Looking Forward Strategic Initiatives

BY ALESSANDRO BERTONI

FORWARD WITH PURPOSE—STRATEGIC PLANNING

On October 22, 2021, the Board of Trustees approved the College’s three-year strategic plan, “Forward with Purpose.” An overview of the plan was presented to employees in a Zoom meeting held on October 29. President Lorraine Sterritt outlined the plan’s areas of focus as Purposeful Learning, Advanced Approaches, and Strengthened Communities. She explained that the College’s mission is foundational to the plan, which puts the promise and value of an integrated student experience at its heart. The plan will prioritize guiding students through a well-structured advising program to define and nurture their purpose, to find ways to make a difference in society, and to prepare for meaningful and successful careers. The College will invest in Centers of Social Impact to provide opportunities for students to learn and engage in applied work in critical areas of global need, including the environment, global engagement, and equity and justice. The plan also outlines specific areas in which the College will innovate and modernize, leveraging data and analyses to improve decision-making and operations. President Sterritt also emphasized that inclusion and advancing diversity and equity are fundamental to who we are as a Catholic, Edmundite community, and are essential to the College’s future.

In the coming weeks, the College will share more details and have a website dedicated to Forward with Purpose at smcvt.edu/forwardwithpurpose.

NEW MEDIA CREATION STUDIO IN THE WORKS

The College has approved a plan to develop a new Media Creation Studio (MCS) in Saint Edmund’s Hall for students and faculty from all disciplines. Featuring a state-of-the-art video studio, with a separate audio recording space and instructional editing suite, the MCS will provide students an opportunity to learn, create media for their academic projects, and gain applied experience. Patrick Bohan, the new director of the MCS, said, “Media is integral to so many disciplines today. Whether a student just wants to learn the basics, run their own live-streamed talk show, or get the experience to become a professional videographer, the new Media Creation Studio will be a space for all that and more.” Alumni and friends interested in following its development and possibly helping the College realize the vision for the studio can visit smcvt.edu/MCS.

Professor Jeffrey Ayres, left, and Director of International Student and Scholar Services Phil Gadzekpo.

CENTER FOR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT

This summer the College named Professor Jeffrey Ayres, of the Political Science and International Relations Department, to lead a new Center for Global Engagement at Saint Michael’s. The center will serve as the collaborative hub of international activity at the College, promoting global learning and literacy and deepening intercultural competency and inclusion. Professor Ayres shared, “While the College has a long and accomplished past connected to its Edmundite founding embracing internationalization, it is even more important today, as we slowly emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, to help students gain global awareness and help foster better relations between cultures and peoples world-wide.” The center is the home to such areas as Study Abroad, International Internships, Undergraduate and Post-Graduate Fellowships, the Peace Corps Prep Program, and the Office of International Student and Scholars Services led by Phil Gadzekpo. To learn more about the initiatives of the Center for Global Engagement, or to make a donation to support campus global engagement, visit smcvt.edu/global.