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Jump to a Section: Process, Goals, Recommendations, Major Outcomes

Introduction

Anchored in our core values and guided by our mission, the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉúRISE Strategic Plan (2019-2024) aimed to blaze a bold and brave path forward to guide ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú through unprecedented volatility in higher education. 

Led by Professors Robert Applebaum (Sociology and Gerontology) and Julia Guichard (Theatre), the planning process included six subcommittees of faculty, students and staff, and involved more than 600 members of our diverse ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú community:

1. Academic Excellence
2. Excellence in Research and Scholarship
3. Transformation Student Experience
4. Diversity and Inclusion
5. Financial Sustainability
6. A National University

The steering and subcommittees met regularly throughout the 2018-2019 academic year.  They were supported by ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú’s Office of Institutional Research and Budget Office.  Subcommittees drafted priorities which were then synthesized by the steering committee.  

Key goals guiding the process:

• Seek strategic synergy with ongoing initiatives such as the Boldly Creative Strategic Academic Enrichment Initiative
• Be grounded in the university’s values and reflect its mission
• Transcend traditional university boundaries
• Be evidence-based and data-informed, using appropriate external and internal inputs (e.g., professional literature, national trends, data analytics, benchmarking, interviews with leaders from, or visits to, aspirant institutions)
• Be financially sustainable

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Process

To ensure broad participation and transparency, the steering committee and sub-committees gathered input from our community, including students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, industry and other partners. Input and communication mechanisms included: focus groups, open forums, discussion at regularly-scheduled governance meetings, and online feedback opportunities. A website was developed that showcased planning updates, meeting minutes, and draft reports; it also provided a venue for community members to submit input and ideas.

The committee co-chairs provided updates on the work of the steering and subcommittees to the Board of Trustees in December 2018, February 2019, and May 2019. The final version of the strategic plan was approved by the Board of Trustees at its June 2019 meeting.

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Recommendations

The plan featured 30 strategic recommendations in four categories: innovate, invest, invigorate, and implement. It also recommended formation of a standing Strategic Planning Committee.

Innovate

1. Establish Honors College
2. Enhance cross-unit curricular collaborations
3. Cultivate cross-disciplinary research
4. Position ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú as a teaching & learning national resource
5. Develop a curricular “innovation lab” for experimentation
6. Renew partnership between academics & residence life
7. Redesign our student academic advising system

Invest

8. Improve infrastructure to support research & scholarship
9. Improve faculty culture for involvement in externally funded research
10. Improve approach to how faculty resources are allocated to align with strategic initiatives
11. Enhance student retention strategies
12. Substantially increase endowment to support scholarships
13. Provide necessary resources to ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú students studying abroad or away
14. Enhance the relationship between ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú and the city of Oxford
15. Review recommendations from existing Sustainability Committee and align with plan

Invigorate

16. Reorganize academic structure
17. Transform the Global ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Plan
18. Redesign curricular process
19. Complete curriculum review: undergraduate
20. Complete curriculum review: graduate
21. Develop master plan for e-learning
22. Create plan for revenue-generating graduate degrees & certificates
23. Revise program review goals and process to align with strategic plan

Implement

24. Establish ongoing Strategic Planning Committee
25. Establish Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
26. Coordinate facilities planning with strategic plan
27. Improve allocation of resources to align w/strategic plan priorities
28. Develop strategic enrollment management plan
29. Clearly define and market ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú strengths
30. Enhance external visibility of research

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Major Outcomes

Research, Scholarship, and Artistry

• Funded research increased: ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú reached an all-time high of $28.3 million in funded research in 2020-2021, a 20% increase over the past years.
• New Vice President for Research & Innovation hired
• New guidelines for research centers and institutes created
• New research support (enhanced and revised the Committee of Faculty Research grant program; GrantForward & Cayuse launched) instituted 

Innovation

• New ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Plan implemented in 2023 with four pillars of learning: (1) communication and expression, (2) civic-mindedness and social engagement, (3) collaboration and innovation, and (4) critical and integrative thinking. 
• New undergraduate, graduate and professional programs launched, including robotics engineering, games + simulation, physician associate studies, business analytics and nurse practitioner
• New state-of-the-art academic buildings, including the  and the .
• New Honors College founded in 2021 and is now ranked sixth in the country
• ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Academic Program Incubator which provides research and consultation on new program ideas, encourages cross-divisional curricular collaborations and provides incentives for experimentation with the curriculum launched in 2022
• Academic Program Evaluation, Improvement & Prioritization Project (2021-2024) which included a review of all academic programs and continuous improvement plans resulting in a significant reshaping of our academic portfolio
• ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Plan Innovation Lab (which provides faculty development for innovative and interdisciplinary courses) developed and implemented in 2022
• New model for program review—Department Planning & Improvement process—developed and launched in 2024

Student Success

• The Office of Exploratory Studies which supports students who are still exploring majors when they arrive at ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University opened in 2022
• New academic interventions – early alert system, spring and winter workshops and courses for success, and late sprint courses instituted
• Outcomes for academic advising refined in 2023
• ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú Transfer Collaborative -- which leverages a community of transfer champions from Academic Affairs, Admission, Registrar, and other units to forge strategies and an infrastructure designed to increase and support students transferring into all of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University's campuses --created in 2021, resulting in a net increase in transfer students

Engagement

• New Office of Transformational & Inclusive Excellence established which has galvanized a new vision and leadership to advance a welcoming community; new programs such as Constructive Dialogues and a comprehensive climate survey have already been instituted
• Moon Shot for Equity partnership launched in 2020 which strategic partners (Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, Gateway Community and Technical College, and Northern Kentucky University), who work together to systematically implement a series of goals designed to remove barriers and create solutions focused on reducing equity gaps in higher education by 2030.
• New professional education programs developed, including: the ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú MiniMBA: Beyond Ready For the Future leverages the university's Farmer School of Business talent and resources to help participants face the unprecedented economic challenges of the coronavirus pandemic with practical knowledge to advance their skill levels; and the , which is a self-paced online module free for ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú faculty, staff, students, and alumni.
• ASPIRE was launched in 2020 which is a new vice-presidential division designed to coordinate community engagement, government relations, advocacy, and business development initiatives.
• Made possible through a collaboration between ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú University and the City of Oxford, College@Elm encompasses a three-block area of uptown Oxford that includes a renovated community arts center, green space, and a vacant building owned by ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú. The renovated building serves as an incubator for start-ups, workforce development, innovation, and manufacturing.

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The Strategic Planning Steering Committee presented the report to President Crawford and to the Board of Trustees in June 2019.

ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉú developed a one-page handout to explain the context behind the plan and tell stories of ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉúans who display the spirit of innovation and creativity that ÍÃ×ÓÏÈÉúRISE embraces.

Download/print the handout