Process

Our strategic planning process began in August 2024 when the Office of the Dean identified four initial goals that would form the basis for the inaugural plan for the College of Arts and Sciences (ArtSci).

1. AMPLIFY excellence in research and creative activities.
2. CHAMPION undergraduate learning, engagement and success.
3. ELEVATE the preparation of graduate students to become accomplished scholars and professionals.
4. BUILD a culture where the people and missions of the college are valued.

The four goals reflected foundational activities the college must pursue to achieve national and international preeminence.

The strategic planning process was participatory, iterative, and transparent, consisting of three phases. The design and execution of the planning process was implemented in-house by college administrators and faculty, with the only exception being two surveys administered by an external firm, and was informed by the following values:

• Our design emphasized broad engagement of internal and external stakeholders.
• Our process included multiple opportunities for stakeholder feedback so we could reality test and improve potential ideas.
• Our commitment to transparency motivated the creation of a publicly available website outlining the process and providing planning reports. The Dean’s Office provided regular updates to faculty and staff.

Four working groups were established during Phase 1 paralleling the initial goals. They were charged with collecting and analyzing relevant data for their assigned goal and formulating a set of recommended objectives, actions, and strategies for measuring success. Each working group hosted a retreat to start the planning process and a set of Idea Papers emerged summarizing challenges, opportunities, and potential actions for their assigned goal. Working groups conducted several facilitated focus groups with key stakeholders in Spring 2025 to collect feedback on the Idea Papers (See Graphic 1 with list of focus group participants). The information generated in these focus groups plus an Undergraduate Student Experience Survey fielded by the College in the Fall 2024 were used to create a Preliminary Planning Report summarizing potential opportunities, objectives, and actions associated with each goal.

A Faculty-Staff Townhall was hosted to seek feedback on the Preliminary Planning Reports, and a Faculty-Staff Survey was also distributed to solicit people’s assessment of how well certain activities were being performed by the College and their preferences regarding what actions might be taken to achieve each goal. The feedback from the Faculty-Staff Townhall and Survey as well as input from the College’s Dean’s External Advisory Development Council (DEADC) informed the Final Planning Report generated by each working group.

A retreat was held with the College’s department heads soliciting input prior to drafting the strategic plan. A draft was written by the Strategic Planning Leadership Committee during Summer 2025 based on the Final Working Group Reports, faculty input generated by the Townhall and online survey, the Undergraduate Student Experience Survey, and other relevant university documents. Cross-cutting themes emerged from the Working Group Final Reports suggesting two additional goals regarding external engagement and internal and external communications.

The strategic plan was finalized during September. It was shared with ArtSci faculty and staff in November 2025.

Seventeen events including retreats, focus groups, the faculty-staff town hall meeting and surveys were conducted to solicit stakeholder input. Over 1,050 undergraduate and graduate students participated and over 880 faculty and staff participated in these events. Stakeholder groups included College of Arts and Sciences: