at critical time in their careers—boosting their ability to innovate, explore new paths of research or creativity and make the largest possible impact. 

faculty awarded a combined $5 million over five years through the program.

annually to fellows for two years to advance their work

GRADUATE EDUCATION & RESEARCH

We have elevated the standing of our graduate education, graduate training and research programs through our dual focus on recruiting the brightest students and retaining and recruiting exceptional faculty.

In 2016, Vanderbilt committed a $300 million endowment to support graduate education and research.

• Created the new Russell G. Hamilton Ph.D. scholarships 
• Established the Russell G. Hamilton Leadership Institute for graduate students
• Matched donor gifts for new endowed chairs and faculty fellowships

In addition to TIPs, the university has  developed new funding mechanisms and research  to support research and teaching in every college and school and importantly at the intersection of disciplines.

• Created the Leveraged Proposal Organization and Development (L-POD) services to help obtain large, strategic, multi-faculty awards from external agencies and foundations
• Launched Ancora Innovation, a funding program supported by Deerfield Management to seed drug discovery
• Created a partnership with Army Futures Command to connect innovative soldiers with experts across campus to bring new technology or other solutions to fruition

In 2019-20, the university will break ground on a new graduate and professional student housing village designed to enhance the residential experience for these students. The development will give students access to housing in close proximity to the Vanderbilt campus at below-market rates that will build community and foster interdisciplinary connections among graduate and professional students.

Global Research & Engagement

In response to a report created by the faculty-led International Working Group, Vanderbilt released an action plan for advancing global research and engagement in 2018. To date, the university has launched multiple efforts to facilitate scholarly collaborations and advance Vanderbilt’s reputation around the world:

• The Global Research and Engagement Micro-Grant fund was created to help faculty seize opportunities as they arise.
• Vanderbilt established the Chancellor’s Public Voices Fellowship to provide select faculty members with training and media outreach support to further the global reach and impact of their work.
• GlobalVU, a web portal designed to elevate Vanderbilt’s profile and impact on an international scale, launched in February.
• In 2019, Vanderbilt announced a broader initiative with GlobalVU and TIPs to lay the groundwork for a global institute that will advance international research and engagement. In its first year, the initiative will organize three workshops on topics ranging from health and violence in Africa to Western classical music’s global reach.
• The GlobalVU Initiative will launch a Global Fellows program to recruit distinguished visitors and also help campus groups bring special guests to campus. A signature part of the program will be visitors’ option to stay in Vanderbilt’s 20-story tower—part of the now-under-construction residential college on West End Avenue—during their time on campus. 

Arts & Humanities 

Given Vanderbilt’s commitment to a broad-based liberal education, the arts and humanities are an increasingly vital part of our curriculum and community. Announced in 2018, the provost’s action plan to advance the arts and humanities at Vanderbilt continues to evolve and produce results that positively impact the university community. Efforts to date include:

• The establishment of the Arts and Humanities Rapid Response Micro-Grant Fund, which provides faculty with the ability to seize opportunities and carry out new collaborations, ventures, projects or outreach.
• A review of the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities in addition to the recruitment of new faculty leadership for the center.
• The launch of the university’s online portal for the arts and humanities.
• The Library Collections Initiative whereby $750,000 was dedicated.
• Named a partner in the Tennessee Triennial for Contemporary Art, the university’s Fine Arts Gallery will host one of the state’s exhibitions in 2021 of works by participating artists, many of whom will be responding to political discord in the United States.
• A newly established Arts Council will advocate for all of the arts at Vanderbilt including related scholarship, performing arts, visual arts and literary arts. The council will also provide strategic direction for the university’s Educational Art Collections.
• The Center for Digital Humanities will move into newly renovated space adjacent to a new Digital Commons.

Innovations in Education Technologies

New education technologies foster innovation, strengthen faculty-student interactions, enable more personalized educational approaches and provide new tools for research and scholarship. By enhancing online and distance learning, these technologies also expand Vanderbilt’s reach across the globe, granting opportunities for learning and discovery to even more students, alumni and a wide community of scholars. Progress to date includes:

• The creation of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), in collaboration with Coursera, at each of Vanderbilt’s schools and colleges—covering topics ranging from criminal justice to Android app development to innovation for managers
• The launch of Brightspace, the university’s new course management system with improved online functionality
• The establishment of the Center for Digital Humanities, a hub for digital tools optimized for scholarly projects
• The new Emerging Technologies Lab at the Wond’ry, created to help the Vanderbilt community learn new skills in virtual reality, blockchain and artificial intelligence
• Implementation of a new library system featuring updated user interface, sophisticated searching capacity and easily interpreted results
• The 2017 launch of Top Hat, Vanderbilt’s first campus-wide classroom response system, which supports both multiple-choice and free-response polling questions
• Coding bootcamps, the result of a partnership between the Owen Graduate School of Management, the School of Engineering and external partner Trilogy
• A partnership between 2U and Vanderbilt Peabody College, resulting in two successful online degree programs—a master of education and a doctor of education
• New online programs at the School of Engineering, including a master of science in computer science and a master of engineering in engineering management
• The Divinity School and the School of Medicine, Basic Sciences, are developing online courses and programs.
• Vanderbilt is developing additional online platforms and interfaces to launch new online content including degree and non-degree programs.
• Committees are developing recommendations on how to enhance digital project support, services and online education resources.
• A new Digital Commons will open with the goal of further uniting experts and offices that specialize in digital scholarship from across campus.

View previous reports on the Academic Strategic Plan »

Your Vanderbilt

• Current Students
• Faculty & Staff
• International Students
• Parents & Family
• Prospective Students
• Researchers
• Sports Fans
• Visitors & Neighbors

Initiatives

• Chancellor Faculty Fellows
• Educational Technologies
• Graduate Education
• Immersion Vanderbilt
• International Strategy
• Residential Colleges
• Trans-institutional Programs (TIPs)

A New Strategic Plan for the Next Five Years

Strategic plans provide a blueprint for where an organization wants to go.  At UW-Madison, we’ve typically updated our strategic plan every five years.  In the past year we’ve recently completed a new strategic framework for 2020-2025 , and I’d encourage you to take a look.  (If you want a one-page summary of the elements in this strategic plan, you can download it here .)

We want the University of Wisconsin-Madison to be a model public university in the 21 st century, fulfilling our responsibilities for excellence in teaching and research, acting as a responsible community that serves students, staff and faculty well, while also reaching out to the state and nation to enhance quality of life and fulfill the Wisconsin Idea.

Our strategic plan provides guidance by outlining the key issues we need to be working on in the next five years in order to be a model public university.  Each school, college, department, and other unit can build their own strategic plans off of the template provided by this university-wide plan.  For instance, while we outline key ways by which the university can maintain and expand on its excellence in education, a school or a department can outline the specific steps they are taking to maintain and improve educational excellence in their own unit.

There are five primary priority areas in this strategic plan:

• Excellence in teaching and educational achievement
• Excellence in research and scholarship
• Living the Wisconsin idea
• A vibrant campus community
• A high-performing organization

Under each priority area, we provide a few bullet points that indicate the strategic areas that we will be emphasizing in order to pursue these priorities over the next few years.  For instance, under a vibrant campus community, we want to focus on health and wellness, diversity, and learning that encompasses experiences both in and out of the classroom.

In each area, we identify several initiatives that we are currently pursuing.  Please keep in mind, there are many great initiatives and programs happening across campus and that we have chosen only a few to illustrate how this is being implemented.  These featured examples are just that – examples – and the lists are far from exhaustive.   Each school, college and other unit will have their own lists.

Creating a good, actionable strategic plan is a big challenge. I’ve seen them done in a variety of ways and all too often the process can take time, or focus, away from doing the hard work required to improve the organization. This plan is specific enough to give clear direction on the issues we plan to work on in the years ahead and how we want to get there.  But it’s also broad enough to allow almost all units to use the framework to develop specific plans for their unit that integrate with this larger plan.

I hope you’ll take the time to review our website . I want to thank everyone who’s worked on this round of strategic planning. If you have feedback on the 2020-25 strategic framework, please send your thoughts to [email protected] .

The strategic plan is just the blueprint. The work of turning that blueprint into a reality is what we must engage in every day.

• Visit the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
• Apply to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln
• Give to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Search Form

Strategic plan sets university’s course to 2025, beyond.

February 14, 2020 · 4 min read

Strategic plan sets university’s course to 2025, beyond

A bold five-year strategic plan that calls for growth in graduation rates, research expenditures and hands-on, real-world experiences for all students is setting the foundation for a transformative 25-year blueprint at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Outlined by Chancellor Ronnie Green during the State of Our University address on Feb. 14, the N2025 strategic plan is the first phase of a long-term visioning of what the institution should be like by its 175th year in 2044. Called for by Green, the visioning — completed by the N150 Commission, a group that included more than 150 stakeholders — was inspired by the university’s sesquicentennial celebration in 2019.

The plans were generated through an inclusive process, with input and guidance from students, faculty, staff and administrators.

“Nebraska and the world demands that we must be a bold, engaged, audacious, accessible and vibrant people’s university — student-centered, continually research-innovating and -developing, and never more outwardly reaching in our impacts to be Nebraska’s 21st-century people’s university,” Green said. “If we can’t invent, innovate and create at a university, where can we?”

From the N150 Commission visioning, the N2025 team elevated a repeated concept as a keystone to connect the university’s aspirations. That theme — that every person and every interaction matters — supports the aims, strategies, expectations and targets of the final N2025 strategic plan.

The six aims of the plan deal broadly with student success and learning, research excellence, creative activity, engagement, diversity and inclusion, and investing in students, faculty and staff. Those aims, each of which should be read to include the phrase “in a way that every person and every interaction matters,” are:

Innovate student experiences that prepare graduates to be lifelong learners and contributors to the workforce in Nebraska and the world;

Establish a culture at Nebraska committed to increasing the impact of research and creative activity;

Focus research, scholarship, creative activity and student experience to foster innovative, interdisciplinary endeavors and solve challenges critical to Nebraska and the world;

Broaden Nebraska’s engagement in community, industry and global partnerships;

Create a climate at Nebraska that emphasizes, prioritizes and expands inclusive excellence and diversity; and

Prioritize participation and professional development for all Nebraska students, staff and faculty.

Each aim includes a series of targets that — if achieved — will allow the university to continue building toward the 2044 vision of the N150 Commission.

Key student-centric targets in the plan include increasing graduation rates to 55% within four years of starting classes and to 72% by the six-year mark; boosting retention rates between first- and second-years of study to 88%; and, starting with the class of 2025 (which begins study in fall 2020), ensuring that all students participate in an experiential learning opportunity before graduation.

Additional targets set within the N2025 aims include:

Reaching $450 million in research expenditures;

Earning designation as a Carnegie Community Engagement Campus;

Aligning at least 50% of strategic investments with key state, national and global challenges, including water and food security, early childhood education and development, and climate change resiliency; and

Increasing the number and retention of students, faculty and staff from underrepresented groups — including a 7% increase in students from underrepresented ethnic/racial groups and an 8% expansion of enrollment among Pell-eligible, first-time-entering students.

The N2025 plan also outlines the need to create a long-term road map for university operations that ensures sustainability, environmental resilience and stewardship of natural resources.

The N2025 strategic team included 31 members of the campus community and was led by faculty members Rick Bevins, chair and professor of psychology; Shane Farritor, professor of mechanical and materials engineering; Angela Pannier, professor of biological systems engineering; and Sue Sheridan, director of the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools.

To keep the strategic plan moving forward, Green will assign a primary leader whose organization is accountable for each target. Lead organizations will provide guidance on the targets, marshalling a collaborative, universitywide effort to achieve related goals.

University leaders also plan to release progress reports to campus.

Complete reports from the N150 Commission and the N2025 strategic team are available for review online .

Video: Conversation with the N2025 Strategy Team co-chairs

Related links.

• N2025 Strategic Plan
• N150 Commission
• 2.10.20 | Inclusive process guided development of N2025 plan
• strategic plan
• Ronnie Green
• State of Our University
• Every Person and Every Interaction Matters
• student success
• research excellence
• creative activity

Recent News

Husker's summer internship aims to bring tax education to nebraska schools.

11 projects funded through Grand Challenges competition

Conversation guides the backbone of Husker Dialogues experience

Digital Humanities project focuses on digital literacy with BookTok Collective

Landis’ new book empowers youth through positivity

Study IDs secret of stealthy invader essential to ruinous rice disease

Nebraska's new business and law major 'best decision' for Kinney

Variyam co-develops innovative new data analysis algorithm

open Quick Links

• Passport Office
• Subscribe to Newsletter
• News and Announcements
• Travel Security, Emergencies, Health and Safety
• Team and Directory
• RE:BORDER Conference

open Colleges

• Arts and Letters
• Fowler College of Business
• Engineering
• Graduate Studies
• Health and Human Services
• SDSU Library
• Professional Studies and Fine Arts
• Weber Honors College

open Other Locations

• SDSU Georgia
• SDSU Global Campus
• SDSU Imperial Valley
• SDSU Mission Valley
• International Affairs

Global Strategic Plan

In August 2020, San Diego State University adopted a new five-year strategic plan entitled “We Rise We Defy: Transcending Borders, Transforming Lives.” The Global Strategy Action Plan that was identified through the university’s strategic plan is part of the American Council on Education (ACE)’s Internationalization Laboratory Cohort. This is structured around the ACE Comprehensive Internationalization Framework and will guide our campus through strategic planning to internationalize students’ SDSU experience and advance the International Affairs mission to inspire globally conscious citizens. 

After an extensive multi-year process involving hundreds of stakeholders, four global strategic priorities have emerged. These include: International Access, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Global and Transborder Engagement; International Environmental, Social, and Financial Sustainability; and International Innovation. 

To view the full Global Strategic report click the link below:

Strategic priorities, four strategic priorities emerged through an extensive multi-year process that aligns with sdsu's internationalization goals..

Strategic Goals and Activities

Goal 1: strategic internationalization alignment.

In alignment with the university 2020–2025 Strategic Plan (SP), the Global Strategy (GS) will serve as the university's commitment to and roadmap for comprehensive internationalization in support of SDSU's strategic priorities and four global strategic priorities: (1) access, diversity, equity, and inclusion, (2) global and transborder engagement, (3) financial/environmental sustainability, and (4) innovation. The International Affairs Associate Vice President's Office will provide leadership to implement the GS plan.

• In alignment with Activity #29 of SDSU's Strategic Plan, The Global Strategy Action Plan (GSAP) will serve as a living document to guide comprehensive internationalization and funding of priorities including: 1) international student recruitment, yield and retention; 2) administrative structure; curriculum, co-curriculum, and learning outcomes; 3) faculty policies; 4) global education opportunities; 5) international student experience; 5) partnerships; 6) access, diversity, equity, and inclusion; 7) transborder engagement, and 8) international research.
• Identify goals that prioritize data-informed policies and procedures that prioritize innovation, risk mitigation, and safety.
• Identify a goal that prioritizes advocacy, prioritizes visibility, and promotion of international activity and research across campus and to all campus community members.
• Commit to signing the Climate Action Network for International Educators (CANIE) Accord.
• By [date] secure institutioal approvals and support of the Global Strategy.
• By [date] Develop a Global Strategy Action Plan website within International Affairs and update progress and accomplishments on an ongoing basis.
• By [date] create a development plan and seek appointment of a development officer within URAD.
• Collaborate with ASIR to develop team metrics to demonstrate SDSU's activities over time as it relates to international activities.
• Create a Tableau dashboard that visualizes internationalization efforts, and makes reporting accessible to the SDSU community.
• Im plement software that supports prioritizes visibility, promotions and advocacy of international engagementy and research.
• Identify opportunities where international engagement is promoted and valued in the tenure and promotion at SDSU.
• Work with faculty, students and the Office of Energy and Sustainability to determine the specific CANIE Accord actions to which the university will commit.
• Develop and implement action plan for fulfilling accord commitments.
• Continually assess progress in meeting commitments.

Goal 2: Internationalization Through Meaningful Partnerships

In alignment with SDSU's strategic plan, expand academic infrastructure and partnership to meet the needs of broadly diverse learners in our region, across the border, the nation, and the world.

• Infrastructure of internal collaborations & partnerships.
• Infrastructure of external collaborations and partnerships. 
• Create a steering committee to 1) outline a charter of Collaborations and Partnerships, 2) conduct an annual audit of infrastructure and partners, and 3) provide recommendations and implementation plan.
• Create an internal communications plan that rpovided information regarding best practices, policies, and practices to facilitate international communication between IA, colleges, and campus units.
• Expand professional development training and partnership opportunities for internationalizing the curriculum at SDSU.
• MOU policies, procedures, and protocols
• Create an external communications guide that includes best practices, policies, and practices to facilitate international communication between IA, colleges, and campus compass units.
• Safety and Secutiry policies, procedures, and protocols. Are upheld through use of Terra Dotta, Travel Registry and Alert Traveler software.
• Annually in May, review the full intitutional partnership and collaboration portfolio and develop/update policies, procedures, review criteria, and timelines for selecting international partners, sustaining relationships, and keeping records.

Goal 3: Students as Globally Conscious Leaders

In alignment with SDSU's strategic plan, we will provide equitable access to opportunities for the education and training of SDSU undergraduates, graduates, and lifelong learners to become the innovators and leaders our region and global society demand. Through alignment with the GLOs, SDSU students' experiences in and outside of the classroom will be designed to explore their cultural identities; examine the relationships between language, culture, history and power; engage with critical global issues; and increase their career readiness.

• International student campus engagement and support.
• Engage all SDSU students with global education, prioritizing pathways for students who have historically been underrepresented in these opportunities.
• Create infrastructure that supports international students academic success through collaborative campus engagement across administrative units and colleges.
• define key cross-campus collaboration processes to support international students' sense of SDSU identity by working with key DEI units and programming offices.
•  Build partnerships with SDSU colleges and cultural centers throough regular communication and joint outreach.
• Integrate regular outcomes assessment and student evaluations of global education experiences into data and reporting, to facilitate continous improvement of programs to serve all students.
• identify specific programs and pathways that address the most common barriers to student participation in global education opportunities.

Goal 4: Faculty as Global Education Leaders

In alignment with SDSU's strategic plan, the mark of our  global leadership will be an innovative institutional infrastructure that promotes and supports research, learning outcomes, professional development, student experiences in and outside the classroom, and transnational and global relationships. Global Learning Objectives (GLOs) will be central to aligning curriculum, student advising, faculty research, and faculty engagement with this goal.

• Increase and support Curriculum Internalization
• Increase and support International Research.
• Develop a strategy that identifies COIL as an institutional priority that includes faculty panels, COIL training, and faculty partnership building.
• Implement a plan for GLO alignment that integrates GLOs into course catalog, is part of the faculty hiring and promotion process, and is the foundation for student advising.
• Expand course articulation between SDSU and international partner institutions across all academic disciplines and offer faculty-led programs to strategically augment the existing international offerings available to students.
• Identify (2) opportunities in each academic college to expand diversity of and access to international learning opportunities.
• Recognize and celebrate international research.
• Increase faculty engagement with established software to promote international research and publications. 
• Implement new database software to highlight existing and promote further international research.
• Develop a sustainable plan that creates support and pathways to visiting International Scholars, and addresses housing resources, community, and belonging.

Goal 5: SDSU's international Identity

SDSU will expand it's global impact, unifyiing the university through common missing and identityt to achieve its global strategic goals.

• Define and promote SDSU's International Identity in alignment with SDSU's strategic plan.
• Provide consistent publications highlighting international activity focused on students, faculty, and staff.
• Launch a communication campaign across campus to communicate IA's mission, vision, and the GS. 
• Launch new International Affairs Website with updated branding and functiional areas specific sites.
• Develop a editorital calendar to regularly publish stories (eg.international students, study abroad, faculty teaching/research, scholars, and awards/distinctions).
• Communicate International Experience requirements (IERs) and updates to these requirements to all campus stakeholders.
• Plan & Process
• Timeline & Updates
• Campus Events
• Communications & Documents

Welcome to SDSU

• All Stories
• Journalists
• Media Contacts
• Arts & Culture
• Business & Economy
• Education & Society
• Environment
• Law & Politics
• Science & Technology
• International
• Artificial Intelligence
• Abortion Access
• Food Addiction
• Food Security
• Coronavirus
• Mental Health
• Smoking & Vaping
• This is Michigan
• Pride, LGBTQ
• Transportation Technology

U-M unveils five-year strategic plan for diversity, equity and inclusion

• [email protected]

ANN ARBOR—Following a year-long, grassroots planning effort, the University of Michigan has unveiled its universitywide strategic blueprint for making the university community more diverse, equitable and inclusive.

The five-year strategic plan for diversity, equity and inclusion was outlined Thursday during a program hosted by Rob Sellers, vice provost for Diversity, Equity and Academic Affairs, at the Power Center for the Performing Arts.

The day before at his Leadership Breakfast, U-M President Mark Schlissel announced he would recommend Sellers as the university’s first chief diversity officer, a critical leadership role for implementing the ambitious initiatives in the plan.

“The future of our great university will be determined by how well we embrace the values of diversity, equity and inclusion,” Schlissel said. “To live up to our full potential as a university, everyone must have the opportunity to contribute and to benefit, and our community can be complete only when all members feel welcome.

“Our dedication to academic excellence for the public good is inseparable from our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. We cannot be excellent without being diverse in the broadest sense of that word.”

The 43-page plan represents the shared overarching themes and strategies present across 49 individual plans created by the university’s 19 schools and colleges, Student Life, Athletics, U-M Health System and other administrative units.

The university has committed $85 million in new resources over the next five years to implement the initiatives in the plans, which fall into three overarching strategies:

• Creating an inclusive and equitable campus.
• Recruiting, retaining and developing a diverse university community.
• Supporting innovation and inclusive scholarship and teaching.

The university is committed to transparency and accountability at all levels under the plans with a responsible office or person identified for each action and metrics on demographic and climate trends that will be tracked over time and publicly reported.

The plans were crafted after a year of interactive and web-based engagement sessions, in which unit-specific and campuswide gatherings were hosted to provide students, faculty and staff opportunities to help shape the vision of a more diverse, equitable and inclusive U-M. During the 200-plus engagement sessions, designated unit planning teams gathered input from thousands of members of the university community.

The plans include scores of new initiatives and programs that are detailed in a web-based document that includes historical context and baseline data. Some highlights of the new central initiatives include:

• A program for incoming freshmen to help assess and then develop skills for navigating cultural and other differences, addressing the fact that new students to U-M come from varying backgrounds. This Student Life program will draw upon the expertise of U-M’s Program on Intergroup Relations.
• Enhanced educational programming for all new faculty on inclusive teaching methods, led by U-M’s Center for Research on Learning and Teaching. The goal of the program is to provide resources and tools that will help faculty make learning more inclusive and effective across diverse groups of students. This will be rolled out to all faculty members in future years.
• Several new outreach programs to recruit and retain a more diverse pool of students, faculty and staff, including an urban school initiative for new undergraduate students and enhanced partnerships with Minority Serving Institutions for increasing the pipeline of diverse graduate students for U-M.
• An innovation grant program to catalyze new ideas from students, faculty and staff for addressing issues of diversity, equity and inclusion.

The plans of the schools, colleges, health system and other units also include innovative programming specific to the needs and missions of those entities, such as:

• The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts plans to initiate a two-year postdoctoral fellowship to recruit extraordinarily promising scholars whose research, teaching and service will contribute to diversity and equality in higher education. Recruiting up to 50 fellows over five years, LSA will convert these positions to tenure-track lines upon successful completion of the fellowship.
• The Stamps School of Art & Design will revise approximately three academic or studio courses each year over the next few years on subject-related diversity issues. Future faculty recruitment efforts will focus on prospective faculty with a creative work record in areas such as social justice, creative citizenship, public advocacy, civil rights and community engagement in underrepresented communities.
• Business and Finance is creating a Bystander Awareness and Skill Training Program to train staff members who witness or experience disrespectful or non-inclusive actions in the workplace how to speak up effectively.
• The Health System will develop a centralized toolkit for faculty members serving on search or selection committees. Resources will cover a range of topics, including unconscious bias training; inclusive recruitment searches, job descriptions and interviewing techniques; and the benefits of the Ann Arbor-Detroit area for diverse audiences.
• Student Life will significantly enhance programming at the new, centrally located multicultural center, which will include activities designed to develop cultural learning and programs to support students experiencing bias or feeling excluded or unwelcome on campus.

Implementation of the new initiatives begins immediately, complementing many activities recently undertaken by the university.

In the past year, the university has approved the building of a new $10 million multicultural center at the heart of campus and funding for the new Wolverine Pathways program, which will help increase the critical mass of underrepresented students as it creates a pipeline to the university for students from the Ypsilanti and Southfield communities. The program will expand to Detroit in fall 2017.

Also within the past year, the university launched the HAIL Scholars initiative. HAIL (High Achieving Involved Leader) is a two-year pilot effort that is testing a new approach to reaching—and enrolling—high-achieving, low-income students from across the state. It provides resources that remove some of the barriers proven to stop some students from applying to the university. For students who apply and are accepted, the HAIL Scholarship provides four years of free tuition—a value of about $60,000.

During his overview of the strategic plan, Sellers pointed out that the university has a deep, longstanding commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion—already spending an average of at least $40 million annually toward those efforts.

Sellers also announced that later this month the university will launch a campuswide survey of students, faculty and staff to gauge the climate regarding diversity, equity and inclusion.

The survey, which will use a scientific sample of faculty, students and staff, will help the university create a base level of statistics for measuring the effectiveness of the new and existing programs and initiatives geared toward creating a more diverse, equitable and inclusive environment. The survey will be repeated over time to measure progress.

Sellers’ office also will support a network of DE&I professionals throughout the schools, colleges and other units to help facilitate collaboration and idea sharing to help spread best practices across campus.

“The value of creating a robust, diverse, equitable and inclusive campus community—one where people of different abilities, races and ethnicities, political and religious views, sexual orientations and gender identities feel welcome and accepted—is immeasurable,” Sellers said.

“We know that creating this ideal climate won’t happen overnight, but I’m proud that the university is committed to making this campus more diverse, equitable and inclusive.”

More information:

• Campuswide strategic diversity plan

412 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1399 Email [email protected] Phone 734-764-7260 About Michigan News

• Engaged Michigan
• Global Michigan
• Michigan Medicine
• Public Affairs

Publications

• Michigan Today
• The University Record

Office of the Vice President for Communications © 2023 The Regents of the University of Michigan

University Department of Public Safety

University Safety launches five-year strategic plan

New vision focused on uniting for a safe and empowered campus community.

University of Utah Safety recently launched a five-year strategic plan to guide safety efforts into the future and provide a foundation for the growing and evolving department. Developed by representatives from across U Safety, the plan outlines a new vision and mission statement, as well as strategic goals that align with those of the institution.

• Vision: Uniting for a safe and empowered campus community
• Uniting with the campus community to implement safety programs that meet our community needs
• Respectfully empowering students, faculty, staff, patients, and visitors with education, training, and resources
• Listening to the needs to the campus community with compassion
• Advocating for underserved populations
• Fulfilling our responsibilities with integrity, transparency, and accountability
• Achieve operational excellence
• Strengthen trust with the community
• Invest in talent development and plan for the future

“ We take our responsibility to lead campus safety efforts seriously, but we also know it takes all of us to truly create an environment where everyone feels safe, welcomed and respected,”  said Annalisa Purser,  director of  administrati on   for   U Safety .  “This plan  focuses on partnering with the campus community to foster a safe environment where all individuals feel empowered and equipped to succeed in their work, medical caregiving, education, and other business with the university .”

The plan was reviewed by the Public Safety Advisory Committee and will be updated regularly. More information is available on the  University Safety website .  

Each of the three strategic goals includes a set of objectives,  strategies and action plans , which provides structure and consistency while also allowing flexibility for updates as situations and circumstances change.   

Goal 1:  In order to achieve operational excellence, the plan prioritizes developing, growing, and innovating program and service offerings; improving business processes and systems to ensure consistency and increase efficiencies; and focusing on professional standards. To this end, a new  Community Services division  was established and has already grown from one to three employees, who are all social workers. A new administrative team was created to manage and coordinate business processes across the department, and a  new position  was created in 2020 to oversee the department’s accreditation and compliance efforts.  

Goal 2:  To strengthen trust with the campus community, the department is committed to community service and engagement, strengthening accountability and transparency and supporting students and  community education and development. This includes efforts such as creating the  Independent Review and Public Safety Advisory committees , hosting  Presidential Interns  and involving them in policy development and the accreditation process, establishing a  SafeU  Ambassador program  and providing community workshops, such as the  Workplace Violence Prevention training  that is given to all first-year nursing students.   

Goal 3:  Investing in talent development and planning for the future involves enhancing professional development and training, as well as recruiting, hiring, and retaining individuals who support the department’s mission and represent the diversity of the community it serves. Some efforts to accomplish this include j oining and maintaining memberships with professional organizations, including those focused on supporting and elevating underrepresented groups in the public safety profession ; u pdating internal department awards and recognitions to reflect  the  new vision and mission ; p articipating in the Intercultural Development Inventory to  better understand cultural differences  and  responses to these differences and  develop  action  plans  for increas ing  intercultural competence ; and  e nsuring employee evaluations reflect the department’s  values.  

Some additional action items to be addressed during the next five years include:

• Updating internal policies to adhere to accreditation standards and to meet the unique needs of the University of Utah community  
• Implementing an early warning system to address concerning behaviors
• Earning  accreditation  through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) and the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA)
• Expanding U Health Security into regional health clinics in order to ensure all U Health employees and visitors receive the same level and standards of protection
• Developing and launching a new safety app to provide additional services and features to the campus community
• Launching a new records management system that will improve information sharing among law enforcement agencies and allow the department to share data about police interactions on campus
• Expanding Emergency Communications services to improve police response and provide more immediate crisis support
• Creating an improved process for receiving  feedback  from the community and ensuring a consistent and thorough investigation and response
• Implement ing  a body-worn camera program for University Police
• Updating internal policies in order to comply with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Standards for Certification on Use of Force and Safe Policing for Safe Communities
• Joining the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP)  One Mind Campaign  to improve response to those affected by mental illness
• Making information housed in the Annual Security Report more easily accessible by updating important safety information on the  SafeU website
• Serving as a practicum site for students from the College of Social Work to both increase capacity and provide valuable real-world clinical experience to students  

About University Safety  

In 2019, the U created  a new  Chief Safety Officer (CSO) position, filled by Marlon C. Lynch on Feb .  1, 2020. In this inaugural role, he  restructured public safety functions at the U,  including adding new leadership positions, elevating and growing existing divisions, as well as creating new ones to increase  capacity, improve accountability, and better meet the needs of the U community . Instead of all units reporting through the chief of police, all divisions are now separate and report directly to the CSO. This includes U Health Security, Campus Security, Emergency Services, University Police and the new Community Services division.    

CSO Lynch also  built a centralized team that supports the entire department and is responsible for strategic initiatives, communication   and marketing, budget planning, relationships with external public safety agencies, public safety committee management ,  security and law enforcement technologies,  community engagement  and evaluating and improving the campus climate related to safety and inclusion.  

Some of the content on this website requires JavaScript to be enabled in your web browser to function as intended. This includes, but is not limited to: navigation, video, image galleries, etc. While the website is still usable without JavaScript, it should be enabled to enjoy the full interactive experience.

• Facts & Rankings
• Maps and Directions
• Office of the President
• Office of the Provost
• EVP & Chief Operating Officer
• EVP & Chief Advancement Officer
• VP and Chief Information Officer
• Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer
• VP for Research
• VP of Strategic Marketing and Communications
• VP of Student Affairs
• VP of Enrollment
• Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Vice President of Investments and Administration
• VP of Campus Planning and Design
• Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Faculty Advancement
• Strategic Plan
• Board of Trustees
• Vice President of University Advancement

» Previous 5-year Strategic Plans

Since the early 1990s, Chapman University has experienced unprecedented growth and academic achievement. The University accomplished this growth through the implementation of a series of five-year plans.

"Engineering the Future"   – Focus on the establishment of the School of Engineering; continuous development of the Rinker campus, Pharmacy and Graduate Health Science programs; launching of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Brain and Behavioral Sciences.

2013 to 2018

"Moving into the Health Sciences"  – Emphasis on growth in graduate health science programs and establishing a school of pharmacy; strengthening our traditional commitment to the undergraduate student

2008 to 2013

“A Path to National Stature”  – Recruiting faculty with national and international visibility: Economic Science Institute, Institute for Quantum Studies, Institute for the Study of Religion, Economics, and Society; expanding programs in the sciences

2003 to 2008

"Enhancement of Physical Facilities"

1998 to 2003

Establishment of the Fowler School of Law and the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts; growing existing professional programs

1993 to 1998

Improving the quality of incoming students, by increasing student selectivity

• Letter From the President
• Previous Strategic Plans
• Academic Excellence
• Expanding Health Sciences
• Organizational Excellence
• Campus Projects Enhancing Community-Building
• Comprehensive Campaign
• Download Strategic Plan Brochure (PDF)

• Academic Programs
• Strategic Plan

• About Father Maher
• President’s Vision in Action
• Board of Trustees
• Board of Advisors (U.S.)
• Board of Advisors (Ontario)
• President's Cabinet

Strategic Plan 2018-2025

• Campus Map and Directions
• Phone and Fax Directory
• Accreditations
• Niagara University Institute for Professional Development
• Family Literacy Center
• So Much to Do
• Meeting Space and Athletic Facilities
• Stay on Campus
• Facility Service Requests
• Facility Forms and Policies
• Contact Facility Services
• Whistleblowing
• Contact General Counsel
• Working at Niagara
• Contact Human Resources
• Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment
• Inclusive Excellence
• Contact ODEI
• NU Policies and Procedures
• Training and Events
• Complaint Form
• Office of Sponsored Programs
• Post Office
• Eagle Magazine
• The Ethics in Medicine and Healthcare Program
• The Niagara Falls Health Equity Task Force
• Land Acknowledgement
• Make a Gift
• Powering Transformation
• President’s Dinner
• Endowment Opportunities
• Niagara Fund
• Students Give Thanks
• Contact Institutional Advancement

404 Not found

The Complete Guide to Writing a Strategic Plan

By Joe Weller | April 12, 2019 (updated July 17, 2021)

Link copied

Writing a strategic plan can be daunting, as the process includes many steps. In this article, you’ll learn the basics of writing a strategic plan, what to include, common challenges, and more.

Included on this page, you'll find details on what to include in a strategic plan , the importance of an executive summary , how to write a mission statement , how to write a vision statement , and more.

The Basics of Writing a Strategic Plan

The strategic planning process takes time, but the payoff is huge. If done correctly, your strategic plan will engage and align stakeholders around your company’s priorities.

Strategic planning, also called strategy development or analysis and assessment , requires attention to detail and should be performed by someone who can follow through on next steps and regular updates. Strategic plans are not static documents — they change as new circumstances arise, both internally and externally.

Before beginning the strategic planning process, it’s important to make sure you have buy-in from management, a board of directors, or other leaders. Without it, the process cannot succeed.

Next, gather your planning team. The group should include people from various departments at different levels, and the planning process should be an open, free discussion within the group. It’s important for leaders to get input from the group as a whole, but they don’t necessarily need approval from everyone — that will slow down the process.

The plan author is responsible for writing and putting the final plan together and should work with a smaller group of writers to establish and standardize the tone and style of the final document or presentation.

Sometimes, it’s a good idea to hire an external party to help facilitate the strategic planning process.

“It often can be helpful to have a really good facilitator to organize and pursue strategic conversations,” says Professor John M. Bryson, McKnight Presidential Professor of Planning and Public Affairs at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota and author of Strategic Planning for Public and Nonprofit Organizations: A Guide to Strengthening and Sustaining Organizational Achievement .

Byson says the facilitator can be in-house or external, but they need experience. “You need to make sure someone is good, so there needs to be a vetting process,” he says.

One way to gauge a facilitator’s experience is by asking how they conduct conversations. “It’s important for facilitators to lead by asking questions,” Bryson says.

Bryson says that strong facilitators often ask the following questions:

What is the situation we find ourselves in?

What do we do?

How do we do it?

How do we link our purposes to our capabilities?

The facilitators also need to be able to handle conflict and diffuse situations by separating idea generation from judgement. “Conflict is part of strategic planning,” Bryson admits. “[Facilitators] need to hold the conversations open long enough to get enough ideas out there to be able to make wise choices.”

These outside helpers are sometimes more effective than internal facilitators since they are not emotionally invested in the outcome of the process. Thus, they can concentrate on the process and ask difficult questions.

A strategic plan is a dynamic document or presentation that details your company’s present situation, outlines your future plans, and shows you how the company can get there. You can take many approaches to the process and consider differing ideas about what needs to go into it, but some general concepts stand.

“Strategic planning is a prompt or a facilitator for fostering strategic thinking, acting, and learning,” says Bryson. He explains that he often begins planning projects with three questions:

What do you want to do?

How are we going to do it?

What would happen if you did what you want to do?

The answers to these questions make up the meat of the planning document.

A strategic plan is only effective when the writing and thinking is clear, since the intent is to help an organization keep to its mission through programs and capacity, while also building stakeholder engagement.

Question 1: Where Are We Now?

The answer (or answers) to the first question — where are we now? — addresses the foundation of your organization, and it can serve as an outline for the following sections of your strategic plan:

Mission statement

Core values and guiding principles

Identification of competing organizations

Industry analysis (this can include a SWOT or PEST analysis)

Question 2: Where Are We Going?

The answers to this question help you identify your goals for the future of the business and assess whether your current trajectory is the future you want. These aspects of the plan outline a strategy for achieving success and can include the following:

Vision statement about what the company will look like in the future

What is happening (both internally and externally) and what needs to change

The factors necessary for success

Question 3: How Do We Get There?

The answers to this question help you outline the many routes you can take to achieve your vision and match your strengths with opportunities in the market. A Gantt chart can help you map out and keep track of these initiatives.

You should include the following sections:

Specific and measurable goals

An execution plan that identifies who manages and monitors the plan

An evaluation plan that shows how you plan to measure the successes and setbacks that come with implementation

What to Include in a Strategic Plan

Strategic planning terminology is not standardized throughout the industry, and this can lead to confusion. Instead, strategic planning experts use many names for the different sections of a strategic plan.

“The terms are all over the map. It’s really the concept of what the intention of the terms are [that is important],” says Denise McNerney, President and CEO of iBossWell, Inc. , and incoming president of the Association for Strategic Planning (ASP). She recommends coming up with a kind of glossary that defines the terms for your team. “One of the most important elements when you’re starting the strategic planning process is to get some clarity on the nomenclature. It’s just what works for your organization. Every organization is slightly different.”

No matter what terms you use, the general idea of a strategic plan is the same. “It’s like drawing a map for your company. One of the first steps is committing to a process, then determining how you’re going to do it,” McNerney explains.

She uses a basic diagram that she calls the strategic plan architecture . The areas above the red dotted line are the strategic parts of the plan. Below the red dotted line are the implementation pieces.

While the specific terminology varies, basic sections of a strategic plan include the following in roughly this order:

Executive summary

Elevator pitch or company description

Vision statement

Industry analysis

Marketing plan

Operations plan

Financial projections

Evaluation methods

Signature page

Some plans will contain all the above sections, but others will not — what you include depends on your organization’s structure and culture.

“I want to keep it simple, so organizations can be successful in achieving [the strategic plan],” McNerney explains. “Your plan has to be aligned with your culture and your culture needs to be aligned with your plan if you’re going to be successful in implementing it.”

The following checklist will help you keep track of what you have done and what you still need to do.

‌ Download Strategic Plan Sections Checklist

How to Write a Strategic Plan

Once you’ve assembled your team and defined your terms, it’s time to formalize your ideas by writing the strategic plan. The plan may be in the form of a document, a presentation, or another format.

You can use many models and formats to create your strategic plan (read more about them in this article ). However, you will likely need to include some basic sections, regardless of the particular method you choose (even if the order and way you present them vary). In many cases, the sections of a strategic plan build on each other, so you may have to write them in order.

One tip: Try to avoid jargon and generic terms; for example, words like maximize and succeed lose their punch. Additionally, remember that there are many terms for the same object in strategic planning.

The following sections walk you through how to write common sections of a strategic plan.

How to Write an Executive Summary

The key to writing a strong executive summary is being clear and concise. Don’t feel pressured to put anything and everything into this section — executive summaries should only be about one to two pages long and include the main points of the strategic plan.

The idea is to pique the reader’s interest and get them to read the rest of the plan. Because it functions as a review of the entire document, write the executive summary after you complete the rest of your strategic plan.

“If you have a plan that’s really lengthy, you should have a summary,” says Jim Stockmal, President of the Association for Strategic Planning (ASP). He always writes summaries last, after he has all the data and information he needs for the plan. He says it is easier to cut than to create something.

For more information about writing an effective executive summary, a checklist, and free templates, read this article .

If you want a one-page executive summary, this template can help you decide what information to include.

Download One-Page Executive Summary Template

Excel | Word | PDF

How to Write a Company Description

Also called an elevator pitch , the company description is a brief outline of your organization and what it does. It should be short enough that it can be read or heard during the average elevator ride.

The company description should include the history of your company, the major products and services you provide, and any highlights and accomplishments, and it should accomplish the following:

Define what you are as a company.

Describe what the company does.

Identify your ideal client and customer.

Highlight what makes your company unique.

While this may seem basic, the company description changes as your company grows and changes. For example, your ideal customer five years ago might not be the same as the current standard or the one you want in five years.

Share the company description with everyone in your organization. If employees cannot accurately articulate what you do to others, you might miss out on opportunities.

How to Write a Mission Statement

The mission statement explains what your business is trying to achieve. In addition to guiding your entire company, it also helps your employees make decisions that move them toward the company’s overall mission and goals.

“Ideally, [the mission statement is] something that describes what you’re about at the highest level,” McNerney says. “It’s the reason you exist or what you do.”

Strong mission statements can help differentiate your company from your competitors and keep you on track toward your goals. It can also function as a type of tagline for your organization.

Mission statements should do the following:

Define your company’s purpose. Say what you do, who you do it for, and why it is valuable.

Use specific and easy-to-understand language.

Be inspirational while remaining realistic.

Be short and succinct.

This is your chance to define the way your company will make decisions based on goals, culture, and ethics. Mission statements should not be vague or generic, and they should set your business apart from others. If your mission statement could define many companies in your line of work, it is not a good mission statement.

Mission statements don’t have to be only outward-facing for customers or partners. In fact, it is also possible to include what your company does for its employees in your mission statement.

Unlike other parts of your strategic plan that are designed to be reviewed and edited periodically, your company’s mission statement should live as is for a while.

That said, make the effort to edit and refine your mission statement. Take out jargon like world class, best possible, state of the art, maximize, succeed , and so on, and cut vague or unspecific phrasing. Then let your strategic planning committee review it.

How to Write a Vision Statement

Every action your company does contributes to its vision. The vision statement explains what your company wants to achieve in the long term and can help inspire and align your team.

“The vision is the highest-ordered statement of the desired future or state of what you want your business to achieve,” McNerney explains.

A clear vision statement can help all stakeholders understand the meaning and purpose of your company. It should encourage and inspire employees while setting your company’s direction. It also helps you rule out elements that might not align with your vision.

Vision statements should be short (a few sentences). They should also be memorable, specific, and ambitious. But there is a fine line between being ambitious and creating a fantasy. The vision should be clearly attainable if you follow the goals and objectives you outline later in your strategic planning plan.

Because you need to know your company’s goals and objectives to create an accurate vision statement, you might need to wait until you have more information about the company’s direction to write your vision statement.

Below are questions to ask your team as you craft your vision statement:

What impact do we want to have on our community and industry?

How will we interact with others as a company?

What is the culture of the business?

Avoid broad statements that could apply to any company or industry. For example, phrases like “delivering a wonderful experience” could apply to many industries. Write in the present tense, avoid jargon, and be clear and concise.

Vision statements should accomplish the following:

Be inspiring.

Focus on success.

Look at and project about five to 10 years ahead.

Stay in line with the goals and values of your organization.

Once you write your vision statement, communicate it to everyone in your company. Your team should be able to easily understand and repeat the company’s vision statement. Remember, the statements can change as the environment in and around your company changes.

The Difference Between Mission and Vision Statements

Mission and vision statements are both important, but they serve very different purposes.

Mission statements show why a business exists, while vision statements are meant to inspire and provide direction. Mission statements are about the present, and vision statements are about the future. The mission provides items to act upon, and the vision offers goals to aspire to.

For example, if a vision statement is “No child goes to bed hungry,” the accompanying mission would be to provide food banks within the city limits.

While many organizations have both mission and vision statements, it’s not imperative. “Not everyone has a vision statement,” McNerney says. “Some organizations just have one.”

If you choose to have only one statement, McNerney offers some advice: “Any statement you have, if you have just one, needs to include what [you do], how [you do it], why [you do it], and who you do it for.”

During the planning process, these key statements might change. “Early on in the process, you need to talk about what you are doing and why and how you are doing it. Sometimes you think you know where you want to go, but you’re not really sure,” McNerney says. “You need to have flexibility both on the plan content and in the process.”

How to Write Your Company’s Core Values

Company core values , sometimes called organizational values , help you understand what drives the company to do what it does. In this section, you’ll learn a lot about your company and the people who work with you. It should be relatively easy to write.

“The values are the core of how you operate [and] how you treat your people, both internally and externally. Values describe the behaviors you really want to advance,” McNerney says.

There are both internal and external values looking at your employees and coworkers, as well as customers and outside stakeholders. Pinpointing values will help you figure out the traits of the people you want to hire and promote, as well as the qualities you’re looking for in your customers.

Your values should align with your vision statement and highlight your strengths while mitigating weaknesses. McNerney says many organizations do not really consider or are not honest about their company’s values when working on strategic plans, which can lead to failure.

“Your strategies have to align with your values and vice versa,” she explains.

Many companies’ values sound like meaningless jargon, so take the time to figure out what matters to your company and push beyond generic language.

How to Write about Your Industry

When planning ahead for your business, it’s important to look around. How are matters inside your company? What are your competitors doing? Who are your target customers?

“[If you don’t do a thorough industry analysis], you’re doing your planning with your head in the sand. If you’re not looking at the world around you, you’re missing a whole dimension about what should inform your decision making,” McNerney advises.

Writing about your industry helps you identify new opportunities for growth and shows you how you need to change in order to take advantage of those opportunities. Identify your key competitors, and define what you see as their strengths and weaknesses. Performing this analysis will help you figure out what you do best and how you compare to your competition. Once you know what you do well, you can exploit your strengths to your advantage.

In this section, also include your SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis. You can choose from many templates to help you write this section.

Next, identify your target customers. Think about what they want and need, as well as how you can provide it. Do your competitors attract your target customers, or do you have a niche that sets you apart?

The industry analysis carries a price, but also provides many benefits. “It takes some time and money to do [a thorough industry analysis], but the lack of that understanding says a lot about the future of your organization. If you don’t know what is going on around you, how can you stay competitive?” explains McNerney.

How to Write Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives

This section is the bulk of your strategic plan. Many people confuse goals and objectives, thinking the terms are interchangeable, but many argue that the two are distinct. You can think of them this way:

Goals : Goals are broad statements about what you want to achieve as a company, and they’re usually qualitative. They function as a description of where you want to go, and they can address both the short and long term.

Objectives : Objectives support goals, and they’re usually quantitative and measurable. They describe how you will measure the progress needed to arrive at the destination you outlined in the goal. More than one objective can support one goal.

For example, if your goal is to achieve success as a strategic planner, your objective would be to write all sections of the strategic plan in one month.

iBossWell, Inc.’s McNerney reiterates that there are not hard and fast definitions for the terms goals and objectives , as well as many other strategic planning concepts. “I wouldn’t attempt to put a definition to the terms. You hear the terms goals and objectives a lot, but they mean different things to different people. What some people call a goal , others call an objective . What some people call an objective , others would call a KPI. ” They key, she explains, is to decide what the terms mean in your organization, explain the definitions to key stakeholders, and stick to those definitions.

How to Write Goals

Goals form the basis of your strategic plan. They set out your priorities and initiatives, and therefore are critical elements and define what your plan will accomplish. Some planning specialists use the term strategic objectives or strategic priorities when referring to goals, but for clarity, this article will use the term goals.

“[Goals] are the higher level that contain several statements about what your priorities are,” McNerney explains. They are often near the top of your plan’s hierarchy.

Each goal should reflect something you uncovered during the analysis phase of your strategic planning process. Goals should be precise and concise statements, not long narratives. For example, your goals might be the following:

Eliminate case backlog.

Lower production costs.

Increase total revenue.

Each goal should have a stated outcome and a deadline. Think of goal writing as a formula: Action + detail of the action + a measurable metric + a deadline = goal. For example, your goal might be: Increase total revenue by 5 percent in three product areas by the third quarter of 2020.

Another way to look at it: Verb (action) + adjective (description) = noun (result). An example goal: Increase website fundraising.

Your goals should strike a balance between being aspirational and tangible. You want to stretch your limits, but not make them too difficult to reach. Your entire organization and stakeholders should be able to remember and understand your goals.

Think about goals with varying lengths. Some should go out five to 10 years, others will be shorter — some significantly so. Some goals might even be quarterly, monthly, or weekly. But be careful to not create too many goals. Focus on the ones that allow you to zero in on what is critical for your company’s success. Remember, several objectives and action steps will likely come from each goal.

How to Write Objectives

Objectives are the turn-by-turn directions of how to achieve your goals. They are set in statement and purpose with no ambiguity about whether you achieve them or not.

Your goals are where you want to go. Next, you have to determine how to get there, via a few different objectives that support each goal. Note that objectives can cover several areas.

“You need implementation elements of the plan to be successful,” McNerney says, adding that some people refer to objectives as tactics , actions , and many other terms.

Objectives often begin with the words increase or decrease because they are quantifiable and measurable. You will know when you achieve an objective. They are action items, often with start and end dates.

Use the goal example from earlier: Increase total revenue by 5 percent in three product areas by the third quarter of 2020. In this example, your objectives could be:

Approach three new possible clients each month.

Promote the three key product areas on the website and in email newsletters.

Think of the acronym SMART when writing objectives: Make them specific, measurable, achievable, realistic/relevant, and time-bound.

Breaking down the process further, some strategic planners use the terms strategies and tactics to label ways to achieve objectives. Using these terms, strategies describe an approach or method you will use to achieve an objective. A tactic is a specific activity or project that achieves the strategy, which, in turn, helps achieve the objective.

How to Write about Capacity, Operations Plans, Marketing Plans, and Financial Plans

After you come up with your goals and objectives, you need to figure out who will do what, how you will market what they do, and how you will pay for what you need to do.

“If you choose to shortchange the process [and not talk about capacity and finances], you need to know what the consequences will be,” explains McNerney. “If you do not consider the additional costs or revenues your plan is going to drive, you may be creating a plan you cannot implement.”

To achieve all the goals outlined in your strategic plan, you need the right people in place. Include a section in your strategic plan where you talk about the capacity of your organization. Do you have the team members to accomplish the objectives you have outlined in order to reach your goals? If not, you may need to hire personnel.

The operations plan maps out your initiatives and shows you who is going to do what, when, and how. This helps transform your goals and objectives into a reality. A summary of it should go into your strategic plan. If you need assistance writing a comprehensive implementation plan for your organization, this article can guide you through the process.

A marketing plan describes how you attract prospects and convert them into customers. You don’t need to include the entire marketing plan in your strategic plan, but you might want to include a summary. For more information about writing marketing plans, this article can help.

Then there are finances. We would all like to accomplish every goal, but sometimes we do not have enough money to do so. A financial plan can help you set your priorities. Check out these templates to help you get started with a financial plan.

How to Write Performance Indicators

In order to know if you are reaching the goals you outline in your strategic plan, you need performance indicators. These indicators will show you what success looks like and ensure accountability. Sadly, strategic plans have a tendency to fail when nobody periodically assesses progress.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) can show you how your business is progressing. KPIs can be both financial and nonfinancial measures that help you chart your progress and take corrective measures if actions are not unfolding as they should. Other terms similar to KPIs include performance measures and performance indicators .

Performance indicators are not always financial, but they must be quantifiable. For example, tracking visitors to a website, customers completing a contact form, or the number of proposals that close with deals are all performance indicators that keep you on track toward achieving your goals.

When writing your performance indicators, pay attention to the following:

Define how often you need to report results.

Every KPI must have some sort of measure.

List a measure and a time period.

Note the data source where you will get your information to measure and track.

ASP’s Stockmal has some questions for you to ask yourself about picking performance indicators.

Are you in control of the performance measure?

Does the performance measure support the strategic outcomes?

Is it feasible?

Is data available?

Who is collecting that data, and how will they do it?

Is the data timely?

Is it cost-effective to collect that data?

ls the goal quantifiable, and can you measure it over time?

Are your targets realistic and time-bound?

Stockmal also says performance indicators cannot focus on only one thing at the detriment of another. “Don’t lose what makes you good,” he says. He adds that focusing on one KPI can hurt other areas of a company’s performance, so reaching a goal can be short-sided.

Some performance indicators can go into your strategic plan, but you might want to set other goals for your organization. A KPI dashboard can help you set up and track your performance and for more information about setting up a KPI dashboard, this article can help.

Communicating Your Strategic Plan

While writing your strategic plan, you should think about how to share it. A plan is no good if it sits on a shelf and nobody reads it.

“After the meetings are over, you have to turn your strategy into action,” says Stefan Hofmeyer, an experienced strategist and co-founder of Global PMI Partners . “Get in front of employees and present the plan [to get everyone involved].” Hofmeyer explains his research has shown that people stay with companies not always because of money, but often because they buy into the organization’s vision and want to play a part in helping it get where it wants to go. “These are the people you want to keep because they are invested,” he says.

Decide who should get a physical copy of the entire plan. This could include management, the board of directors, owners, and more. Do your best to keep it from your competitors. If you distribute it outside of your company, you might want to attach a confidentiality waiver.

You can communicate your plan to stakeholders in the following ways:

Hold a meeting to present the plan in person.

Highlight the plan in a company newsletter.

Include the plan in new employee onboarding.

Post the plan on the employee intranet, along with key highlights and a way to track progress.

If you hold a meeting, make sure you and other key planners are prepared to handle the feedback and discussion that will arise. You should be able to defend your plan and reinforce its key areas. The goal of the plan’s distribution is to make sure everyone understands their role in making the plan successful.

Remind people of your company’s mission, vision, and values to reinforce their importance. You can use posters or other visual methods to post around the office. The more that people feel they play an important part in the organization’s success, they more successful you will be in reaching your goals of your strategic plan.

Challenges in Writing a Strategic Plan

As mentioned, strategic planning is a process and involves a team. As with any team activity, there will be challenges.

Sometimes the consensus can take priority over what is clear. Peer pressure can be a strong force, especially if a boss or other manager is the one making suggestions and people feel pressured to conform. Some people might feel reluctant to give any input because they do not think it matters to the person who ultimately decides what goes into the plan.

Team troubles can also occur when one or more members does not think the plan is important or does not buy into the process. Team leaders need to take care of these troubles before they get out of hand.

Pay attention to your company culture and the readiness you have as a group, and adapt the planning process to fit accordingly. You need to find the balance between the process and the final product.

The planning process takes time. Many organizations do not give themselves enough time to plan properly, and once you finish planning, writing the document or presentation also takes time, as does implementation. Don’t plan so much that you ignore how you are going to put the plan into action. One symptom of this is not aligning the plan to fit the capacity or finances of the company.

Stockmal explains that many organizations often focus too much on the future and reaching their goals that they forget what made them a strong company in the first place. Business architecture is important, which Stockmal says is “building the capabilities the organization needs to fulfill its strategy.” He adds that nothing happens if there is no budget workers to do the work necessary to drive change.

Be careful with the information you gather. Do not take shortcuts in the research phase — that will lead to bad information coming out further in the process. Also, do not ignore negative information you may learn. Overcoming adversity is one way for companies to grow.

Be wary of cutting and pasting either from plans from past years or from other similar organizations. Every company is unique.

And while this may sound obvious, do not ignore what your planning process tells you. Your research might show you should not go in a direction you might want to.

Writing Different Types of Strategic Plans

The strategic planning process will differ based on your organization, but the basic concepts will stay the same. Whether you are a nonprofit, a school, or a for-profit entity, strategic plans will look at where you are and how you will get to where you want to go.

How to Write a Strategic Plan for a Nonprofit

For a nonprofit, the strategic plan’s purpose is mainly how to best advance the mission. It’s imperative to make sure the mission statement accurately fits the organization.

In addition to a SWOT analysis and other sections that go into any strategic plan, a nonprofit needs to keep an eye on changing factors, such as funding. Some funding sources have finite beginnings and endings. Strategic planning is often continuous for nonprofits.

A nonprofit has to make the community care about its cause. In a for-profit organization, the marketing department works to promote the company’s product or services to bring in new revenue. For a nonprofit, however, conveying that message needs to be part of the strategic plan.

Coming up with an evaluation method and KPIs can sometimes be difficult for a nonprofit, since they are often focused on goals other than financial gain. For example, a substance abuse prevention coalition is trying to keep teens from starting to drink or use drugs, and proving the coalition’s methods work is often difficult to quantify.

This template can help you visually outline your strategic plan for your nonprofit.

Download Nonprofit Strategic Plan Template

Excel | Smartsheet

How to Write a Strategic Plan for a School

Writing a strategic plan for a school can be difficult because of the variety of stakeholders involved, including students, teachers, other staff, and parents.

Strategic planning in a school is different from others because there are no markets to explore, products to produce, clients to woo, or adjustable timelines. Schools often have set boundaries, missions, and budgets.

Even with the differences, the same planning process and structure should be in place for schools as it is for other types of organizations.

This template can help your university or school outline your strategic plan.

‌ ‌Download University Strategic Plan Outline – Word

How to Write a 5-Year Strategic Plan

There is no set time period for a strategic plan, but five years can be a sweet spot. In some cases, yearly planning might keep you continually stuck in the planning process, while 10 years might be too far out.

In addition to the basic sections that go into any strategic plan, when forecasting five years into the future, put one- and three-year checkpoints into the plan so you can track progress intermittently.

How to Write a 3-Year Strategic Plan

While five years is often the strategic planning sweet spot, some organizations choose to create three-year plans. Looking too far ahead can be daunting, especially for a new or changing company.

In a three-year plan, the goals and objectives have a shorter timeframe and you need to monitor them more frequently. Build those checkpoints into the plan.

“Most organizations do a three- to five-year plan now because they recognize the technology and the changes in business that are pretty dynamic now,” Stockmal says.

How to Write a Departmental Strategic Plan

The first step in writing a strategic plan for your department is to pay attention to your company’s overall strategic plan. You want to make sure the plans align.

The steps in creating a plan for a department are the same as for an overall strategic plan, but the mission statement, vision, SWOT analysis, goals, objectives, and so on are specific to only the people in your department. Look at each person separately and consider their core competencies, strengths, capabilities, and weaknesses. Assign people who will be responsible for certain tasks and tactics necessary to achieve your goals.

If you have access to a plan from a previous year, see how your department did in meeting its goals. Adjust the new plan accordingly.

When you finish your departmental plan, make sure to submit it to whomever is responsible for your company’s overall plan. Expect to make changes.

How to Write a Strategic Plan for a Project

A strategic plan is for the big picture, not for a particular project for an organization. Instead of a strategic plan, this area would fall under project management.

If you have a failing project and need to turn it around, this article might help.

How to Write a Personal Strategic Plan

Creating a strategic plan isn’t only for businesses. You can also create a strategic plan to help guide both your professional and personal life. The key is to include what is important to you. This process takes time and reflection.

Be prepared for what you discover about yourself. Because you will be looking at your strengths and weaknesses, you might see things you do not like. It is important to be honest with yourself. A SWOT analysis on yourself will give you some honest feedback if you let it.

Begin with looking at your life as it is now. Are you satisfied? What do you want to do more or less? What do you value most in your life? Go deeper than saying family, happiness, and health. This exercise will help you clarify your values.

Once you know what is important to you, come up with a personal mission statement that reflects the values you cherish. As it does within a business, this statement will help guide you in making future decisions. If something does not fit within your personal mission, you shouldn’t do it.

Using the information you discovered during your SWOT and mission statement process, come up with goals that align with your values. The goals can be broad, but don’t forget to include action items and timeframes to help you reach your goals.

As for the evaluation portion, identify how you will keep yourself accountable and on track. You might involve a person to remind you about your plan, calendar reminders, small rewards when you achieve a goal, or another method that works for you.

Below is additional advice for personal strategic plans:

There are things you can control and things you cannot. Keep your focus on what you can act on.

Look at the positive instead of what you will give up. For example, instead of focusing on losing weight, concentrate on being healthier.

Do not overcommit, and do not ignore the little details that help you reach your goals.

No matter what, do not dwell on setbacks and remember to celebrate successes.

Improve Strategic Planning with Real-Time Work Management in Smartsheet

Empower your people to go above and beyond with a flexible platform designed to match the needs of your team — and adapt as those needs change. 

The Smartsheet platform makes it easy to plan, capture, manage, and report on work from anywhere, helping your team be more effective and get more done. Report on key metrics and get real-time visibility into work as it happens with roll-up reports, dashboards, and automated workflows built to keep your team connected and informed. 

When teams have clarity into the work getting done, there’s no telling how much more they can accomplish in the same amount of time.  Try Smartsheet for free, today.

Discover why over 90% of Fortune 100 companies trust Smartsheet to get work done.

• University of Nebraska
• Five-Year Strategy
• Get to Know Nebraska
• Doing Leading Research
• Meet Our People
• Making an Impact
• Support by Giving
• Reinvention
• Transparency
• News & Events
• Offices & Policies
• For Faculty & Staff
• Toggle search

With ‘Five-Point Plan’ in place, University again earns strong rating for fiscal management

August 21, 2023

Thanks in part to President Ted Carter’s “Five-Point Plan”  to reimagine the University of Nebraska during a period of budgetary challenges, the NU System has again earned high marks for fiscal management in a new report issued by one of the nation’s leading credit ratings agencies.

S&P Global recently affirmed the university’s AA bond rating, the second-highest score possible, putting Nebraska among the top 8 percent of public higher education institutions in the country. The rating means the university has strong capacity to pay its bills and debt obligations and ensures that NU can continue borrowing money at low interest rates, saving students and Nebraska taxpayers money.

In its report, S&P Global cited the Five-Point Plan unveiled by Carter in June as a key factor in its decision to affirm the university’s strong bond rating. Carter’s plan – with goals to recruit more Nebraska students, raise the university’s academic and research profile, regain admission into the prestigious Association of American Universities, and identify additional operational efficiencies – aims to address short- and long-term resource challenges facing the University of Nebraska at a time of significant change for all of higher education.

“In our view, this is an example of the university managing in a proactive manner to sustain its long-term financial strength,” S&P wrote.

S&P’s report also highlights the Board of Regents and administration’s conservative budgeting and capital planning practices, NU’s strong fundraising capabilities, historically stable support from the state, and its status as Nebraska’s only public research university system as positive factors.

Carter said the strong score shows the University of Nebraska has been a proactive and responsible steward of its resources as it, like many institutions around the country, manages an unprecedented combination of inflation, muted revenue growth, and enrollment and demographic challenges.

“We built our Five-Point Plan to not only weather the challenges ahead of us, but to reimagine ourselves into a more competitive, dynamic University of Nebraska for the future,” Carter said. “Ultimately, our plan is all about accountability to students and the people of Nebraska. We’ll have to make tough decisions to make sure we’re allocating our resources in ways that create the greatest possible return for Nebraskans, but we are confident in our path forward. It’s gratifying to see our approach affirmed by the best in the business.”

Board of Regents Chairman Tim Clare of Lincoln said: “As a longtime member of the Board, I’ve seen firsthand how much thought goes into budgeting and strategic planning at the University of Nebraska. Our diligence pays off when we can say that we are viewed in such high standing by outside financial experts. We have an ambitious plan in hand to achieve an even higher level of success and rankings like this confirm that we are in a strong position to make our vision a reality.”

Regent Rob Schafer of Beatrice, vice chairman of the Board and chairman of the Business and Finance Committee, said: “Nebraskans can take pride in the conservative fiscal planning we have done to help us manage ups and downs in the economy. Fiscal discipline will be more important than ever going forward. We will continue to focus on being as effective and efficient as possible for the benefit of students, families and taxpayers.”

Carter issued his Five-Point Plan in response to a charge by the Board to build a strategy for balancing the budget while also enhancing the university’s competitiveness in enrollment, research and academics. Regents directed Carter to set system-wide priorities and invest dollars accordingly.

A thorough review of non-academic operations and a zero-based budgeting exercise to justify expenditures are key elements of Carter’s plan. The goal is to free up resources to not only close the university’s budget shortfall, but invest in priorities to help the university compete at the highest levels.

About the University of Nebraska

The University of Nebraska is the state’s only public university system, made up of four campuses – UNL, UNO, UNK and UNMC – each with a distinct role and mission. Together the campuses enroll nearly 50,000 students and employ 16,000 faculty and staff who serve the state, nation and world through education, research and outreach. For more information and news from the University of Nebraska, visit www.nebraska.edu/news .

Related News

• Jun 22, 2023 Carter unveils plan to address budget challenges, accelerate university success
• Jun 15, 2023 Minimal tuition increase highlights proposed 2023-24 university budget

Related Tags

Media contact:.

Melissa Lee

Chief Communication Officer

COOKIE USAGE:

The University of Nebraska System uses cookies to give you the best online experience. By clicking "I Agree" and/or continuing to use this website without adjusting your browser settings, you accept the use of cookies.

PRIVACY SETTINGS

How it works

Transform your enterprise with the scalable mindsets, skills, & behavior change that drive performance.

Build leaders that accelerate team performance and engagement.

Unlock performance potential at scale with AI-powered curated growth journeys.

Build resilience, well-being and agility to drive performance across your entire enterprise.

Transform your business, starting with your sales leaders.

Unlock business impact from the top with executive coaching.

Foster a culture of inclusion and belonging.

Accelerate the performance and potential of your agencies and employees.

See how innovative organizations use BetterUp to build a thriving workforce.

Discover how BetterUp measurably impacts key business outcomes for organizations like yours.

A demo is the first step to transforming your business. Meet with us to develop a plan for attaining your goals.

• For Individuals

Best practices, research, and tools to fuel individual and business growth.

View on-demand BetterUp events and learn about upcoming live discussions.

The latest insights and ideas for building a high-performing workplace.

Innovative research featured in peer-reviewed journals, press, and more.

We're on a mission to help everyone live with clarity, purpose, and passion.

Join us and create impactful change.

Read the buzz about BetterUp.

Meet the leadership that's passionate about empowering your workforce.

For Business

Going somewhere? Write the 5-year plan you need to achieve it

Jump to section

What is a 5 year plan?

The benefits of creating a 5 year plan, how to create a 5 year plan in 6 easy steps, 5 year plan examples.

You may have heard of SMART goal setting (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound goals), but have you ever heard of HARD goal setting?

Society has been pushing SMART goals since the early ’80s, but a 2020 study found that people who set SMART goals are much less likely to love their jobs , while people who set HARD goals are 53% more likely to love their jobs. 

But, what are HARD goals? HARD goals are defined as: 

• Heartfelt 
• Animated 
• Required 
• Difficult 

They are goals for which you have an emotional connection, strong visualization, great urgency, and difficulty. 

While there are laudable aspects of SMART goals, the study shows serious problems regarding the ‘achievable’ and realistic’ aspects of SMART goal-setting. 

Methodologies that emphasize creating difficult goals are far more likely to be successful and generate higher employee engagement.

In this article, we’ll show you how to use HARD goals to make a 5 year plan, as well as show you two 5 year plan examples.

A 5 year plan is a personal and/or professional list of goals that you want to achieve in the next 5 years. 

Oftentimes, 5 year plans include smaller, concrete goals, to help you achieve the larger goals on your list. 

For example, if a long-term goal is to buy a bigger house, then a smaller goal might include setting aside a certain amount of money each month to go toward a deposit on a home loan. 

Or, if one of your long-term goals is to be a certified nurse, then a smaller goal might include finding the best nursing program in your area or applying for a student loan.

Sign up to get exclusive access to content, tools, and resources.

Thank you for your interest in BetterUp.

One of the best things about a 5 year plan is that it can significantly motivate you to create the life you want to live. Notice we said “create the life “ not just “achieve the goal.” A 5 year plan that works for you will be more effective if you think of your life holistically — how do you want to feel? What values will you be living? — as you create it. 

Whatever the specific goals you have in mind — whether it’s starting a business, becoming certified or developing expertise, competing in an event, having a child, or taking a big trip — a 5 year plan can help you move from dreaming into doing, wish into a reality. 

Here are some other benefits of creating a 5 year plan:

• It creates a starting point for a career, start-up idea, or personal goal . If you have a goal without a plan, it may not ever happen. But, if you know you want to be a real estate broker by 2026, you’re in a better position to start the process and take actionable steps to achieve that.
• It helps you stay focused and aligned with your ambitions, rather than your dreams constantly hanging out in the back seat. 
• It’s a consistent reminder of what you’re aiming toward, and what you need to do to get there. 

The trick is: keep your plan as visible as possible, make sure it’s what you deeply desire, and make sure your goals are specific, measurable, time-bound, and HARD. 

What should be included in a 5 year plan? 

Grab a pen and a piece of paper. Visualize your life 5 years from now, and write down everything you see without thinking or judging . If any fears, doubts, or negative emotions come up, that’s normal. The key is to ignore them and not attribute any meaning to them.

Use the following categories to help you write your complete brainstorm. 

How do you want your nutritional health , mental fitness , physical health , and mental health to look in 5 years?

Are you interested in being vegan? Do you want to lose weight? Do you want to start a yoga practice ? Would you like to regularly meet with a therapist? 

Relationships

Imagine your future professional relationships, friendships, and familial relationships. What do you want them to look like?

Do you want to join a networking group? Are you interested in starting a book club? Do you want to adopt a child? Do you want to take more trips with your partner?

Visualize your financial goals in these buckets: 

• Bills 
• Everyday expenses (i.e. groceries) 
• Flexible spending (i.e. entertainment) 
• Emergency savings 
• Goal savings 
• Investments 

What do you see?

Will you be contributing higher amounts to your 401(k)? Are you planning on saving for higher education? What do you want your emergency savings to look like? Do you want to save for a big trip?

Career/business

What are your career and business aspirations?

Do you picture yourself leading a huge team or an entire corporation? Do you want to be a digital nomad? Are you planning on starting a blog? 

The truth is, the world of business and how people buy and use goods and services is constantly changing — and fast. Don’t get hung up on roles and titles. Especially if you’re early in your career, you will discover career aspirations and opportunities that don’t even exist today. That being said, spend time thinking about what types of activities interest you, what type of environment you enjoy, what type of impact you want to make day-to-day.

If you’re feeling stuck about your career goals, consider:

• Taking career assessments
• Making a list of various career paths
• Finding the overlap between things you like and what companies are hiring for
• Working with mentors
• Building your network
• Creating your own job or business that lines up with your interests
• Listing your passions, values, skills, and interests, then finding or creating jobs that match some parts of the list

If you’re still unsure about your dream job, don’t worry. Go after jobs you’re interested in, learn from them, and eventually, you’ll come across pursuits you’re excited about. Many people also worry if they don’t have a passion. The reality is that pursuing interests and immersing yourself in the work is a good way to discover and develop passion . It’s also okay if you’re multi-passionate and interested in several jobs. 

Personal/spiritual/religious development

How do you want to grow personally and/or spiritually?

Are you interested in starting a home church? Do you want to work with a life coach or career coach? Do you want to meditate more? Would you like to start a gratitude or prayer practice? Do you want to build resilience ? 

Environment/organization/space/home

How do you picture your future environment?

Are you living in a tropical bungalow in Bali? Are you in a newly decorated and renovated home? Do you have a custom pool in your backyard? Are you living with your family to save money? Are you embracing minimalism?

Recreation/fun

What kinds of hobbies will you have in the future?

Will you be snowboarding every winter and surfing every summer? Are you interested in joining a soccer league? Do you want to take up cooking or art classes? 

Service/contribution

What kind of meaningful contribution would you like to be a part of?

Are you interested in volunteering for a vegetable co-op? Will you be tutoring kids on the weekends? Being a mentor ? Do you want to buy monthly groceries for one of your friends in need until they get back on their feet?

• Focus your plan
• Consider potential goals
• Determine your 'why?'
• Identify annual goals and create monthly goals
• Research how to reach your goals
• Adjust and revisit as needed

Here’s how to use your notes to create your plan:

1. Focus your plan

Take a look at your notes and decide which specific areas to focus on. 

You might decide that you’d rather focus on a few areas, like your health and career, or you might decide that you want to focus on all areas. 

Once you decide, grab a piece of paper for every area you plan to focus on and write the area of growth at the top of each. 

For example, if you decide just to focus on health and money, you’ll write ‘health’ at the top of your first paper and ‘money’ at the top of your second paper. 

2. Consider potential goals

Next, divide each paper into two columns. The left column will be for ‘goals,’ and the right column will be for ‘action steps’ or ‘skills.’ 

Then, decide which goals you want to achieve for each category. Remember that ‘specific’, ‘measurable’, and ‘time-bound’ are positive aspects of SMART goals. That said, the ‘achievable’ and ‘realistic’ aspects of SMART goals can deter you from going after more audacious goals. 

Challenge yourself to leave your comfort zone with HARD goals. 

This doesn’t mean setting goals with no chance of success. But, setting goals with, let’s say, a 50/50 chance of success is difficult and ambitious enough to give you a real sense of accomplishment when you succeed.

For example, on your ‘health’ paper, let’s say you decide to write the following in the ‘goals’ column: 

• Be more active
• Increase nutrients 

Then, you might write the following in the ‘action steps’ or ‘skills’ column: 

• Eat raw and organic fruits and vegetables three times a day 
• Walk for two hours a day
• Take a daily multivitamin and add superfoods to morning smoothies 

Next, decide between long-term and short term goals:

Review your list of goals. Decide which are better suited for short-term goals and which are better suited for long-term goals. 

For example, you might decide that being a teacher in Peru is a long-term goal while researching places to live in Peru is a short-term goal. You might start outlining your short- and long-term goals with a 30-60-90 day plan . 

3. Determine your ‘why?’

What’s your big ‘why?’ Why do you want to be a Teaching English Foreign Language (TEFL) teacher in Peru? 

Write your reason down and hang it in a place where you’ll see it daily. 

For example, “I want to be a TEFL teacher in Peru, so I can learn Spanish, help students develop their English skills, and fulfill my dream of exploring South America.”

4. Identify annual goals and create monthly goals

First, establish annual goals that will help you reach your 5 year goals. 

For example, if one of your 5 year goals is to adopt a child, then your first annual goal will probably consist of setting interviews with adoption agencies.

Next, break down your annual goals into monthly goals. 

For example, if your annual goal is becoming a TEFL teacher in Peru, your monthly breakdown could look like this:

• Month 1: Research reputable TEFL programs and set online appointments with TEFL advisors to decide which program you like best
• Months 2-3: Take your TEFL course, study for exams, and write essays
• Month 4: Take your final TEFL exam and wait for your certificate 
• Months 5: Edit your resume and look for a short TEFL internship
• Month 6: Intern with a TEFL academy and ask for feedback from your mentors
• Month 7: Create a lesson plan portfolio and start looking for jobs
• Month 8: Set up job interviews 
• Month 9-10: Land a job from one of your interviews and buy your plane tickets
• Month 11: Move to Peru, find a furnished apartment, and get to know your neighborhood
• Month 12: Start work at your new job as a TEFL teacher 

5. Research how to reach your goals

Next, research the best ways to reach your goals. 

If you plan on moving to Peru, are there some YouTube channels you can check out with tips on how to move? If you plan on creating a start-up, can you meet with some start-up experts that can mentor you? If you plan on learning how to bake macarons, is there a French macaron cookbook you can buy?

6. Adjust and revisit as needed

Life is full of unexpected twists and turns. While the 5 year plan is designed to help you stay focused and persist despite bumps and detours, sometimes the unexpected is you.

As you start working on your goals, you may realize that your interests and passions don't quite align. This is where self-directed learning can help.

Plan for periodic review, reflection, and adjustment as part of life. If your long-range plan still feels right, zoom in to your monthly goals. Decide if your monthly goals are working or if you need to adjust them.

For example, you might find that trying to conduct online interviews with a Peruvian academy is impossible. So you could decide to fly out early to meet directors in person instead. 

You may also decide that creating weekly or even daily goals is essential to hitting your monthly goals.

Revisit and revise your plan as often as needed (at least once a year). You might be surprised at how fast you reach some goals while other goals might take a bit longer than expected.

Here's an example of a 5 year plan for a student interested in being a Certified Public Accountant (CPA):

Here’s a personal 5 year plan example for someone interested in becoming fluent in Spanish:

Creating a 5 year plan is one of the best ways to see your dreams come to life. 

At BetterUp, we love seeing individuals reach their fullest potential and achieve their dreams. Request a demo today to find out more.

Maggie Wooll

Thought Leader

How to write a 10 year plan (with examples) and reach your goals

22+ new year’s resolutions ideas for 2023, your 6-step guide on how to make an action plan for management, how to ace your first meeting with a new team, strategic plan vs. work plan: what's the difference, what is an action plan how to become a real-life action hero, get smart about your goals at work and start seeing results, 10 problem-solving strategies to turn challenges on their head, strategic planning: read this before it's that time again, similar articles, do goal statements actually work find out here, top 15 professional goals and ways to achieve them, create a networking plan in 7 easy steps, moving toward your dreams or just moving yearly goals can help, how to make an action plan to achieve your goals and follow it, 15 leadership challenges you need to take this year, what is a career statement, and should you write one, setting goals for 2023 to ring in the new year right, stay connected with betterup, get our newsletter, event invites, plus product insights and research..

3100 E 5th Street, Suite 350 Austin, TX 78702

• Platform Overview
• Connect™ beta
• Sales Performance
• Diversity & Inclusion
• Case Studies
• Why BetterUp?
• News and Press
• Leadership Team
• Become a BetterUp Coach
• Leadership Training
• Business Coaching
• Contact Support
• Contact Sales
• Privacy Policy
• Acceptable Use Policy
• Trust & Security
• Cookie Preferences

11+ Five Year Strategic Plan Templates – PDF, Word

No matter what kind of business you decide to open up or are currently running, you’ll need to be able to identify what kind of smart goals you want to achieve. Also, you’ll need to think about the means in which you are going to achieve them if ever you want to produce any results. You may also see Plan Templates .

• 568+ Simple Plan Templates
• 568+ Plan Samples in Word

5 Year Strategic Plan Sample

Clinic 5 Year Strategic Plan

5 Year Strategic Plan Example

Why Bother Coming Up With a Strategic Plan?

High school 5 year strategic plan.

Printable 5 Year Strategic Plan

Revised Five-Year Strategic Plan

Five-Year Strategic Plan for Farming

How to Come Up With a 5 Year Strategic Plan for your Business

1. start with your executive summary, 2. make your business’s vision and mission statements, university 5 year strategic plan.

Trust Foundation 5 Year Strategic Plan

College 5 Year Strategic Plan

3. Determine the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats Towards Your Business

Engineers foundation 5 year strategic plan.

IT 5 Year Strategic Plan

Come Up With the Plans

More in plan templates, get instant access to free & premium , ai tools & daily fresh content.

Get access to 1 million+ FREE, PRO, template bundles with professional written original content. Advanced AI, design, document editing tools

• Media Contacts
• News Releases
• Article Submissions
• All Categories
• Arts & Humanities
• Campus Life
• Equity & Diversity
• Health & Medicine
• Humans of the U
• Law & Politics
• Science & Technology
• Sustainability
• University Statements
• Announcements
• Submit an event
• U Rising Podcast
• About the U

5-year strategic plan for university safety

University of Utah Safety recently launched a five-year strategic plan to guide safety efforts into the future and provide a foundation for the growing and evolving department. Developed by representatives from across U Safety, the plan outlines a new vision and mission statement, as well as strategic goals that align with those of the institution.

• Vision:  Uniting for a safe and empowered campus community
• Uniting with the campus community to implement safety programs that meet our community needs
• Respectfully empowering students, faculty, staff, patients, and visitors with education, training, and resources
• Listening to the needs to the campus community with compassion
• Advocating for underserved populations
• Fulfilling our responsibilities with integrity, transparency, and accountability
• Achieve operational excellence
• Strengthen trust with the community
• Invest in talent development and plan for the future

“ We take our responsibility to lead campus safety efforts seriously, but we also know it takes all of us to truly create an environment where everyone feels safe, welcomed and respected,”  said Annalisa Purser,  director of  administrati on   for   U Safety .  “This plan  focuses on partnering with the campus community to foster a safe environment where all individuals feel empowered and equipped to succeed in their work, medical caregiving, education, and other business with the university .”

The plan was reviewed by the Public Safety Advisory Committee and will be updated regularly. More information is available on the  University Safety website .  

Each of the three strategic goals includes a set of objectives,  strategies and action plans , which provides structure and consistency while also allowing flexibility for updates as situations and circumstances change.   

Goal 1:  In order to achieve operational excellence, the plan prioritizes developing, growing, and innovating program and service offerings; improving business processes and systems to ensure consistency and increase efficiencies; and focusing on professional standards. To this end, a new  Community Services division   was established and has already grown from one to three employees, who are all social workers. A new administrative team was created to manage and coordinate business processes across the department, and a  new position  was created in 2020 to oversee the department’s accreditation and compliance efforts.  

Goal 2:  To strengthen trust with the campus community, the department is committed to community service and engagement, strengthening accountability and transparency and supporting students and  community education and development. This includes efforts such as creating the   Independent Review and Public Safety Advisory committees , hosting  Presidential Interns  and involving them in policy development and the accreditation process, establishing a  SafeU Ambassador program  and providing community workshops, such as the  Workplace Violence Prevention training  that is given to all first-year nursing students.   

Goal 3:  Investing in talent development and planning for the future involves enhancing professional development and training, as well as recruiting, hiring, and retaining individuals who support the department’s mission and represent the diversity of the community it serves. Some efforts to accomplish this include j oining and maintaining memberships with professional organizations, including those focused on supporting and elevating underrepresented groups in the public safety profession ; u pdating internal department awards and recognitions to reflect  the  new vision and mission ; p articipating in the Intercultural Development Inventory to  better understand cultural differences  and  responses to these differences and  develop  action  plans  for increas ing  intercultural competence ; and  e nsuring employee evaluations reflect the department’s  values.  

Some additional action items to be addressed during the next five years include:

• Updating internal policies to adhere to accreditation standards and to meet the unique needs of the University of Utah community  
• Implementing an early warning system to address concerning behaviors
• Earning  accreditation  through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) and the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA)
• Expanding U Health Security into regional health clinics in order to ensure all U Health employees and visitors receive the same level and standards of protection
• Developing and launching a new safety app to provide additional services and features to the campus community
• Launching a new records management system that will improve information sharing among law enforcement agencies and allow the department to share data about police interactions on campus
• Expanding Emergency Communications services to improve police response and provide more immediate crisis support
• Creating an improved process for receiving  feedback  from the community and ensuring a consistent and thorough investigation and response
• Implement ing  a body-worn camera program for University Police
• Updating internal policies in order to comply with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Standards for Certification on Use of Force and Safe Policing for Safe Communities
• Joining the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP)  One Mind Campaign  to improve response to those affected by mental illness
• Making information housed in the Annual Security Report more easily accessible by updating important safety information on the  SafeU  website
• Serving as a practicum site for students from the College of Social Work to both increase capacity and provide valuable real-world clinical experience to students  

RELATED ARTICLES

U launches new office for campus planning.

The U is launching a new strategic planning process to guide the next 100 years of campus growth.

Research unravels how spider mites quickly evolve resistance to toxins

Richard Clark explores the genetic mystery of this agricultural pest’s ability to harness natural selection in the chemical warfare waged by farmers.

U’s incoming class exceeds 5,000 for third year in a row

The more than 5,500 first-year students represent the school’s largest class to date. 

Loud, proud and respectful: The Fan Up Pledge

Embrace the spirit of good sportsmanship and unity that defines our fan base, both on and off the field, court or pitch.

A new approach to leadership at the heart of the NLA’s mission

Leaders today need to be prepared to operate in a variety of contexts—and be agile enough to face both internal and external challenges.

Celebrating U Completely across campus

Let’s build a campus community together where you know U belong.

Homecoming 2023: Home Sweet Homecoming

Create lifelong memories with former classmates, family and your alma mater.

Message from the Academic Senate president

As we embark on the fall semester, the Academic Senate resumes its full-scale activities.

Guidelines for the MUSS

Chief Safety Officer Keith Squires shares important safety guidelines for MUSS members.