REACHING FOR 2025 AND BEYOND
UPDATE 11.12
“
We can do nothing to change the past, but we have enormous power to shape the future. Once we grasp that essential insight, we recognize our responsibility and capability for building our dreams of tomorrow and avoiding our nightmares.
”
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Edward Cornish, founder World Future Society SLIPPERYROCK ROCKUNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY SLIPPERY
FROM THE PRESIDENT: During 2011-12 Slippery Rock University implemented its strategic plan: Reaching for 2025 and Beyond. This plan represented a bold and innovative approach toward planning for the future. Unlike other institutional plans that describe how the institution will be preserved, exalted and rebuilt, SRU chose a far more serious and challenging path. We examined the global trends expected to have the greatest impact on transforming the world, and then asked how we could develop globally competent graduates that would have the knowledge, skills and commitment to respond to the global realities of 2025 and beyond. Why 2025? We believed that by 2025 our graduates would be at the place in their personal and professional lives when they could lead significant changes in their communities, profession and even the world. We believed our graduates could be agents for change if we provided them an education that delivered the knowledge, skills and values around the most pressing issues of our times. We began the process by investigating four questions: 1) what was the University’s current status; 2) what challenges would our future graduates be likely to face; 3) how could we better prepare our graduates to be engaged leaders in a global society; and 4) how would we know we had achieved our goals? The Seven Revolutions, developed by the Global Strategy Institute at the Center for Strategic and International Studies inspired and informed our work. Five global trends were adapted from that treatise and served as the focus around which the original plan was developed. A sixth trend was added during the first year of implementation. The six themes we adopted were: • Population dynamics, • STEM leadership, • Cultural awareness, • Education as access, • Sustainability, and • Health and wellness. These trends, along with strategic business strategies for achieving institutional effectiveness, academic excellence and financial self-sufficiency, propel this plan. As with all living documents, the University continues to assess Reaching for 2025 and Beyond to insure that it remains responsive to institutional, PASSHE and commonwealth needs. PASSHE performance measures have been incorporated as key components of the document. Reaching for 2025 and Beyond remains rooted in our commitment to excellence, civility, integrity, diversity and accountability. It reflects Slippery Rock University’s mission to provide high quality undergraduate and graduate academic instruction and our vision of creating a caring community of lifelong learners connecting to the world. As we translate this plan into action, monitor our progress and meet the challenges identified, we continue to secure our position as the region’s premiere, undergraduate, residential University.
Cheryl Norton President
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
3
MISSION
The fundamental mission of Slippery Rock University is to provide high quality undergraduate and graduate academic instruction.
THE PLANNING PROCESS Planning for 2025 and Beyond is a living document that both serves as an organizing framework to position the University to meet global challenges, and a blueprint for divisions, units and departments to articulate and align their plans with the universitywide strategic plan. The strategic planning initiative began in 2006 with the appointment of a Steering Committee comprised of the University Cabinet, and representatives from academic affairs, advancement, finance and administration, student life, faculty, campus leadership, students, the Council of Trustees, the Alumni Association and the Slippery Rock University Foundation. The Steering Committee was charged with the task of investigating four questions: 1) what was the University’s current status, 2) what challenges would our future graduates be likely to face, 3) how could we better prepare our graduates to be engaged leaders in a global society, and 4) how would we know we had achieved our goals? The Seven Revolutions, developed by the Global Strategy Institute, informed the work of the steering committee. Five global trends were adapted from that treatise and served as the focus around which the plan was developed. Five faculty-led working groups each examined one of the global trends: population dynamics, STEM leadership, cultural awareness, education as access, and sustainability. A sixth trend, wellness, was added to the plan during its first year of implementation. Each of the working groups sought input through electronic media, public forums, focus groups and interactions with the other working groups. Draft copies of each of the individual trend reports were circulated to the community and were posted online for review and comment. The trend reports, along with institutional reports on achieving institutional effectiveness, academic excellence and financial self-sufficiency, were then combined into one document that was shared with the University community at large. Altogether, more than 250 stakeholders from across the institution participated in the planning process. The plan was approved by the SRU Council of Trustees in June 2011 and implemented during the 2011-12 fiscal year. Recognizing that the economic reality is such that all goals cannot be realized at the same pace, the University continually assesses it to insure that it remains responsive to institutional, PASSHE and commonwealth needs.
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
VISION
Slippery Rock University will excel as a caring community of lifelong learners connecting with the world.
INTEGRATING THE PLANNING PROCESS Planning for 2025 and Beyond tapped the ideas, creativity and expertise of a wide-range of faculty, staff, students, alumni and other stakeholders, and was a highly inclusive process. The plan respects the richness and diversity of the University community and acknowledges the significant body of ongoing work accomplished through a variety of standing commissions, councils, committees and work groups. Slippery Rock University works proactively to institutionalize the planning process and link resources to results. Each administrative division (Academic Affairs, Advancement, Finance and Administration, Student Life and Public Relations) is responsible for developing precise and focused plans that align with the University’s strategic plan. The work of the SPSC was conducted through task forces for each of the Global Trends. To help guide its work, the SPSC relied upon the expertise of established University-wide planning groups for: diversity, enrollment management, information technology, instructional technology, sustainability, facilities master planning, food services and the first-year college experience. Throughout the planning process, and at every level of planning, participants struggled with the conflict between having ambitious aspirations and being realistic about the availability of resources to fund priorities of the strategic plan. To that end, the Strategic Planning Steering Committee endorsed the following budget guidelines: Planning for 2025 and Beyond is not meant to be a static document. The test of its effectiveness is the degree to which it addresses current aspirations and adapts and responds to changing conditions.
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 1 POPULATION:
66
SLIPPERYROCK ROCKUNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY SLIPPERY
Understand global demographic differences and population changes that impact political, environmental and economic stability.
CHALLENGE The world population continues to grow by 8,700 people every hour, 145 people every minute, and 2.4 people every second. These demographic changes will require creative responses on the part of nations, cultures and educators. Changing population dynamics include: ■B urgeoning population in the developing world. The population of the developing world is expected to grow by 49 percent between now and 2025; ■C ontinued international immigration from the developing to the developed world; ■A ging of the global population. Global elderly population is expected to exceed the population under 15 years of age in 2047. In addition to related concerns about a sustainable workforce, the aging of the global population requires reconsideration of social and economic resources from health and medical services to education, recreation, and geriatric services; ■ I ncreasing rates of disability, particularly in those over the age of 50. ■ I ncreasing urbanization, particularly in the developing world. Growing urban populations will stress infrastructure (utilities, transportation, public services) as well as essential life systems of food production and water quality
“When Christopher Columbus reached the New World, it is estimated that the world’s population was about 500 million. By 2025, the global population will likely reach eight billion.” United Nations World Populations Prospects
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 1 POPULATION:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University graduates will be informed, globally invested citizens who make meaningful personal and professional contributions to the global community.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Establish a living and learning environment that encourages the engagement of students in a global community. ■ Expand opportunities and dedicate resources for international students to study at Slippery Rock University. ■D evelop new and existing opportunities for internships, travel and study abroad programs. Be recognized for undergraduate and graduate academic programs that support the global community. ■ Create learning opportunities for students to apply their classroom knowledge to real world situations. ■ Support classroom instruction that seeks to develop knowledge, skills and values related to global issues across all academic disciplines Be recognized as a preferred workplace where faculty and staff participate in professional, scholarly, and personal growth opportunities that support engagement in and competencies related to global trends. ■ Enhance research and scholarly growth of students through opportunities to present at state, regional, national and international professional conferences within their disciplines. ■ Provide a climate of inclusiveness, sensitivity and appreciation for diversity through formal programs of diversity training that reach 10 percent of the workforce annually. Provide educational opportunities to existing and emerging nontraditional learning communities, including alumni, community members, and retirees. ■E xpand distance education programs and online classes to accommodate working adults. ■ Develop new and existing continuing education opportunities, including certification and degree programs, for nontraditional students at all stages of their professional lives. ■ Expand and support ‘Return to Learn’ programming. 8
SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
TREND 1 POPULATION:
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ■ The number of students participating in global internships and travel abroad programs abroad increased by 22 percent from 378 students in 2010/11 to 461 students in 2011/12. ■ Slippery Rock University has been ranked 10th nationally among masters-degree granting institutions for the number of students participating in short-term study abroad programs by the Institute for International Education. Recent study opportunities have taken students to Poland, China, the Bahamas, Egypt, Ghana, the Netherlands, Russia, England and elsewhere ■ The number of students presenting at state, regional, national and international conferences remained relatively consistent at 233 for 2011/12. ■ Employee participation in diversity training and programming continues to grow. The University launched a three-day “Diversity and Inclusion” program that drew participation from all segments of the University community. ■ The Chronicle of Higher Education has recognized Slippery Rock University among the “Great Colleges to Work At” for three of the past four years.
Enrollment by geographic origin Fall 2012
HH H
HH
H H
By County
H
H
H By State
By Country United States .................. 8,486 United Kingdom ................... 8 Canada................................... 7 Nigeria .................................. 5 Japan ..................................... 5
Ireland ................................... South Korea .......................... Nepal ..................................... France .................................... Brazil ......................................
4 4 4 3 2
Pennsylvania ............... 7,575 Ohio ................................ 434 New York ........................ 130 Maryland .......................... 89 New Jersey ...................... 59
Virginia ............................. 39 California .......................... 19 West Virginia .................... 17 Massachusetts ................. 13 Florida .............................. 12
Allegheny ........................ 1,811 Butler ............................... 1,214 Mercer ............................... 589 Beaver ............................... 519 Lawrence ........................... 461 Westmoreland .................. 390 Erie .................................... 317 Washington ....................... 252 Venango ............................ 158 Armstrong ......................... 139
*Not a complete listing, table is reflective of only the top 10 for each category.
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 2 STEM LEADERSHIP: “We have reached a point at which a fiber the size of a human hair can deliver every issue of the Wall Street Journal ever made in less than a second” Nicholas Negroponte MIT
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
Expand our capacity to create and ethically utilize science, mathematics and technology to solve a number of the most challenging crises we face today.
CHALLENGE The greater productivity gains that sustain our economy and improve our standard of living come from the nation’s leadership in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) areas. However, in recent years the leadership advantage enjoyed historically by the United States in STEM areas has been in decline. For example, 66 percent of undergraduates in Japan receive their degrees in science and engineering, and in China 59 percent receive such degrees. In the United States, the percentage of undergraduates who receive degrees in science and engineering is 17 percent, well below national averages seen elsewhere. Based on the Department of Labor projections of changes in occupational growth within the United States in the years leading up to 2018, it may be concluded that although many sectors of the US economy (e.g., manufacturing and finance) are expected to decline or show only modest growth, STEM areas, including health care, are expected to have among the highest growth rates. During the same period, employment growth is predicted to be at least twice as high for persons having at least a bachelor’s degree than for those without an undergraduate degree. Consequently, it is vital that Slippery Rock University be competitive in vigorously recruiting talented students interested in STEM, and preparing them to compete in a global, knowledge/skills-based, 21st century workforce.
“Our major competitors are ramping up their education systems, and focusing on STEM education as a means to bolster their economic competitiveness.” Confronting the STEM Challenge: A New Modeling Tool for U.S. Education Policymakers
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 2 STEM LEADERSHIP:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University graduates will understand the critical roles STM play in the global community, possess STM-related competencies that will contribute significantly to their future success, and appreciate the importance and application of the scientific method to STM-related studies.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Increase new and enrolled student interest and participation in Science, Technology and Mathematics disciplines. ■ Promote STM-focused outreach programs in area elementary and secondary schools to increase STM interest and literacy among K-12 students. ■ Coordinate campus initiatives for marketing and expanding enrollment into the University’s STM areas by supporting targeted recruitment initiatives, and by leveraging on-campus events such as the SRU Research Symposium and the annual Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science competition. ■ Promote the SRU Research Symposium as a venue to stimulate interest in STM areas. Increase student achievement in STM areas by providing challenging curricular, co-curricular and extracurricular experiences, with engaging instruction, and with assessments that encourage real world, inquiry-based problem solving. ■ Support the acquisition of contemporary instrumentation and resources critical to student achievement in STM areas. ■ Support student/faculty collaborative research projects in STM areas. Provide technological resources to facilitate learning, research and professional development for students, faculty and staff in STM areas. ■ Develop and maintain a premier campus-computing environment. ■P rovide timely training for students, faculty and staff in emerging technologies available on campus. 12
SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
TREND 2 STEM LEADERSHIP:
■ The percentage of the freshmen cohort enrolling in STEM and Health Profession (STEMHP) majors within the College of Health, Environment and Science, and in select programs in the College of Business, Information and Social Sciences (Computer Science, Information Technology, Information Systems and Safety Management) increased from 35 percent in 2010 to 39 percent in 2011. ■ The percentage of degree-seeking undergraduate and graduate students enrolling in STEM-HP majors increased from 29.9 percent in 2010 to 32.3 percent in 2011. ■ The number of degrees awarded in STEMHP programs increased by nearly 17 percent from 531 in 2010-2011 to 619 in 2011-2012. ■ The annual Research Symposium continues to show a significant increase in participation. The 2012 Symposium for Student Research, Scholarship and Creative Achievement highlighted the work of 161 participants who presented 74 student research projects. The presenters included 115 students (105 undergraduate and 10 graduates), and 46 faculty advisers. This represents an increase of 17.5 percent in projects compared to 2011 and a 25 percent increase in overall participation compared to 2011. ■ Slippery Rock University’s department of computer science scored a trifecta by earning accreditations for its information technology, information science and computer science programs from ABET Inc. SRU joins Drexel, the University of North Florida and the University of South Alabama as one of only four institutions nationally to have earned ABET accreditation in all three programs. ■ The University committed $14 million to a complete renovation of the Vincent Science Center that transformed the former classroom building into a modern learning center with new furniture, technology, 16 advanced laboratories with prep rooms and wireless throughout to allow for real-time data acquisition between labs, equipment and individuals. ■ Slippery Rock University’s health services administration major was named one of the 12 smartest educational choices in the region for finding a job by the Pittsburgh Magazine. ■ The SRU-hosted Region IX Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science drew nearly 600 seventh through twelfth grade students to campus.
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
Degrees Conferred (July 2011 – June 2012)
Degrees Bachelors Masters Doctorate University Total
Masters 13.9%
This Year Last Year % Change 1,776
1,548
14.7%
295
306
-3.6%
47
51
-7.8%
2,118
1,905
11.2%
Doctorate 2.2%
Bachelors 83.9%
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TREND 3 CULTURAL AWARENESS:
14 14
SLIPPERY SLIPPERYROCK ROCKUNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY
Appreciate the global interdependence of economies and nations and how concerns over identity, heritage and culture take on increasing importance when people, resources and ideas must be exchanged across borders.
CHALLENGE The pace of cultural change has accelerated at local, national, and global scales in recent years. Attitudes and behaviors of ever smaller and larger social, political and economic groups need to be considered. Individuals increasingly belong to a variety of intertwined and interdependent groups within which they will live and work. The complex world this creates makes it crucial for students to understand the myriad relationships among these groups, both domestic and global. Trends to consider while creating pertinent educational strategies include: â– P owerful political agendas fueled by economic, cultural, and social differences promote armed conflicts all over the world at the onset of the 21st Century. For example, failing or rogue states are not the only unsettling factors. The ongoing shift in relative wealth and economic power from West to East will also create frictions between rising and declining superpowers. â– Global inequality, the widening gap between the rich and the poor, intransigent and intolerant belief systems as well as misunderstood human conditions or practices continue to generate unproductive cultural tensions between individuals as well as societies. â– I nstantaneous communication technologies have reduced the traditional geographic barriers for people on the planet and will become cheaper and more accessible thus creating more opportunities for cultural exchanges. New technologies will continue to create dramatic changes in the way we communicate, socialize, do business, and teach our students. The diversity of populations within countries will continue to accelerate and along with simultaneous waves of globalized culture will erode traditional notions of national identity, heritage and culture.
American students need a sharper understanding of where global trends are taking them, what those future trends imply, and what kinds of leadership and policy challenges they suggest. Eric Peterson A.T. Kearney Global Business Policy Council
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 3 CULTURAL AWARENESS:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University graduates will be culturally aware, socially engaged citizens who understand the problems of our global society and have confidence in their skills and values to address those problems throughout their lives.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Prepare students to be successful professionals for the culturally diverse world of 2025 and beyond. ■C reate, improve and maintain programs, co-curricular activities and extracurricular offerings as well as courses related to the exploration and analysis of cultural factors. ■P rovide faculty development workshops, orientations and presentations, teaching the pedagogy of inclusion. Build a community that works together in the promotion of an evolving, complex and diverse campus. ■C reate a central organization to support the University’s efforts to maximize the benefits of cultural diversity among students and faculty, as well as professional and administrative employees. ■R ecruit and retain student population with diverse perspectives, experiences and backgrounds. ■R ecruit and retain administrative, faculty and staff populations with diverse perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds. ■ Foster and support universally designed environments. Promote cultural awareness that will lead towards peace as well as fair and just economic opportunities for all. ■C reate partnerships between the University and international organization or other multicultural educational institutions and organizations so that SRU students can learn and serve beyond the campus boundaries. ■ Promote the creation of internship opportunities related to diversity issues.
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
■ Established an internal Diversity & Inclusion Grant program, providing campus constituents (students, staff and faculty) allocations for research, programming and educational opportunities on diversity. The initial program distributed $25,000 to fifteen unique diversity proposals. ■ Increased the percentage of minority students attending SRU from 7.8 percent in 2010 (692 students) to 8.1 percent in 2011 (705 students). ■ Established Intergroup Relations (IGR) and Dialogue, a nationally recognized dialogic, social justice, educational approach that fosters participant engagement and learning across differences, especially focused on race, gender, sexual orientation, class, religion and ability.
TREND 3 CULTURAL AWARENESS:
■ The University met all baseline performance measures relating to the percentage and counts of female and minority faculty, executives and professional staff for 2011-12 with the exception of the number of the number of female faculty measure. The University met 15 of 18 baseline and benchmark employee diversity measures.
■ Executed letters of understanding with three secondary schools in China to provide the framework for educational and cultural exchange. ■ According to the National Survey of Student Engagement, SRU seniors rated the SRU learning environment for encouraging contact among students from different economic, social and ethnic backgrounds higher than did their peers at PASSHE and Carnegie Class participants. SRU seniors scored SRU at 2.59 compared to PASSHE (2.52) and Carnegie Class (2.57). SRU seniors also recorded higher scores for having had a serious conversation with students of a different race or ethnicity (2.58) higher than PASSHE (2.55) and Carnegie Class (2.66) participants.
Full-time faculty vs. part-time faculty
Class Size
Part-time Full-time 2 to 29 students
87 %
37%
13%
30 to 49 students 50+ students
55%
8%
Only faculty teach courses at Slippery Rock University. No classes are taught by graduate assistants.
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
SPECIAL NOTE: • 75.3% of all classes have fewer that 40 students • Fewer than 3% of all classes have more than 100 students
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TREND 4 EDUCATION AS ACCESS:
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
Value that knowledge grows and that education, as well as a commitment to life-long learning, are essential tools for all segments of our societies to be successful.
CHALLENGE Access to higher education is the principal mechanism for making America’s unwritten social compact work: to provide genuine equality of opportunity. Public funding is always a concern in higher education. Financial aid has undergone two major changes: shifting overwhelmingly toward loans, rising from about half to three-quarters of all federal aid, creating a negative effect on those of low and middle income because they fear heavy debt to pay for a college education. State financing of higher education continues to lag behind costs as legislatures demand strategies for cost containment. Public funding changes are shifting the social compact to more dependence on the individual’s ability to pay, [thus] decreasing affordability for a large segment of the population’s access to higher education.
The rise in the portions of youth and adults with primary and secondary education in most countries between 2005 and 2025 will pose both opportunities and challenges. A population with a rising level of education attainment, especially if that education involves real and relevant learning, can improve a country’s competitiveness in the global economy and its population’s overall well-being. Window on the Future: 2025 Projections of education attainment and its impact
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 4 EDUCATION AS ACCESS:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University will increase access by low income and students of color.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Improve student learning and success of low-income, first-generation students and students of color, including first-year and transfer cohorts. ■ I ncrease the amount of need-based funding from private sources (SRU Foundation, Inc.) and public sources (financial aid) for low-income students. ■O ffer academic support, transitional and academic advisement services for new freshmen and transfer low income students. ■ I mprove retention for Underrepresented Minority Students. Support professional development activities that increase the awareness and understanding of unseen barriers as described in the SRU Diversity Initiatives report. Encourage faculty/staff/administration involvement with students in curricular, co-curricular and extracurricular activities. ■ I nclude issues related to Underrepresented Minority Students (URM) within the university’s formal programs of diversity training and faculty development. ■P rovide resources for the Frederick Douglass Institute, Honors Program, and International Initiatives to expand unique educational opportunities available to students and faculty. Increase low income and underrepresented minority student enrollment and retention through an increased focus on student leadership and civic engagement. ■D evelop a student leadership certification process to ensure that all students meet basic competencies in leadership skills and to provide advanced certification for those who choose to pursue additional experience ■ Computerize student organization registration and co-curricular experience transcript processes to increase student use of the program. Identify distinct “mobility” issues, related to the social, economic and technological mobility of low income, underrepresented minority students and transfer students ■ I dentify institutional cultural, economic, and technological barriers that limit low-income students’ success. ■C reate academic program advisory boards comprised of employers in the profession.
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
■T he University met eight out of nine persistence measures. The overall first-to-second year persistence rate for the 2010 cohort declined less than a half-percent to 81.1 percent from the 2010 cohort rate of 81.5 percent. The 2010 African-American cohort achieved a 71.3 percent second year persistence rate as compared to 76.1 percent for the 2009 cohort. During the same period, the 2010 Hispanic cohort’s second year persistence rate increased to 84.4 percent from 78.6 percent in 2009. Even with the slight declines in retention percentages, SRU met all performance and baseline targets for overall, African American and Hispanic persistence rates.
TREND 4 EDUCATION AS ACCESS:
■ The University met 18 of 18 graduation rate baseline and benchmark measures for the 201112 year. The overall four-year graduation rate increased 1.2 percent to 39.6 percent for the 2007 cohort as compared to 38.4 percent for the 2006 cohort. During this same period, the African-American graduation rate increased 3.5 percent to 29.5 percent for the 2007 cohort as compared to 26.0 percent for the 2006 cohort. Graduation rates for Hispanic students increased to 39.3 percent for the 2007 cohort from 25 percent for the previous cohort. African-American six-year graduation rates for the 2005 cohort were 47.4 percent as compared to 44.1 percent for the previous cohort. Hispanic six-year graduation rates increased from 33.3 percent for the 2004 cohort to 53.3 percent for the 2005 cohort.
■ All 10 of 10 degree completion measures were met for the 2011-12 year. The degree to enrollment ratio for bachelor’s degree students increased to 24.2 percent for 2011-12 as compared to 21.3 percent for the previous year; a six-year high. At the same time, the master’s level degree to enrollment ratio increased to 53.1 percent from 52.4 percent, matching a previous six-year high. ■ Honors Program participation increased from 266 participants in 2009-10 to 309 in 2011-12. ■T he Compass Leadership Program involved 2,719 students in 2011-12 as compared to 2,247 in 2010-11. ■A dvisory Boards for all colleges are actively engaged in helping to shape the University’s response to commonwealth needs. In the College of Education, all six department have advisory boards; the College of Business, Information and Social Sciences has six advisory boards; the College of Health, Environment and Science has a total of 15 advisory boards; and the College of Humanities, Fine and Performing Arts, has eight departmental advisory boards and one for the Honors Program.
Retention rate of new full-time first-year students
Total Fall Enrollment (10 Year Comparison)
AY 2005-2006 to AY 2011-2012 10,000
90%
85%
81.4%
81.1%
81.2%
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
78.8%
77.9%
75.8%
Percent Retained
8,559
8,852
8,712
8,648
8,458
8,325
8,105
7,928
75%
80.6%
7,000
7,789
8,000
8,230
80%
2008-09
9,000
70%
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
2007-08
2006-07
2005-06
2012-13
60%
2011-12
2010-11
2009-10
2008-09
2007-08
2006-07
2005-06
2004-05
6,000
2003-04
65%
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TREND 5 SUSTAINABILITY: Today, more than 880 million people, or one out of every eight persons, live without safe or reliable access to water. Water Partners International Water Facts
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
Recognize that our planet's ability to provide us with adequate food, water, clean air and energy depends on our stewardship.
CHALLENGE Food, water, and energy…these are among the defining elements of survival on our planet. How well we manage these resources as well as their distribution to needed areas will determine our fate. Yet the world’s rapidly growing population is outrunning the supply of these critical resources, while our use of fossil fuels threatens to change our climate and put millions at risk. Trends to consider as SRU prepares for this challenge include: ■P oor land management and the overuse of fertilizers are causing land degradation, soil erosion and desertification on a massive scale in agricultural areas from the Amazon Basin to the Yangtze River. ■B y 2025, an estimated 3.5 billion people, or nearly half of the world’s population, will face serious constraints on their capacity to meet water demands. Water scarcity and quality will be a prime determinant of expanding current food production. By 2020, India’s demand for water will exceed all sources of supply. y 2025, OPEC will account for up to 50 percent of the world supply of oil. Skyrocketing ■B demand—primarily in Asia—will drive this trend. The number of cars in China could rise from 12 million in 2004 to 500 million by 2050. In India, the number of cars could increase even faster, from 5 million to 600 million. The impact of this rise in consumption is startling in terms of potential geopolitical conflict and environmental consequences. ■A ggregate increases in other sources of energy will be overshadowed by the exponential consumption of coal, oil, and natural gas in the decades ahead. ■C urrent trends are not sustainable and resource availability and demand will impact political stability throughout the world.
“Affluent individuals use upwards of 660 gallons of water per day for their personal use and in the production of the products they consume, when only 13.2 gallons per person are required for survival.” Water Partners International Water Facts
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 5 SUSTAINABILITY:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University graduates will be able to recognize how their day-to-day activities impact both global society and the natural environment; use natural resources efficiently; identify environmental problems and work within their professions and communities to find solutions, and be agents of change for practical, long-term sustainability.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Increase the opportunities for students to learn about sustainability and get involved in sustainability efforts on campus and in the surrounding communities. ■ I ncrease the number of sustainability components within goal courses in the Liberal Studies Program ■D evelop Sustainable Living Learning communities within the residential halls. ■D evelop sustainability workshops as a service to the surrounding communities. Implement a systems approach that coordinates and engages all aspects of campus operations. ■S upport the Green Fund initiative and encourage participation by student, faculty and staff. ■C reate incentives for students, faculty and staff to reduce automobile use. Become a living laboratory where sustainability is knit into the fabric of the institution. ■ Conduct a sustainability assessment to document SRU’s efforts and pursue STARS certification. ■ I mplement a campus energy policy designed to achieve carbon neutrality. ■ Reduce campus waste and increase recycling to ultimately become a zero-waste community. ■ I mplement a purchasing policy that stimulates purchasing of environmentally friendly, cost-competitive products and services. Decrease Btu/sq.ft. consumption of energy on campus. ■D evelop ESCO process to decrease Btu/sq. ft. consumption by 1.5 percent annually.
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
■S RU has decreased energy consumption 29 percent over the past seven years, resulting in more than $500,000 in fossil fuel cost avoidance. ■O n-going ESCO initiatives during 2011-12 reduced the BTS/sq. ft. consumption by 38.55 percent versus the base year of 2003-04 and by 3.95 percent from the previous year. ■A $7 million baghouse and flue gas heat recovery system at the central heating plant was completed with the intention of increased plan efficiency and decreased local emissions ■ I n August 2012 the Universities Campus Climate Action Plan was approved by American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment initiative. The plan will help guide the University in its efforts to become climate neutral within 25 years.
TREND 5 SUSTAINABILITY:
■S lippery Rock University has saved $16.5 million through sustainable development and energy conservation over the past five years and expects to save at least $5.6 million through energy conservation over the next 15 years.
■S lippery Rock University saves more than $27,000 annually in electricity costs by activating sleep mode settings on 2,000 faculty and staff computer monitors. The Energy Star settings shut the monitor down after one hour of no use. ■T he University’s sustainability efforts received a Silver Star ranking (49.81 points) from the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education; an improvement from the Bronze ranking (44.33 points) achieved in 2010-11. Currently more than 830 colleges and universities belong to AASHE. ■S lippery Rock University is reducing waste and saving money in energy costs through “Trayless Tuesdays.” The program eliminates the use of food trays every Tuesday in Boozel Dining Hall during breakfast, lunch and dinner. On the first Tuesday, going trayless reduced food waste 425 pounds, water consumption 700 gallons and detergent use five pounds. Boozel’s energy usage dropped 317 KWH and food waste by 20-25 percent. ■S RU has been included in “The Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges,” the first comprehensive guidebook cataloging institutions that have shown above average commitment to sustainability and green building design.
STRATEGIC PLAN 2025
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TREND 6 WELLNESS:
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SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
Understand wellness on a personal and societal level and empower individuals to make choices that positively impact their well being and quality of life.
CHALLENGE The need for students to understand, appreciate and make lifestyle choices promoting wellness is central to their development as well-rounded and educated individuals. Emerging trends underscore the urgency for all people to understand wellness and enact behaviors contributing to their own wellness in order for them to be fully contributing members of their local and global communities. ■A well established link exists between lifestyle choices and physical and mental ailments that result in a diminished quality of life and, ultimately, death. ■T he CDC estimates that 7 out of 10 deaths in the U.S. are from chronic diseases, and the total cost of chronic and lifestyle related disease is $1.8 trillion annually. ■A lthough the incidences of lifestyle related diseases are on the rise, there is also growing recognition that modifiable behaviors and lifestyle choices have a profound impact on health and wellbeing. ■T here is an accelerating trend of employers and governments enacting wellness promotion programs. ■C areers in Wellness related industries will grow profoundly in the coming decades and businesses will value employees who can demonstrate that they engage in behaviors that contribute to their own health and wellness.
“Direct medical costs related to physical inactivity were $76 billion in 2009, representing 16 percent of gross domestic product. These costs are expected to reach 20 percent by 2016.” U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention
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TREND 6 WELLNESS:
COMMITMENT Slippery Rock University will support both academic and non-academic initiatives that enhance wellness and increase student awareness of the profound role that wellness-related issues play in society. SRU graduates will enjoy knowledge and skills that will contribute to their professional development as well as their quality of life.
TO MEET THIS COMMITMENT, WE WILL: Increase awareness of the connection between physical activity and health and wellness, and also increase participation in physical activity. ■C oordinate initiatives that provide guided physical activity programs. ■P romote the Presidents Active Lifestyle Award challenge to heighten awareness of the benefits associated with physical activity and increase self-directed physical activity. ■ Yoga and Mindfulness sessions will be offered to facilitate stress reduction and coping skills. Increase awareness and expand opportunities and settings for health and wellness assessments ensuring that all aspects of wellness are included in community assessments. ■M arket and conduct various health and wellness assessments such as depression screenings, blood pressure screenings, alcohol use screenings, cholesterol screenings and body composition assessments. Develop a program utilizing “Student Wellness Champions” to increase awareness and enact health and wellness initiatives directed towards students. ■C oordinate a collaborative multidisciplinary peer-to-peer approach amongst the student champions to increase understanding of the impact of lifestyle choices on quality of life.
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ACCOMPLISHMENTS
■ I n collaboration with Highmark, launched the University’s 10,000-step challenge, a 12-week program in which participants track their steps using a pedometer. In 2010-11, the program drew 170 participants. In 2012, 269 participants registered for the program ■ A team of Slippery Rock University exercise science majors won the national American College of Sports Medicine Exercise Science Student “College Bowl.” SRU’s team of Eric Geiselhart, of Monroeville; Ryan Spiardi, a December graduate from Indiana, Pa.; and Colleen Thomas, a May graduate from Hudson, Ohio, bowled over teams from Indiana State University, the University of Massachusetts, Brigham Young and the University of Texas in the finals to bring home the gold. The College Bowl competition tests students’ knowledge in exercise physiology, anatomy, biomechanics and clinical exercise physiology.
TREND 6 WELLNESS:
■ SRU’s Exercise is Medicine initiative won the inaugural “Exercise is Medicine Active U Challenge” competition sponsored by the American College of Sports Medicine.
■ A $2.6 million addition to Patterson Hall provides new classrooms, exercise laboratories and student-faculty research space for the department of exercise and rehabilitative services. The two-story, 8,100-sqare-foot addition added a resistance-training laboratory and new classrooms on the fist floor and a multipurpose exercise room on the second floor. ■T he Pittsburgh Business Times selected Slippery Rock University as one of the 2012 “Healthiest Workplaces.”
WELLNESS Wellness is an active process of becoming aware of and making choices toward an optimal quality of life. It emphasizes the state of the entire being and a person’s ongoing development. The pursuit and achievement of wellness is unique and dynamic for every individual. Wellness includes a blending of the following dimensions: physical, emotional, spiritual, social, intellectual, environmental and occupational. Physical Wellness: Physical wellness is the synergy of each individual’s daily behavior. Emotional Wellness: Emotional wellness emphasizes an awareness and acceptance of one’s feelings. Spiritual Wellness: Spiritual wellness refers to the integration of beliefs in relationship with others, the external world and/or a sense of the Divine. Social Wellness: Social wellness focuses on contributing to the overall welfare of the human community. Intellectual Wellness: Intellectual wellness encompasses the development of knowledge and the desire for lifelong learning and selfimprovement through mental challenge. Environmental Wellness: Environmental wellness is maintaining a way of life that exists in harmony with the Earth through active engagement with your surroundings. Occupational wellness: Occupational wellness is achieving personal satisfaction in one’s work/leisure balance.
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BUSINESS STRATEGIES:
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The University will be an innovative leader in adopting best practices that contribute to the long-term viability of the institution.
PLANNING CONTEXT Economic downturns at the state and national levels, demographic shifts and a refocus on the process of teaching and learning are reshaping the higher education landscape. Funding and demographic trends are unlikely to improve in the near future, and academic needs will continue to change, presenting this opportunity to achieve our preferred future though planning.
BUSINESS CHALLENGE: DEMOGRAPHICS Pennsylvania’s college-age population will continue to grow for a few more years and then decline through a period of approximately eight years before rebounding. Beginning in 2009 and continuing through 2014, the number of students graduating from high schools nationally is expected to decrease from 3.18 million to 3.04 million (4.4% decrease). For Pennsylvania, the decline will be steeper-the number decreasing during that same time period is 13,611 (9.3). From 2009-2016, sixteen of the 20 top feeder counties for Slippery Rock University will see a decrease in high school graduates. Overall the decrease is 9.8% (7.6% for Eastern counties in Pennsylvania and 15.9% for Western counties). Competition will intensify among colleges and universities.
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BUSINESS STRATEGIES:
TO MEET THIS CHALLENGE, WE WILL: Utilize a comprehensive marketing approach to inspire targeted prospects to seek enrollment at Slippery Rock University. ■ I ncrease high school visitation, college fair participations, hosted on-campus events on weekends, hosted on-campus events for students of color, and alumni activities. Provide competitive as well as need based scholarship opportunities. ■ I ncrease the amount of scholarship funding from private sources. ■ I ncrease the number of Board of Governors Scholars Increase the quality of the incoming cohort while sustaining planned enrollment growth. ■ Support the recommendations from Slippery Rock University’s Enrollment Services Division’s Strategic Enrollment Plan to improve the selectivity rate and the quality of incoming first-time, full time students. Develop retention programs for all students, for AfricanAmerican and Hispanic students and for athletes. ■P romote and track targeted student retention programs.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ■O ver the past ten years, the mean SAT rose to 1010 in 2012 from 990 in 2003. The average high school GPA increased from 3.17 in fall 2003 to 3.41 in fall 2012. ■T he number of out-of-state increased slightly fall 2012 to 912 compared to 887 the prior year (2.82 percent); as did the number of international students; 73 this year as compared to 66 the prior year (10.61 percent). ■T he overall retention rate was 81.24 percent for the 2011 cohort as compared to 81.11 percent for the 2010 cohort. ■T he University implemented Banner, a new student information system, as a replacement for the University’s forty-year old legacy student system.
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The world of the academic is constantly changing and will place a premium on those institutions that are responsive to the needs of quality faculty. For today’s academic the world seems like a crush of challenges on time and resources. Everything has changed, is changing, and will continue to change: students, faculty, research methodologies, the processes of teaching and learning, and technologies. Most faculty members did not perceive they would be constantly challenged by waves of adapting to rapid change in their classroom let alone face a new breed of student, “the Millennial.” Today’s student also brings a plethora of social issues to the university classroom that faculty are not prepared to face. As the academic world swirls seemingly out of control, institutions have to be aggressive to support and nurture their most important resource: the faculty.
TO MEET THIS CHALLENGE, WE WILL:
BUSINESS STRATEGIES:
BUSINESS CHALLENGE: ACADEMIC NEEDS
Recruit and retain faculty and staff of high quality and support them with developmental opportunities needed to continue their professional growth throughout their career at Slippery Rock University. ■ Provide support for development of grants and contracts for faculty research and development. ■H ire full time tenure-track faculty with terminal degrees. ■E xpand the library, technology and research resources available to faculty to provide opportune ways to engage in creative pedagogy, research and scholarly work. ■U se meaningful assessments to ensure that learning is measured and achieved. ■S trengthen faculty development with programs to promote commitment and excellence in teaching and learning.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ■ I ncreased the number of tenure and tenure-track full time faculty with a terminal degree from 84 percent in 2003 to 92 percent in 2012. ■S RU saved up to $16 million in new construction costs by converting Patterson Hall, a former residence hall, into an academic building to serve students within the growing and high need programs for exercise and rehabilitative sciences and athletic training. New features include sensor lighting, all natural flooring and motorized projection screens. ■F or the third-consecutive year, SRU was the only public university in Pennsylvania to be listed as a “College of Distinction” having met the evaluative standards for “engaged students, great teaching, vibrant communities and successful outcomes.” ■F or the 10th year, the University was identified by the Princeton Review as one of the “Best in the Northeast.” The northeast designation includes schools located in 11 states: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Pennsylvania along with the District of Columbia. ■S RU was again named one of the top-tier, top 100 Regional Universities in the region by U.S. News & World Report as part of the 2012 edition of “America’s Best Colleges.” ■T he University has upgraded its technology infrastructure including wireless installation for all academic buildings.
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BUSINESS STRATEGIES:
BUSINESS CHALLENGE: FINANCIAL RESOURCES Competition for state appropriations will increase and private dollars will become more essential. The University is both aided and hampered by its status within the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Although the University benefits from the collective power of fourteen institutions as leverage for state appropriations, the added controls and unpredictable funding processes place greater need on the University to make effective use of existing resources and develop alternative sources of funds.
TO MEET THIS CHALLENGE, WE WILL: Continuously improve institutional effectiveness and conduct business at the highest level of professional standards. ■M aintain credit-worthiness ratios within acceptable national benchmarks. ■R eallocate resources from low demand and marginal areas to high demand and high performance areas. ■L everage financial efficiencies with University operations. ■ I ncrease energy savings through innovative programs. ■P ursue LEED Certification for new and renovated facilities.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ■T he University received an unqualified opinion with no material weakness comments pertaining to internal controls for the audit completed for the year ending June 30, 2011. ■ The credit-worthiness ratio was .0391 as of June 20, 20111 as compared to .0687 as of June 20, 2010, indicating the institution continues to maintain a positive credit worthiness position. ■T he University continues to be a top performer in the area of instructional productivity, increasing its credit hours per FTE instructional faculty from 654.5 in 2010-11, to 667.37 for 2011-12, an outcome that also exceeds the IPEDS benchmark of 597.64. . ■T he University continues to reallocate resources from low performance areas to high need, high demand areas as demonstrated by the reallocation of seven faculty lines to the science, health and business areas. 34
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STRATEGIC PLANNING STEERING COMMITTEE: Cabinet President Cheryl J. Norton Dr. Philip Way Ms. Molly Mercer Dr. Robert Watson Ms. Barbara Ender Ms. Rita Abent Ms. Tina Moser Academic Affairs Representatives Dr. Susan Hannam Dr. Amanda Yale Ms. Carrie Birckbichler Ms. Mary Hennessey Ms. Mary Ann King Ms. Samantha Kelly Mr. Philip Tramdack Ms. Melissa Teodoro Campus Leaders Dr. Patrick Burkhart (APSCUF) Mr. Tom Watson (AFSCME) Faculty Leaders Dr. Cornelius Cosgrove Dr. Jerry Chmielewski Dr. Langdon Smith Dr. Thomas Flynn Dr. Nancy Barta-Smith Dr. Joanne Leight
Student Affairs Ms. Deb Pincek Mr. Paul Lueken Dr. Paula Olivero Dr. John Bonando Trustee Ms. Courtney Baker-Schroat Alumni Association Ms. Kimberley Jones Slippery Rock Foundation Mr. Regis Schiebel Student Representatives Mr. Roger Clements (SGA) Ms. Michelle Mullins TRENDS Chairpersons Dr. Katrina Quinn Dr. Athula Herat Dr. Steven Strain Dr. Eva Tsuquiashi-Daddesio Mr. Eliott Baker Dr. Langdon Smith Dr. Jeffrey Lynn Dr. Randy Nichols
Finance and Administration Mr. Herb Carlson Ms. Holly McCoy Ms. Lynne Motyl Mr. Paul Novak Mr. Paul Scanlon
To read the comprehensive strategic planning document (Ver. 3.0) scan this QR code or visit: http://www.sru.edu/president/strategicplanning/Documents/Higher%20 Education%20in%202025%20Ver3.0.pdf
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Respect for Individuals in the Community Slippery Rock University provides an environment that respects, encourages and promotes the talents and contributions of all. Slippery Rock University values a community with a shared sense of purpose, where people demonstrate mutual respect and appreciation. Slippery Rock University values diversity that honors and includes all persons regardless of age, creed, disability, ethnic heritage, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status in academic and extracurricular endeavor, in the working environment and in the daily life of the University community.
Office of the President 300 Old Main 1 Morrow Way Slippery Rock, PA 16057
rock solid education
www.SRU.edu
A member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education
#7261B 8-2013
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