University trustees endorse academic plan at July meeting
The
University has a new strategic blueprint for its academic future
and the financial decisions that will help make progress possible
over the next five years.
Carolina's
Board of Trustees endorsed the University's first academic plan
in recent history at its July 24 meeting, capping a
| More
information about the academic plan, along with a
complete copy of the final version, should be available
online within the next few days at www.unc.edu/provost/.
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year-and-half
process marked by broad campuswide input into the plan and its
recommendations.
Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Robert Shelton assembled
a 24-member group of faculty, students and administrators -- the
Academic Plan Task Force -- to draft the plan, starting in March
of 2002.
One of the plan's key strengths, Shelton said, is that it has
been designed to be used for both strategic and practical purposes.
"It's
not a mission statement, it's a statement of specific responsibilities
and who is responsible for doing each one," Shelton said.
The plan includes more than 75 "action steps," with designations
of those responsible in academic and administrative units campuswide
for carrying out those steps, Shelton said.
"It's
clear that one of the purposes of the plan is to guide resource
allocation," he said. "What that means is it gets revisited every
year by the deans and vice chancellors. It's integrated into the
budgeting process. It doesn't just sit on the shelf."
While the plan was shaped by many different hands, it is bound
together in a common purpose shared by all: to tie budget decisions
made each year to the University's overall goal of becoming the
country's leading public university.
Another key to keep in mind, Shelton said, is the immutability
of the six priorities generated by the faculty on the task force.
"What
that suggests to me is that the foundational values of this plan
are bedrock solid," he said.
Those priorities are to:
* Provide the strongest possible academic experience at all levels;
* Integrate interdisciplinary research, teaching and public service;
* Improve faculty recruitment, retention and development;
* Increase diversity of faculty, students and staff;
* Enhance public engagement; and
* Extend global presence, research and teaching.
One key section of the plan outlines potential strategic areas
in which the University can best pursue interdisciplinary programs,
research and public service opportunities.
Those areas include the biological, medical and technology sciences
-- including genome sciences, materials sciences and nanotechnology
-- as well as the fine arts, humanities and social sciences; global
citizenship; social problem-solving; ethics, leadership and public
service; and leadership and public life.
That broad list represents areas in which the University already
has achieved excellence, others in which the campus is building
strength and yet others that hold promise across multiple units
to address pressing issues facing North Carolina and beyond.
"The
campus community should view the plan beyond just the implications
for budget allocations," Shelton said.
For that reason, the plan will be implemented in tandem with a
five-year financial plan being assembled by Nancy Suttenfield,
vice chancellor for finance and administration, and her staff.
The financial plan aims to identify funding options for the academic
priorities, thereby providing a sound basis for charting the University's
future, Shelton said.
Other signficiant developments at the University linked to the
academic plan content include the case statement for the Carolina
First fund-raising campaign, the recent revisions to the undergraduate
curriculum and the upcoming honor and integrity campaign, a result
of recent student honor code reform efforts.
Shelton and Darryl Gless, senior associate dean in the College
of Arts & Sciences, served as co-chairs of the Academic Plan
Task Force. The plan went through various refining stages before
taking its nearly final form this spring.
Introductory sections added addressed current higher education
and economic trends, as well as an examination of Carolina's core
values -- qualities building upon the campus's legacy as the nations'
first state university, including its emphasis on public engagement,
the importance of its collegial culture and accessibility to North
Carolinians.
Final changes came at the suggestion of the trustees in their
May meeting and over the summer.
Although the plan took more than a year to craft, it was important
that the process was open-ended and inclusive, Shelton said.
At the same time, it was no less important that the academic plan,
once it took written form, be fully vetted before many campus
constituencies.
The task force continued to issue draft reports and invite feedback
from across campus. Forums were held earlier this year to allow
faculty, staff and students to share their comments. Vice chancellors
and deans participated in a retreat that examined the plan. The
plan was also presented before the Faculty Council, Employee Forum
and various student groups. And the Provost's Office received
hundreds of e-mails and letters about the document.
Shelton said he believes the final product captures the spirit
of Carolina, inherent both in its tradition and current practices.
"The chancellor talks about this as well -- it's just a place
that feels different, and the context the plan provides clearly
shows what has made Carolina so special, identifies its core values
and explains why our academic future is so compelling."
