SCHOOL BUSINESS
BUILDING ON EXCELLENCE In the midst of a global pandemic, the Notre Dame Board of Governors took the unprecedented step of undertaking a new strategic planning process in the spring of 2021. This new plan was formally approved by the Board of Governors on September 18.
Building on Excellence, the title of the new ND Strategic Plan, was a six-month process led by the Catholic consultative firm, Catholic School Management, and facilitated by their Senior Executive Consultant, Mrs. Maria Ribera. A Strategic Planning Committee, chaired by board member Mr. Brian Duff ‘89, consisted of a diverse team of stakeholders who provided the expertise needed to undertake this process. The committee utilized the National Catholic Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Schools as its template. As a result, the organizational outline of Building on Excellence is constructed into four goal areas as aligned with the National Catholic Standards: Mission and Catholic Identity, Governance and Leadership, Academic Excellence and Operational Vitality. In addition to the research undertaken by the Strategic Planning Team which developed the Assumptions of the Plan, Mrs. Ribera also conducted more than 260 interviews with groups and individuals from the Notre Dame community including current faculty and staff, parents and students, alumni, parents of alumni and other stakeholders. Mrs. Ribera in her summary report stated, “Notre Dame is a warm, vibrant family that has such a tremendous school spirit and alumni who take great pride in their alma mater. In the course of my interviews, it was clear that the goal areas of Mission and Catholic Identity and Academic Excellence were recognized as the strengths of the school.” President Ken Jennings added, “Mrs. Ribera’s findings now pave the way for Notre Dame to set its course and direction for the next three to five years. I am so excited about the objectives in the Operational Vitality areas including the creation of operational plans in finance, advancement, enrollment and marketing. These plans will have a profound influence on the future vision for ND.” Building on Excellence is now being shared with the Notre Dame community, starting with the faculty and staff who will then begin work on the implementation of the plan through action plans that are developed at the operational level. In addition, the Board of Governors will be utilizing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), in all of the goal areas to measure the success and the forward progress of the plan over the next three to five years.
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ND Journal
