‘Commitment to the Future’ details campus plans into 2020

From humble roots of ideas scrawled by faculty and staff members onto 3-by-5-inch note cards, the UCCS 2020 Strategic Plan is ready for prime time.

During the break between fall and spring semesters, final touches were completed on “Commitment to the Future: 2012-2020,” a 74-page document that outlines the future of UCCS and its 12 strategic goals. Debra O’Dell, co-director, Center for Excellence in Writing, served as the project’s editor, summarizing the process that began in summer 2011 and included more than 400 faculty and staff members. She worked closely with Kathy Griffith, a retired Office of the Chancellor staff member, a graphic designer, and Jeff Foster, University Advancement, to intersperse photographs, history, student profiles, and messages from university and campus leaderships.

“We live in exciting times,” Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak wrote. “Robust research opportunities, stunning technological advances, instant communication, critical resource limitations, conflicting cultural and social needs, increased demand for educational opportunities, financial uncertainties – rapid change is our constant. We know we face a turbulent — but promising — future, and we are committed to working with that reality.

“Our ‘Commitment to the Future: 2012-2020’ responds to our present day challenges with a plan that is ambitious and achievable, visionary and pragmatic, dynamic and comprehensive, resourceful and realistic.”

A limited number of printed copies of the document will be available and will be used primarily for prospective donors or others unfamiliar with the campus and its plans. Faculty and staff are encouraged to review the document online at http://www.uccs.edu/Documents/chancellor/strategic%20plans/Approved%20Strategic%20Plan/uccs-strategic-plan-2012-2020.pdf. The plan is also available as a link from the Office of the Chancellor’s website, http://www.uccs.edu/chancellor/strategic-planning-2020/official-strategic-plan-2020.html.

Vision Statement

As part of the strategic planning process, a group of faculty led the creation of a new vision statement. The approved version follows:

UCCS, a premier comprehensive undergraduate and specialized graduate research university, provides students with academically rigorous and life-enriching experiences in a vibrant university community. We advance knowledge, integrate student learning with the spirit of discovery, and broaden access to higher education for the benefit of southern Colorado, the state, nation and world.

Goals

Twelve goals were identified as part of the 2012-2020 Strategic Plan. They are:

• Foster academic programs that serve diverse communities and develop intellectually curious graduates who are globally and culturally competent.
• Cultivate an environment that sustains and extends quality research, scholarship and creative work.
• Provide a transformative educational experience that engages students both in and out of the classroom.
• Substantially increase international and domestic multicultural program opportunities and the number of international students and scholars on campus to build cultural understanding and to develop the global competencies of the UCCS community.
• Cultivate a vibrant, healthy, engaged campus community that unites students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends of the University in support of the goals of the institution.
• Build an inclusive UCCS educational community that attracts, embraces and supports diverse students, faculty and staff to advance learning and scholarship in a multicultural world.
• Provide inspired sustainability leadership and education, and direct the responsible, informed application of social, environmental and economic sustainability measures in all University activities.
• Actively build responsible enrollment growth that helps achieve the UCCS mission and values and contributes to the University’s financial viability.
• Grow and diversify revenue through the expansion of business enterprise, intentional stewardship and philanthropy, and responsible management of revenues and expenses.
• Provide an infrastructure of innovative technology, effective facilities and collaborative learning spaces, blending virtual and physical resources to enhance and advance the educational experience.
•  Build mutually beneficial cultural, civic, economic and system-wide collaborations with external partners and organizations to advance UCCS and the southern Colorado region.
• Grow and diversify communication and marketing programs to advance our campus community, to promote our national reputation for excellence and to increase external support.