Executive Summary At Augusta State University, planning is a continuous, strategic process of assessing the efforts to improve our university. Through the results of these assessments we can adjust the strategies used to make improvements. (It is only through this process that ultimately will we know if our goals have been met and how the university has benefitted.) In the four major administration divisions of the university (academic affairs, student services, business operations, and development and alumni relations) each vice president is responsible for the following: • • •
Defining planning units in the division. Ensuring that purpose, goals, strategies and other improvement efforts in each unit are supportive of the university’s vision, mission and goals. Establishing a cycle of assessment and implementing appropriate adjustments.
Over time, this cycle of assessment led to four strategic goals and the development of ASU in Action for Excellence: Strategic Plan 2010-2015. As a result, Augusta State University is better focused and our future is brighter. We are poised to see: (1) enhanced external support for our campus that will lead to growth and development of our faculty and student success; (2) an increase in the percentage of our graduates who major in high demand fields; (3) enhanced student matriculation and academic success; and (4) an increase in the percentage of our students who are enrolled in upper-division and graduate level courses. For Augusta State University’s complete strategic plan, please visit our website: http://www.aug.edu/. Click “S” on the Index line and then click “Strategic Plan.”
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Vision and Mission Statements Vision Statement Augusta State University shall be recognized as an institution of excellence by providing an environment of teaching and learning where all that we do fosters the creation, cultivation, application, and dissemination of superior scholarship.
Mission Statement Augusta State University is committed to the advancement of knowledge and the enrichment of its community in a climate that fosters a love of learning. The university is committed to the value of a liberal arts education and strives to be open to the voices of all its members, to be responsive to the needs of its community, and to appraise its success through the achievements of its students, faculty, and staff. To accomplish its mission, the university offers a broad array of programs that range from learning assistance to advanced degrees. All programs and student experiences in and outside the boundaries of the traditional classroom are designed to foster the intellectual growth of students and cultivate faculty members who are excellent in teaching, active in scholarship, and generous in service. (ASU’s faculty adopted the above mission statement on August 31, 2010. The revised statement has been submitted to the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia for its approval.)
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Core Values Accountability: We believe that education is a public trust that we will uphold by being good stewards of the human, intellectual, physical, and fiscal resources given to our care. Excellence: We perform our duties in ways that foster a culture of quality that contributes positively to the community, state, and nation. Inclusivity: We strive to educate a diverse student body without regard to race, creed, religion, socio-economic background, age, gender, sexual orientation, or disability, and to develop a diverse faculty and staff. Integrity: We will treat each person with respect, fairness, and compassion, and we will be honest in all our actions. Scholarship: We engage in mission-driven activities that promote learning among our students and faculty and that develop the capacity to engage in rational, critical, and creative thought.
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Strategic Goal 1: Enhance External Support that Leads to Faculty Growth and Development and Student Success.
Objective 1.1: Enhance the institution’s culture of seeking external funding through policy changes, education, and increased institutional support. Strategy 1.1.1: The ASU administration will issue a statement on its commitment to obtaining external funding and its support of those who seek funding to promote faculty growth and development and the success of students. Strategy 1.1.2: Effective with the adoption of this strategic plan, all advertisements for new tenure-track faculty positions will list grantsmanship as a valued job skill. Strategy 1.1.3: Deans and chairs will regularly survey faculty members to identify faculty members who are pursuing or planning to pursue external grants and gather information necessary to coordinate these efforts. Strategy 1.1.4: The Faculty Policies Committee will investigate the need for new policies on university support for efforts to secure external funding and will consider how to integrate grantsmanship into the Faculty Role Model and the criteria for promotion and tenure. Strategy 1.1.5: Establish new college committees to promote and recommend policies related to scholarships and grants. Strategy 1.1.6: Create new budgets to support the seeking of external funding and to enhance faculty research and travel that may lead to external funding. Strategy 1.1.7: The Grants Office will conduct workshops during the academic year for the purpose of educating the university community STRATEGIC PLAN 4
on the availability of various grants and successful strategies for writing grants. The Grants Office will work with faculty members, chairs, deans, the VPAA and the Center for Teaching and Learning to develop specific focus areas. Objective 1.2: Increase the annual number of submissions for institutional grants so that by FY2015 the institution submits at least four institutional grants each year. Objective 1.3: Increase faculty and departmental grant and contract submissions for research, instruction and public service. Strategy 1.3.1: Measurable goals will be set by deans of colleges and directors of support services units. Strategy 1.3.2: The Grants Office will hire an external reviewer or consultant, as appropriate and as funds permit. Strategy 1.3.3: Provide faculty incentives to encourage grant writing. Strategy 1.3.4: Increase support for undergraduate research. Subcommittee Members for Strategic Goal 1 Name College Department Dr. Karen A. D’Ambrogi, Chair Arts and Sciences Communications Dr. Walter E. Evans Arts and Sciences English and Foreign Languages Ms. Lurelia A. Hardy Education Kinesiology and Health Sciences Ms. Buffie Schmidt Business Dr. Chad E. Stephens Arts and Sciences Chemistry Dr. Merry Ann Stewart Arts and Sciences Nursing Ms. Kimberly F. Gray Grants Administration Ms. Victoria B. Hann ASU Foundation Mr. Matthew Miklas Student ASU IN ACTION FOR EXCELLENCE 5
Strategic Goal 2: Increase the percentage of graduates who major in high demand fields.
Objective 2.1: Recruit more high ability students in high demand majors. Strategy 2.1.1: Increase and enhance marketing to attract majors in STEM and other high demand fields. Strategy 2.1.2: Expand relationships with high schools and two-year colleges. Strategy 2.1.3: Increase the availability of merit-based scholarships for majors in high demand fields. Objective 2.2: Retain more students in high demand majors from their first to second year and increase their progression toward graduation. Strategy 2.2.1: Provide Supplemental Instruction in critical foundation courses. Strategy 2.2.2: Increase tutoring in critical foundation courses. Objective 2.3: Develop new programs in high demand majors. Strategy 2.3.1: Provide more support for pre-engineering programs. Strategy 2.3.2: Explore establishing new programs in Health Physics, Information Technology, Radiological Chemistry, and Software Development. Strategy 2.3.3: Revise STEM education programs using the IMAT model for an integrated BS/MAT.
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Subcommittee Members for Strategic Goal 2 Name College Department Dr. Richard Griner, Chair Arts and Sciences Biology Dr. Olagide O. Agunloye Education Educational Leadership Dr. Peter M. Basciano Business Dr. Thomas M. Colbert Arts and Sciences Physics Ms. Beverly R. Collins Arts and Sciences Nursing Dr. Christopher A. Terry Arts and Sciences Math and Computer Sciences Mr. Scott R. Argo Recruitment Ms. Mary Filpus-Luyckx Special Projects Ms. Julie M. Goley Career Center Ms. Kathy D. Schofe Public Relations Ms. Jacquelyn E. Stewart Institutional Research Ms. Maritess Banez Student Ms. Alice P. McCann Staff
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Strategic Goal 3: Enhance Student Matriculation and Academic Success.
Objective 3.1: Provide more online learning opportunities. Strategy 3.1.1: Establish an Online Education Council (OEC) of representatives from the colleges, library and other appropriate campus units led by an OEC coordinator appointed by the Office of the VPAA. Strategy 3.1.2: Conduct targeted marketing to relevant constituencies. Objective 3.2: Increase the retention rate of students who enroll in the University. Strategy 3.2.1: Enhance student connection and attachment and improve academic performance through academic, extra- and cocurricular and administrative initiatives. Strategy 3.2.2: Identify the needs of our at-risk student population and implement programs to enhance their retention and success. Strategy 3.2.3: Enhance student success through exposure to diverse cultures and lifestyles through increased offerings in study abroad and study away. Subcommittee Members for Strategic Goal 3 Name College Department Dr. Karen W. Wish, Chair Education Kinesiology and Health Sciences Dr. Jacquelyn T. Cohen Arts and Sciences Learning Support Dr. Martha Ginn Arts and Sciences Political Science Dr. Edgar D. Johnson Arts and Sciences Communications Dr. Carol J. Rychly Arts and Sciences Math and Computer Sciences Ms. Kathryn T. Thompson Arts and Sciences Academic Advisement Center Ms. Camilla B. Reid Library Ms. Maureen J. Akins IT Services Mr. Eddie J. Howard, Jr. Student Activities Ms. Therese H. Rosier Physical Plant Ms. Frances Sunderland Registrar’s Office Ms. Brandi Freeman Student Ms. Patricia A. Harris Staff STRATEGIC PLAN 8
Strategic Goal 4: Increase the percentage of students in upper-division and graduate level courses.
Objective 4.1: Increase student connectedness to the university by transitioning from a transactional mode to an engaged mode of advising. Strategy 4.1.1: Establish a central office of advising. Strategy 4.1.2: Implement mandatory and engaged advising. Objective 4.2: Address non-academic burdens on students to increase progression and six year graduation rates. Strategy 4.2.1: Create a more extensive student work-study program. Strategy 4.2.2: Conduct a feasibility study for the establishment of a health center run in collaboration with the ASU Department of Nursing. Possibly implement a pilot project. Strategy 4.2.3: Conduct a feasibility study for the establishment of a pre-school lab under the direction of the College of Education. Objective 4.3: Improve responsiveness to the needs of transfer students. Strategy 4.3.1: Facilitate the transfer process by providing transfer equivalency evaluations in a timely manner. Strategy 4.3.2: Improve the recruitment of transfer students. Objective 4.4: Improve retention through expanded and targeted new programs and course offerings. Strategy 4.4.1: Expand the diversity of graduate programs, including ASU IN ACTION FOR EXCELLENCE 9
programs designed to accommodate working professionals and nontraditional students. Strategy 4.4.2: Explore innovative and non-traditional degree programs. Strategy 4.4.3: Conduct a comprehensive needs analysis for new faculty positions. Subcommittee Members for Strategic Goal 4 Name College Department Dr. Todd A. Hoffman, Chair Arts and Sciences English and Foreign Languages Dr. Peggy Ruth Geren Education Educational Leadership Ms. Elizabeth W. Huggins Arts and Sciences Learning Support Dr. Nabil A. Ibrahim Business Dr. Angela L. Morgan Arts and Sciences Music Dr. Charlotte R. Price Arts and Sciences Nursing Dr. Deborah S. Richardson Arts and Sciences Psychology Ms. Carol L. Giardina Admissions Mr. Karl J. Munschy Business Services Ms. Gina H. Thurman Student Services Mr. Daniel Meadows Student Mr. Dane R. Scarff Staff
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Strategic Planning Task Force Dr. Samuel Sullivan, Chair, Vice President for Academic Affairs
Dr. Robert S. Bledsoe, Department of English and Foreign Languages
Dr. Raymond A. Whiting, Vice-Chair, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Professor, Department of Political Science
Dr. Pamela Z. Jackson, Hull College of Business
Ms. Helen Hendee, Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations Dr. Joyce A. Jones, Vice President for Student Services and Dean of Students Mr. Norman D. Whitfield, Vice President for Business Services Dr. J. Gordon Eisenman, Dean, College of Education Dr. Marc D. Miller, Dean, James M. Hull College of Business Dr. Robert R. Parham, Dean, Katherine Reese Pamplin College of Arts and Sciences
Dr. Lillie B. Johnson, Department of English and Foreign Languages Dr. Carol J. Rychly, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Dr. Chad E. Stephens, Department of Chemistry and Physics Dr. Cathy R. Tugmon, Department of Biology Dr. Judi C. Wilson, Department of Teacher Education Dr. Karen Aubrey D’Ambrogi, Chair of Subcommittee for Strategic Goal 1 Dr. Richard Griner, Chair of Subcommittee for Strategic Goal 2
Ms. Camilla B. Reid, Director, Reese Library
Dr. Karen W. Wish, Chair of Subcommittee for Strategic Goal 3
Dr. Peter M. Basciano, Chair of Faculty Policies Committee
Dr. Todd A. Hoffman, Chair of Subcommittee for Strategic Goal 4
Mr. Jeffrey J. Heck, Faculty Secretary
Ms. Jacquelyn E. Stewart, Director, Institutional Research (Retired 2010)
Dr. Todd Schultz, Chair of Academic Policies Committee ASU IN ACTION FOR EXCELLENCE 11
Ms. Mary P. Filpus-Luyckx, Director, Institutional Research (New 2010)
Mr. Barinaadaa Kara, President, Student Government Association
The Honorable Barbara W. Sims, Georgia State Representative
Mr. Armand Smith, Vice President, Student Government Association
Ms. Barbara Smoak, Savannah River Nuclear Solutions
Ms. Michelle DeLoach, Staff Advisory Council Chair
University Effectiveness Council Dr. Carol J. Rychly, Committee Chair, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Professor, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Ms. Juanita Blocker (non-voting), Recorder Ms. Kathy Boyd, Management Control Analyst and Internal Auditor Mr. Clint Bryant, Director of Athletics Dr. Todd Schultz, Professor Hull College of Business
Ms. Jacquelyn E. Stewart, Director, Institutional Research (Retired 2010) Ms. Mary P. Filpus-Luyckx, Director, Institutional Research (New 2010) Ms. Gina H. Thurman, Assistant Dean of Students Dr. Raymond A. Whiting, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Professor, Department of Political Science
Dr. Philip L. Smith, Associate Professor, Education Leadership, Counseling and Special Education
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