College Strategic Plan

College Deans report annually on their goals.  These reports include last year, next year, and five year goal documentation.  

With the purchase of the A.M.S. tool, Deans have been empowered to develop strategic plans for their colleges and directly align those through the digital interface of A.M.S.

College-level strategic plans, like University-level strategic plans, have broad goals, but align directly back to the university plan.  The actions reported for the college include all college-level actions, trans/inter-disciplinary work, and plans for the college's future commitment to both the university and college strategic plans.  Department-level strategic plans are used to further substantiate the college's achievement of its goals as it contributes to the overall success of the institution.

The annual reports also include all faculty data from their respective college that is housed in the Campus Labs database.

These reports are reviewed by the Provost.

If you require assistance with strategic planning, facilitating conversations, or operating A.M.S., please contact the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

Introduction

Building a College-level strategic plan requires preparation and faculty involvement.

The Office of Institutional Effectiveness encourages all colleges to develop a committee consistent of all departments within the college focused on strategic planning and its operationalization.

Once committee membership is determined, they will need to prepare for their initial meeting.  Items to consider include: 

  • ULS Strategic Plan
  • University Strategic Plan
  • Mission Statement
  • Known/verifiable trends in institutional priorities
  • Consideration of resources in place or in development
  • College priorities, charges, and/or needs

Goals

Goals are broad themes developed by the Strategic Planning Committee that guide the priorities of the strategic plan overall.  The Goals will be further defined by Objectives and Actions.

Examples of Goals might include, but are not limited to: 

  • Student Success
  • Development
  • Faculty Engagement
  • Scholarship

The Office of Institutional Effectiveness recommends a college develop 3-5 Goals for their strategic plan.  

Objectives

Each Goal is supported by one or more Objectives.  

Objectives should be SMART:

  • Specific
  • Measurable
  • Achievable
  • Relevant
  • Time-bound

An example might be:

Goal 1 - Student Success

Objective 1 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will improve student retention rates 5% by the end of 2022.

Objective 2 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will improve graduation rates by 7% by the end of 2022.

Actions

Actions are the events, activities, or initiatives that contribute to the completion of an Objective.  Each Objective should have one or more Action associated with it annually.  In practice, most Objectives will have 3-7 Actions provided each year.

Here is an example:

Goal 1 - Student Success

Objective 1 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will improve student retention rates 5% by the end of 2022.

Action 1 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will host a COA Freshmen Orientation, providing incoming students with relevant contact information, support structures, and academic success information.

Action 2 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will provide faculty training in Academic Advising the week prior to classes starting in the fall semester.

Action 3 - The College of Institutional Effectiveness will implement the Academic Intervention Notification System to notify advisors when students are absent from class or at risk of failure.

This structure allows colleges to approach their Goals and Objectives in multiple ways while affording them flexibility as priorities and resources shift over time.