PLANNING: PHILOSOPHY

YEAR 1: PLAN IS APPROVED IN FALL 2022.

The end stages of the strategic plan approval process overlap with the start of implementation. The first step will be creation of an ad hoc Strategic Plan Tactical Committee (SPTC), which will fall under the governance structure, working monthly with the Forum Steering Committee, and bringing items for discussion before the appropriate standing committees. A call for volunteers will go out for membership, with the chair of the Forum Steering Committee and President jointly choosing the members.

The role of the SPTC will be one of stewardship and coordination, deciding which parts of the tactical plan can be acted on in isolation, which parts need to be coordinated among departments, and which might require voting by other governance committees. The tactical ideas will arise from the department level (the draft plan will be shared for tactical input for year 1 implementation this Fall), originating with the supervisors of each department, then the directors of the areas, the deans, provost, and so on so that cabinet can assign resources and departments can move ahead with implementation. For any approved project (e.g. creating 25% of classrooms with hyflex capability) a single person will be identified as responsible for organizing and implementation. The SPTC will steward this process as it unfolds throughout the year.

These project leaders report their progress, problems, needs, etc. to the SPTC. This group would have ultimate responsibility for monitoring and reporting on results and will report both to the Governance structure and to Cabinet.

The SPTC will create clear, easy to read dashboards and graphics to help the community track progress on each of the goals of the plan and take action when progress is insufficient.

After the development and implementation in Year 1, the process will unfold according to a set schedule that is consecutive instead of simultaneous.

YEARS 2-5:

• Spring: a call for new volunteers for service on the SPTC the following academic year will go out.

• Summer: departments gather tactical ideas, directors collate, dean/provost aligns with cabinet for resource allocation. Project leads identified and reported to SPTC.

• September: tactical plan for the year is approved and launched.

• January: metrics measurement for previous year begun.

• March: data/methodology distributed to departments to assess efficacy.

• April: mini- college retreat for prioritization.

This approach to the tactical plan sequences metrics development, prioritized resource allocation, and a review process that makes for a dynamic plan, one that keeps abiding goals even as it has the flexibility to respond to new challenges.

The SPTC and college and governance leadership will assess the effectiveness of the implementation process itself and adjust it as necessary.