Strategic Planning Process
Final Goal
By the end of academic year 2007–2008, we will have a university strategic plan with clarified mission, reasonable goals, action steps, and priorities. The plan will develop from a vision that we understand among ourselves and can communicate to donors, community members, legislators, and potential students. The plan will provide underpinning for a capital campaign as well as for individual directions within departments and divisions across the university.
Need for Planning
Currently, planning is being done in pockets throughout the university: planning for the College of Arts and Sciences, Medford facility, Honors, international initiatives, Extended Campus Programs, Deer Creek, student recruitment and retention. We are finishing a reaccreditation self–study, and our site visit in October 2007 will undoubtedly provide focus for planning.
The budget cutting this year has underlined the need for us to focus steadily on what we do well and what we can do—and to stop doing those things that aren”t priorities. We have established a Blue Ribbon Task Force for budget planning; however, we need to connect budget to planning priorities as we develop a stronger, more transparent budget process.
We have a lot of pieces but no coherent over–arching structure to connect and make sense of the pieces. If we create such a structure, we can develop coherent goals, benchmarks, desired outcomes, and so on for the individual pieces. This structure could be seen as a tree with different plans hanging from branches—although the plans will in most cases also be connected to each other.
People are stressed and busy. However, I am hopeful that this process will infringe minimally on people”s time while also incorporating good communication, promoting understanding of areas being planned, and ensuring that everyone has ample opportunity to participate in the process.
Three Phases and Implementation
This approach, reviewed and approved by UPC and the Executive Committee, will enable us to complete a strategic plan by the end of spring 2008.
Phase 1.
We create a small University–Wide Planning Group with representation from UPC. This process, led by the president, will reflect a joint UPC/administrative partnership for university–wide planning.
The University–Wide Planning Group will review, seek input, clarify, and refine our mission, values, and vision (see below the versions of those being used for our accreditation self-study)—and help develop a process for getting further consultation with the broader campus community. We will then have these items approved at the system level. This process could be completed in spring 2007, with system approval over the summer.
Phase 2.
The planning group will decide what areas should submit plans for this process and then will solicit and gather a limited number of white papers/business plans from various campus constituencies. These will not be individual department plans but plans for larger initiatives, most of which cross departmental areas. The majority of these, such as plans for Medford and the College of Arts and Sciences, are already underway.
Each plan requested by the planning group will come through the appropriate vice president and will be discussed within that vice presidential area before being sent forward. The planning group will ask that the plans connect to the university’s mission, values, and vision and have a number of basic components: budget and staffing needs, timelines for implementation, benchmarks for success, and so on.
The planning group will consider ways to encourage discussion and input during different stages of this process: the budget workshop UPC held in winter term could be a model, as could the technology summit we will hold later this term. Plans will be developed under differing time lines as needed. Groups working on plans can meet periodically with the planning group—and can present to the group at an open meeting.
Drafts collected by the planning group will be posted on a website for comment and also discussed by UPC, the Academic Senate, Executive Council, and other bodies. The process will be informed by the accreditation site visit and will continue through winter term 2008.
Note 1:
This process will not create significant paperwork and obstacles for the people crafting plans but will ensure that plans are being developed in consultation with a wider audience and are aligned with priorities and budget realities.
Note 2:
This process will ensure connection to mission and vision and will provide benchmarks for progress. This is not a strategic initiative process. There is no special funding for these plans. Many of the plans underway, such as the planning within Student Affairs, have been done to save money as well as to increase efficiency and sharpen focus.
Phase 3.
With a constellation of plans in place, the University–Wide Planning Group, in spring 2008, can work with other entities on campus to craft a brief overall plan that provides a framework for the individual plans and also establishes priorities. Individual plans will be attached as appendices. The overall plan as well as the individual plans will include priorities, timelines, goals, and action items that can be tracked systematically and included in budget planning, fundraising, and other activities. The plan as a whole will be reviewed widely across campus and finalized by the end of the academic year.
Implementation and Assessment.
The implementation and assessment processes will be ongoing. We will develop a review process to check benchmarks, revise and clarify goals, and add new planning areas as needed. This ongoing review process will be led by UPC.
MISSION*
Southern Oregon University is a contemporary public liberal arts and sciences university. It provides access to opportunities for personal, intellectual, and professional growth through quality education and scholarship. The University is a vital partner in the healthy development of its region and state in association with civic, national, and international engagements. It is Oregon”s Center of Excellence in the Fine and Performing Arts.
VALUES*
Toward a Hopeful Vision of the University, Region, and Society
- Learning and Achievement
- Truth and Disciplined Inquiry
- Free Expression and Collaboration
- Open-Mindedness and Informed Criticism
- Mutual Respect and Trust Cross-Cultural
- Understanding and International Competence
- Integrity and Stewardship
- Civic Engagement and Responsibility
- Innovation and Entrepreneurship
VISION*
Regionally Responsive, Nationally Recognized, and Internationally Engaged
Southern Oregon University is a premier public liberal arts and sciences university. It is distinguished regionally and nationally in practical liberal learning at the intersection of the liberal arts and sciences and the professions, where learners gain the foundation for long–term career agility and informed civic leadership. The University&rdqho;s scholarship supports the creation, synthesis, and application of knowledge and a new vision for teaching and learning in twenty–first–century society.
*Used for accreditation self–study
Possibly Asked Questions (PAQs)
How much work will this process entail from me?
We will try to achieve a balance, providing opportunities for participation without taking up too much of people”s time. This project is very important for the campus, but much of the work can be done through electronic input, so people can participate at times convenient to them.
That said, some people will definitely need to participate in creating the individual plans solicited and gathered by the planning group. These will be short, focused documents that address specific areas (goals, projected outcomes, budget, staffing, and so on) requested by the planning group.
How will I know if I need to work on a specialized plan?
Individual plans will be requested by the planning group, via the appropriate vice president. In most cases, the vice president will designate the team working on the plan. In other cases, an appropriate planning group or groups already exist&mash;such as the people working on the new College of Arts and Sciences.
How will my voice be heard? How can I be assured the whole process will be collaborative?
As head of the planning group, I will work hard to involve people in every area of the campus through a variety of approaches (electronic and face to face). Notes from planning meetings will be posted along with other materials on the planning web site. The planning group will welcome any ideas for increasing participation.
What are the benefits to having a mission, vision, and strategic plan?
Every institution needs to think carefully about what it is doing and what it should be doing. Every university needs to plan carefully how best to use its resources to meet the needs and goals it has determined to be most important. Every university periodically needs to sharpen its focus.
With a mission, vision, and strategic plan, SOU can more confidently work on curricular change, fundraising, student and faculty recruitment, facilities development, and a range of other areas.
Why should I participate?
To be effective, a planning process needs both leadership and broad participation. Your participation will help make the process more useful to the campus as a whole. Moreover, this planning process should be exciting, with discussions of interest to us all.
We’ve done planning exercises before. Why now?
This is a critical moment for SOU. We need to examine the &ldqho;new SOU&rdqho; in light of reaccreditation, reorganization, and downsizing—and use our planning to make decisions. This planning process is essential for our future health and sustainability.
