Chapter 3: SMSU as a Future-Oriented Organization

Unit Plans

Academic and non-academic units are conscientious in their attempts to connect their planning efforts to the University long-range planning. This connection is demonstrated in the initial phases of each of the long-range plans, when faculty and staff provide suggestions individually and then comment collectively as units. For example, academic departments propose new programs that may be included in the long-range plans. Faculty and staff representing specific units, as well as students, also serve on the many task forces used to develop the plan. As a result individuals and units have ownership in the University plan.

A short history of the development of the University’s first program in China illustrates the role of the University’s planning process, the use of environmental scanning, and the institution’s awareness of multicultural issues. The University began assessing market opportunities in China in the fall of 1999. Dr. Yongwei Zhang, a faculty member in the Department of Geography, Geology, and Planning, visited a number of universities in China to explore potential partnerships. In his report to the President Keiser, Dr. Zhang indicated that a large number of capable Chinese students are unable to gain admittance into Chinese universities but would be able to afford an American education, were it available to them. He recommended that the University select a Chinese university as a partner and begin establishing an SMSU branch campus. This report led to the Board of Governors approval in April 2000 of a plan to establish a campus in Dalian, People’s Republic of China, in partnership with Liaoning Normal University.

A second and more direct connection of academic and non-academic units to the University’s mission appears in the development and implementation of unit plans. The responses to the HLC Steering Committee from academic and non-academic units stated that most plans are tied to the University’s plans. For example, five colleges use five-year plans that coincide with the University’s five-year planning cycle, one college uses a 3-year cycle, and another uses annual planning. A few examples of unit plans, taken from college and committee responses to the HLC Steering Committee’s questions, are provided below. Because of the way questions to units were posed, more examples from academic than non-academic units exist.

• The Colleges of Arts and Letters (COAL), Business Administration (COBA), Health and Human Services (CHHS), Natural and Applied Sciences (CNAS), and Continuing Education (CCE) work from five-year planning documents. The goals and objectives of these plans are assessed periodically by the deans, associate deans, and department heads (or appropriate administrators in CCE) to assure the college goals align with the University mission. The College of Humanities and Public Affairs (CHPA) uses a three-year planning cycle, and the College of Education (COE) uses a continuous process.
• Most departments in the various colleges use a one- to three-year planning cycle.
• Deans, associate deans, and department heads usually meet weekly to coordinate college activities, develop and assess priorities, and share relevant information. Periodic retreats are held by most colleges.
• The Master Planning Committee offers a forum where ideas can surface for discussion and be referred for further evaluation to University components and constituencies. An annual output of the Committee is the Campus Master Plan Visioning Guide, in graphic form, to illustrate projected campus growth for the next quarter-century.
• Planning for the future in the Office of Student Affairs involves informing the Board of Governors of needs regarding facilities, funding, and policies, and developing plans for Board approval to address those needs. Topics have included Enrollment Management, Educational and User Fees, Capital Project Plans, Policy, and Programming.

While the connections among the plans of academic and non-academic departments and units and the University’s long-range plans may not always be obvious or, in some cases, may not exist, responses to the HLC Self-Study questions reveal considerable congruity.

• Chapter 1: SMSU: A Mission-Focused, Evolving Institution
• Chapter 2: The 2005 Self-Study: An Overview of the Process
• Chapter 3: SMSU as a Future-Oriented Organization
  • Engaging in Planning
  • Unit Plans
  • Being Driven by the Mission
  • Understanding Social and Economic Change
  • Focusing on the Futures of Constituents
  • Integrating New Technology
  • Strengths, Challenges, and Recommendation
• Chapter 4: SMSU as a Learning-Focused Organization
• Chapter 5: SMSU as a Connected Organization
• Chapter 6: SMSU as a Distinctive Organization
• Summary