1. VCU Strategic Plan 2025: Excellence and Access
Preliminary Themes & Goals
September 28, 2017

2. National Prominence
Our aim: VCU is a premier research university focused on the positive progress of humanity through discovery and innovation.
4 strategic areas of focus:
Research
Education
Awards and Distinctions
Strategic Communications
Updated 9/27/17

3. National Prominence: Goals
Research:
Create a university environment that fully supports & actively promotes interdisciplinary research and scholarly activity
Eliminate administrative and structural barriers (e.g., silos) that inhibit achieving this goal
Provide dedicated resources specifically encouraging, promoting, and rewarding interdisciplinary research
Maximize impact of research programs by enhancing existing research infrastructure support
Identify what VCU is lacking (e.g., physical, financial, and process support for research) relative to our peer institutions that are achieving at a higher level
Establish a plan to correct deficiencies relative to peers
Achieve parity of human resources dedicated to research/scholarly activity with our peer institutions
Bring the number of tenure-track faculty, doctoral and post-doctoral students up to that of peer institutions.
Identify opportunities for building our number of PhD programs up to peer levels.
Invest more heavily in our most effective existing research programs to enhance their national prominence.

4. National Prominence: Goals
Education: Educating the 21st century citizen
Establish a national reputation for VCU’s excellence in civil learning
Focus and supercharge VCU’s efforts in civic learning and community engagement, we should identify an annual priority area for the university and support the success of this
Develop, incentivize, and support curriculum that integrates civic learning and community engagement
Develop, incentivize, and support faculty that integrate civic learning and community engagement
Assessment of the preceding four goals should be concurrent and inform ongoing activity

5. National Prominence: Goals
Awards and Distinctions:
Set unit-level goals for nominating individuals for recognized forms of distinction
Advance a culture of achievement conducive to identifying and assisting individuals, programs, and units appropriate for nominations and national prominence
Identify infrastructure needs to provide institutional support for various nominations, applications, and recognitions
Correlate existing internal strengths with comparable successes at peer and aspirational institutions.
Align best practices that can lead to national prominence in targeted areas with existing and additional institutional resources.
Analyze return-on-investment on any efforts to enhance national prominence of units.

6. National Prominence: Goals
Strategic Communications:
Conduct reputational/awareness national prominence survey to establish baseline measurement
Implement a comprehensive institution-wide communications plan that is inclusive and developed through a collaborative process between central and unit communicators.
Explore, determine, finalize human and financial infrastructure for a nationally prominent university
Use an appreciative inquiry strategic planning process to identify themes/stories we want to communicate to the world
Redefine strategic roles of central and unit communicators to get the story out more effectively
Central communications focus on university-wide tasks/projects, provide assets for units, and stop doing work of the units
VCU communicators, central & unit-based, adopt a national prominence focus

7. Student Success
Our aim: Note: two themes proposed – to be finalized by SC VCU is distinctive for providing students access and opportunities by leveraging our presence as a premier national research university and capitalizing on our urban location to connect students’ academic learning with real world experiences to prepare them as global citizens and leaders OR VCU is distinctive for serving as a catalyst for student success by providing access and opportunities to all students to pursue exceptional curricular and co-curricular experiences
Updated 9/27/17

8. Student Success Three Goals:
Increase student retention and graduation rates (possible addition - while reducing cost of attendance or student debt)
Prepare students to be creative innovators and entrepreneurs who make a difference in an increasingly diverse and connected world
Enhance the university culture supporting student success
Updated 9/27/17

9. Leveraging Diversity
Our aim: VCU is committed to, reflects and pursues inclusive excellence in all that it is, does and aspires to be. To leverage diversity is to take full advantage of the unique character and quality of VCU to make the whole greater than the individual parts
Updated 9/27/17

10. Leveraging Diversity We will make VCU distinctive by:
Embracing difference – valuing and respecting members of our community
Engaging difference –members of the community can hear their own voice in the larger narrative of the university
Empowering difference – members of the community can thrive
Ownership – 91% of climate survey respondents feel a responsibility to work towards an inclusive and diverse VCU
Becoming a role model for other universities - There is optimism about who we are and can be as a model and beacon for other institutions.
Updated 9/27/17

11. Culture of Appreciation
Our aim:
VCU strives to develop a university-wide culture of appreciation that is reflected in day-to-day behaviors, activities and campus life, which will be enhanced by formal and informal recognition and awards
Three goals:
All VCU administrative and academic units have an active appreciation environment reflected by identifiable behavior and efforts that foster ongoing appreciation
All VCU administrative and academic units will have a formal recognition and awards system for exemplary behaviors
All VCU administrative and academic units will have a leadership competency of exhibiting and fostering a culture of appreciation within the unit
Updated 9/27/17

12. Culture of Appreciation
Our aim:
VCU develops and maintains a climate that fosters a sense of belonging, where all students and employees see themselves as an integral and important part of the VCU community
Two goals:
All VCU administrative and academic units will include developing a sense of belonging in their overall unit strategic planning
Part of the evaluation for VCU administrative and academic unit leadership will include criteria on sense of belonging and leaders fostering a sense of belonging
Updated 9/27/17

13. Culture of Appreciation
Our aim:
VCU nurtures a university environment where all people feel pride what they do, have mutual trust with colleagues and are treated fairly and with respect
Four goals:
Feel pride in what they do
Mutual trust with colleagues
Treated fairly
Treated with respect
Updated 9/27/17

14. Local Impact & Social Embeddness
Our aim: Connect VCU resources with partners in the arts, environmental sustainability, education, social services, and economic development sectors to address community-identified needs and opportunities.
Three Goals:
Engage students, faculty, and staff in initiatives that improve critical education and workforce development indicators that present challenges for the Greater Richmond region.
Align VCU’s assets to contribute to specific metrics focused on enhancing the health and wellbeing of Central Virginia’s residents
Connect VCU resources to community assets to improve the Richmond region’s economic and cultural vitality to businesses and residents
Updated 9/27/17

15. Local Impact & Social Embeddness
Goal #1:
Engage students, faculty, and staff in initiatives that improve critical education and workforce development indicators that present challenges for the Greater Richmond region.
Strategies:
Collaborate to ensure that all PK-12 students in the Richmond region will be served by highly qualified teachers and school leaders that reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the communities in which the schools reside.
Work with local school districts and community partners to ensure access to high quality out-of-school activities and supports.
Partner with Richmond region school districts to ensure access to programs that promote student engagement and reduce disciplinary actions.
VCU will partner with local school districts and community colleges to prepare students to be job-ready to meet the needs of innovative and emerging industry sectors important to the Richmond region.
Updated 9/27/17

16. Local Impact & Social Embeddness
Goal #2:
Align VCU’s assets to contribute to specific metrics focused on enhancing the health and wellbeing of Central Virginia’s residents
Strategies:
VCU will partner with the City of Richmond to commit to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Partner with leadership in the City and surrounding localities to reduce poverty and enhance social stability
Align with community partners to implement the VCU/VCUHS Health Equity plan to address social determinants of health
Updated 9/27/17

17. Local Impact & Social Embeddness
Goal #3:
Connect VCU resources to community assets to improve the Richmond region’s economic and cultural vitality to businesses and residents
Strategies:
VCU will support the creation of a cultural affairs entity for the RVA region that would help to coordinate the efforts of RVA’s diverse professional artists, art organizations, art educators and students to assist in advocacy at the regional, state and national levels
VCU will align, advance, and support innovative and emerging industry sectors important to the Richmond region by preparing graduates to be job-ready.
Updated 9/27/17