Tomorrow starts here.
ECU Tomorrow: A Vision for Leadership and Service is the strategic plan for East Carolina University and was adopted by the university’s Board of Trustees in June 2007.
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ONE CENTURY
E
ast Carolina University has a proud heritage. From our early days as a school for training teachers to our present status as a national doctoral research university, we have continually served our region with quality and commitment since 1907. Our commitment is an expression of our motto, Servire, or To Serve. We believe that no university has done a better job of public service than East Carolina University, and we will continue to be a national model for how to use university resources for the greater public good. As we conclude our first century, we have emerged as a national doctoral university that remains committed to the three traditional missions of the public university: service, teaching, and research. Our enrollment is approaching twenty-six thousand students, and we have been the fastest-growing university in North Carolina for five years. We take great pride in the record of achievement and success that has been established by our many alumni. We remember the many hard-fought victories that make up the storied tradition of Pirate athletics. We are proud of our national and international leadership in medicine, health sciences, and teacher preparation. We are proud of our award-winning excellence in the visual and performing arts. Above all, we are proud of the vital contributions our people and programs have made for the betterment of North Carolina. As with any anniversary, there is an appropriate time to reflect on the past. But as one century ends, another quickly begins. It is time to look ahead to our new century.
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Dr. Steve Ballard Chancellor
OUR VISION East Carolina University delivers on the promise of opportunity. We open doors. We improve lives. We transform the present, and we discover the future. In these ways and more, we serve our community, our state, our nation, and our world as together we reach toward our greatest potential. Tomorrow starts here.
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ENDURING VALUES East Carolina’s success is attributable to continued commitment to the values expressed throughout our first century. These core values are a source of unity. They provide a compass to help direct us through the inevitable tensions we face. They help to define our identity as individuals and as a community. As we consider all of the shared values that define East Carolina, five are particularly important at this time in our history.
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Respect: Respect for others is at the heart of our community. Authenticity: When East Carolina says it will do something, it will be done. Accountability: We will be responsible for achieving our mission. Teamwork: We are one university. We believe in collaboration, and we consistently ask, “What is best for East Carolina University and the people we serve?”. • Commitment to Serve: We remain committed to serving our students, region, and state. We recognize potential, actively pursue beneficial opportunities, and work to achieve transformational results. These values will guide us as we pursue opportunities in our new century.
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NEW CENTURY OPPORTUNITIES Throughout our history, the broad missions of teaching, research, and service have helped to guide the university and will continue to do so. However, as East Carolina University begins a new century, five specific dimensions of our mission will give sharper focus to our work. When considered in the context of our tradition, resources, and national reputation, these five areas provide the university with important opportunities for greater service and distinction in the coming decade. • Assuring Access: Our resources and programs exist first and foremost to serve the people of North Carolina, especially as we shape the workforce of tomorrow. We are committed to a spirit of access to all the opportunities afforded by a major research and teaching university. We will develop and sustain programs that support this ideal. • Supporting Student Success: Even as our research and extension enterprise grows, we remain committed to providing a great education in the classroom and to preparing tomorrow’s leaders through engagement, community service, and meaningful leadership experiences.
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• Creating Opportunity for the East: No institution is more important to eastern North Carolina than East Carolina University. We will prepare tomorrow’s workforce, generate the intellectual capital that drives our economy, provide hands-on engagement with our region and state, and create new technologies from our research. Our Colleges of Business, Technology and Computer Science, and Fine Arts and Communication, as well as our health sciences schools, are significant drivers of the new economy. • Forging Effective Partnerships: We are committed to building relationships with a wide range of partners for the benefit of the people of North Carolina. • Responding to the Greatest Needs: The founding, growth, and continued success of East Carolina are all closely related to our effective response to the critical needs of communities and individuals. No other university does more to provide teachers and nurses for North Carolina. No other university does more to bring high-quality health care to underserved people and places. As a university, we are committed to serving the needs of the individual as well as communities. We are committed to serving communities in transition that must have new educational resources, and we are leaders in the creative and entrepreneurial economies. These opportunities represent important landmarks for our progress. Achieving them requires us to set a bold course for the university that will guide us toward success in our new century.
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OUR STRATEGIC DIRECTIONS Education for a New Century The Leadership University Economic Prosperity in the East Health Care and Medical Innovation The Arts, Culture, and the Quality of Life - 11 -
Education for a New Century ECU will prepare our students to compete and succeed in the global economy.
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East Carolina will continue to provide programs and opportunities that take education beyond the traditional classroom and empower students with the skills and experience necessary to succeed in a knowledge-dependent, technology-driven economy.
An East Carolina education will be a transformative experience. ECU students will be prepared to compete in the global economy. • We will be responsive to the changing demands of the economy, offering excellent undergraduate and graduate programs that provide the global skills and knowledge necessary for success in the twenty-first century. • We will provide our students with a strong foundation in the liberal arts, recognizing that foundation as essential for intellectual growth and lifelong learning. • In addition to a rigorous education in specific disciplines and skills, we will provide programs and experiences for our students that will develop in them the ability to interact effectively with people from many cultures and backgrounds and to synthesize diverse skills, experiences, and knowledge to solve problems. • ECU will internationalize our programs, students, and faculty. We will create a $5 million endowment to support global competencies.
We are committed to student learning and success. • We will improve student retention by developing a First-Year Experience program that is one of the best in the nation. • We will provide additional support for minority students to build on ECU’s national prominence in minority retention and academic excellence. • We will grow the EC Scholars program to include fully endowed scholarships for North Carolina students. • We will use meaningful assessments throughout the college experience to ensure that learning is measured and achieved.
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Through scholarships, distance education, and other quality programs, East Carolina will continue to offer highereducation opportunities to all deserving students, regardless of their background or location.
We will make an East Carolina education accessible to prospective students and reach out to those who might otherwise be unable to achieve their educational potential. • We will work closely with high schools in eastern North Carolina to increase college attendance. • We will seek a federal Trio Grant to support the transition of low-income and underserved students from high school to college. • We will establish an Early College program that will bring high school students on campus to complete course work and get a head start on a degree. • We will work closely with high school guidance counselors to create seamless transition programs for college-bound students and to assess cultural preparedness. • We will pursue innovative partnerships through the Office of Admissions to target minority and underrepresented groups. • We will create a $5 million endowment to support Access Scholarships.
We are committed to increasing access to higher education for all students. • We will expand our distance education programs, delivering a high-quality East Carolina education to the thousands of North Carolinians who cannot be campus residents. • We will pilot new programs for first-generation students and underserved populations. • We will stress inclusive design of programs and facilities, where possible, to increase access and accommodations for persons within our community, regardless of age, ability, or circumstances. • We will tailor programs to the needs of working adults through weekend and distance education models.
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The Leadership University ECU will distinguish itself by the ability to train and prepare leaders for our state and nation.
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Through intensive programs that focus on service and success, East Carolina will be intentional in its efforts to prepare leaders on campus, in the job market, and in the community.
We will build a leadership culture within the university through the development of four centers. The Center for Transformational Leadership in Eastern North Carolina will provide programs and resources to develop service-oriented leaders in eastern North Carolina to help communities in the region achieve their full potential. The Center for Transformational Leadership in Eastern North Carolina will engage in a variety of activities, including the following: • Partner with public schools to enhance the leadership capacity of students, teachers, and administrators. • Network with state and community agencies to build leadership capacity. • Promote economic development in the region to provide attractive career opportunities in order to retain the next generation of leaders.
The BB&T Leadership Center will be viewed as a model of excellence for working with faculty to embed leadership and service-learning components into their programs. The BB&T Leadership Center will engage in a variety of activities, including the following: • Build a $10 million endowment to support endowed chairs in leadership for all ten colleges and schools. • Host an annual leadership conference supported by a $1 million endowment. • Support the incorporation of leadership training in programs and courses, including a leadership minor in Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, a series of leadership courses in the College of Business, and a distinguished speaker series on leadership.
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Embracing a new century of service to eastern North Carolina and beyond, East Carolina’s students, faculty, and staff will continue to incorporate outreach and volunteerism both on and off campus.
The Chancellor’s Leadership Academy will be a model for developing staff and faculty leaders, with particular emphasis on women and minorities. Supported by a $2 million endowment, the Chancellor’s Leadership Academy will engage in a variety of activities, including the following: • Provide opportunities for faculty and staff to hear, work with, and be mentored by great leaders in business, education, and government. • Develop signature forums and workshops for staff throughout the academic year, including the Women in Leadership series and the Minority Leadership series.
ECU’s Center for Student Success will ensure that all students graduate with demonstrated competency in leadership. The center will coordinate student leadership and service activities across all academic programs, beginning with orientation and the freshman seminar and concluding with a senior seminar. The Center for Student Success will engage in a variety of activities, including the following: • Build a $5 million endowment to support the design and quality of the Center for Student Success. • Develop new leadership pathways for students that will broaden their experiences and expose them to diverse cultures and situations. • Build a $5 million endowment to support study-abroad and international experiences. • Expand our strong programs in service learning so that tomorrow’s leaders have great classroom experiences, community engagement, and leadership training.
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Economic Prosperity in the East ECU will create a strong, sustainable future for the East through education, innovation, investment, and outreach. - 25 -
East Carolina will prepare tomorrow’s professionals to have an immediate and positive impact in the workforce.
ECU will invest in people and programs. • We will invest in academic programs that give individuals the right skills and tools needed to compete and thrive in a twenty-first-century workplace. • We will invest in programs that improve access to our resources for communities and individuals. • We will provide ongoing educational and learning opportunities to support the continued development of a competitive workforce for North Carolina.
ECU will support an entrepreneurial mindset throughout the university. • We will encourage new ideas and new approaches to programs, research, outreach, and engagement with the clear knowledge that only by trying can we achieve success. • We will strengthen our Entrepreneurial Initiative — to provide increased practical experience for ECU students in an entrepreneurial environment;
— to create regional partnerships;
— to assist the university in developing companies and taking products to market.
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From creating a tiny device that helps stutterers speak fluently to developing the most widely used form of surgery to treat morbid obesity, East Carolina researchers will continue to discover ways of improving people’s lives.
ECU will strengthen our partnerships with business, elected officials, and economic developers. • We will work with our partners to help create and achieve the economic and community development goals for the region. • We will reward engagement with the business community. • Our faculty, staff, and students will be directly engaged in addressing socioeconomic issues. • We will support innovative partnerships both within the university and between the university and the community. • We will achieve national recognition for the effectiveness of our economic development partnerships.
ECU will increase investment in innovation and research. • We will be the third-largest research university in the University of North Carolina system, exceeding $100 million in external support for our programs. • We will lead in innovation in health sciences and information technology and seek to develop products that compete in the growing knowledge-based economy. • We will invest in interdisciplinary research centers that will support the region’s growth in health care, tourism, education, marine trades, and biotechnology. • We will focus on developing applied, translational, and externally focused research that emphasizes the economic and physical health of our citizens. • We will be nationally recognized for our success in technology transfer—the process of developing practical products from the results of scientific research. We will be known for our ability to apply our knowledge to improving lives and to create technologies that genuinely help people. - 29 -
Health Care and Medical Innovation ECU will save lives, cure diseases, and positively transform the quality of health care for the region and state.
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With a School of Dentistry, ECU will provide much-needed oral health care throughout a state that has one of the largest underserved populations in the nation when it comes to dentists per capita.
ECU will expand its medical programs and services. • We will expand the Brody School of Medicine class size at least 10 percent and perhaps as high as 50 percent in order to address the health needs of North Carolina. • We will add up to five new medical specialties to the faculty and service mix, and we will extend clinical services to every county in the eastern region through partnerships with local providers.
ECU will significantly expand and improve our healthcare facilities. • We will complete the East Carolina Heart Institute. • We will build a School of Dentistry building and ten regional dental practices. • We will build a new Family Medicine Center.
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East Carolina will focus healthrelated research efforts especially on issues that affect the people of North Carolina.
ECU will expand our research in health sciences with a particular emphasis on the health concerns of the region and state. • We will expand biomedical and health-related research funding to $75 million annually. • We will focus research primarily in the areas of clinical and translational research in rural health care, racial/ethnic health disparities, diabetes and obesity, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, sensorimotor defects, quality care, and patient safety.
ECU will extend the reach of the Brody School of Medicine. • We will establish Brody School of Medicine East, a primary-care satellite campus in one of the rural areas of eastern North Carolina. This will enable the school to continue its commitment to primary care and service to rural and underserved populations while growing the subspecialty depth necessary for financial viability and physician-training needs on the Greenville campus.
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The Arts, Culture, and the Quality of Life ECU will provide world-class entertainment and powerful inspiration as we work together to sustain and improve the community’s quality of life.
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Already one of the most vital arts and culture communities in eastern North Carolina, ECU will develop more programs—including the construction of a visual and performing arts center—that will further enhance people’s quality of life.
ECU will enhance and expand its position as an arts and culture center. • We will build a world-class Center for Visual and Performing Arts. • We will develop and attract exhibits and performances that will significantly enhance Greenville’s standing as an arts and culture community.
ECU will be the catalyst for a true renaissance of downtown Greenville. • ECU will leverage our expanding population of students and staff to support positive development in downtown Greenville. • In partnership with the city and private businesses, ECU will extend its physical presence into downtown, using new and renovated buildings for university purposes that will benefit the entire community.
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With an emphasis on student-athlete success on the field and in the classroom, East Carolina will continue to build an athletics program that is an important source of community pride and entertainment.
ECU will strengthen the athletics program and build the conference relationships and venues that best reflect the university and the region. • We will expand the football stadium and improve other facilities as we position the athletics program for the future. • We will be a national model for conducting intercollegiate athletics the right way—with integrity, with commitment, and always with student success at the center.
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Tomorrow starts here.
U.P. 07-559
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