Elon University President Connie Ledoux Book shared details of the university’s draft strategic plan during her address to faculty and staff for Elon’s 130th-annual opening of the school year. Book described a number of initiatives where Elon will lead on the landscape of American higher education.
President Connie Ledoux Book kicked off Planning Week 2019 on Monday, Aug. 19, by sharing details about the university’s draft strategic plan for the next 10 years. Faculty and staff gathered in the Schar Center as they prepare to begin the 2019-20 academic year, and learned about initiatives for the next decade where Elon will lead on the landscape of American higher education.
“The most significant takeaway is that our community is deeply committed to mentored, engaged and experiential learning as the distinctive strength of our university,” Book said. “Elon remains steadfastly committed to relationships as the fundamental driver of learning that transforms the mind, body and spirit of our students.”
The gathering as Elon prepares for the 130th-annual opening of the school year also provided an opportunity for Book to recognize Provost and Executive Vice President Steven House, noting that “under his leadership, Elon has advanced by every metric.” Book welcomed Aswani Volety, former dean of the college of arts and sciences at UNC-Wilmington, who will become provost and vice president for academic affairs on Sept. 1. Book described Volety as “a champion of engaged and experiential learning.”
Book also thanked staff for their work in achieving Princeton Review’s ranking as #1 best-run college ranking and #1 most beautiful campus in the country.
The address was followed by small group discussions around campus that provided faculty and staff the opportunity to share impressions of the plan, including their likes, dislikes, and what they believe may be missing from the draft. The discussions are part of an ongoing effort to involve members of the Elon community in setting the vision for Elon for the next decade.
During her address, Book explained that the plan is organized around four themes: Rise, Learn, Thrive and Partner.
Rise: Position the university for the future
The new strategic plan will sharply define Elon’s distinction and position among the top-100 universities, leveraging the new Carnegie classification as a national doctoral/professional university, expanding and diversifying the university’s admissions footprint, expanding need- and merit-based aid, doubling the endowment with 80 percent committed to student scholarships, increasing toward a vision of 400 Odyssey Scholarships, increasing alumni participation to 35 percent, and completing the $250 million Elon LEADS campaign.
“These efforts will impact students’ success as we set an extremely challenging goal to be in the top 5 percent of U.S. universities in graduation rates, and will be anchored by the Student Professional Development Center, which will be the national leader in employment and graduate school placement,” Book said.
Learn: Academic innovation in an era of opportunity
The new strategic plan will include significant investments in engineering, science, technology, math and nursing. Full accreditation of the four-year engineering degree by the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology will lead to a program that creates highly sought-after graduates and numbers in the hundreds of students within a few years. This work will “place on our horizon a School of Engineering, known nationwide for excellence in mentored experiential learning.”
Much-needed lab and classroom spaces will begin construction in spring 2020 and anchor a new quad dedicated to innovation and problem-solving in STEM. Book described a STEM Center, a new nursing program to respond to state and national nursing shortages as well as high-demand healthcare certificate programs, and the hiring of additional STEM faculty. She also mentioned new certificate programs — in areas such as data analytics, software development, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, critical languages, and coding — to support alumni professional development and local economic development.
At the heart of the new plan are efforts to deepen experiential learning and mentoring relationships that empower students’ development. According to Book, “This plan will set the next standard internationally for engaged and experiential learning.” Plans include providing 100 percent access to internships, increasing deeply mentored undergraduate research, advancing global study and second language acquisition, enabling every student to participate in community and civic engagement in local communities, and increased student leadership competency.
Every student will learn to build a “constellation of faculty, staff, and peer mentors” in a four-year integrative mentoring model, and students will have the opportunity to work with faculty or staff mentors to design a culminating signature project in their junior or senior years. “These investments will ensure continued excellence as students graduate with 21st-century fluencies and skills needed to navigate an increasingly diverse and complex world,” Book said.
Supporting these efforts with evidence will be new investments in our Center for Engaged Learning (CEL) and Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, including endowing CEL as the international leader in understanding engaged learning and sharing Elon’s model. Full-time faculty and staff will be hired to support mentoring and signature work with students.
In discussing academics, she mentioned how the “centrality of the work in Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences and our core curriculum will provide a critical foundation over the next decade,” as the university supports faculty interest in cross-disciplinary work and new learning environments such as immersive semesters, short courses and co-op experiences.” She noted that each of the schools and colleges will be involved in innovative approaches such as programming around the “grand challenges of this century,” individualized courses of study, new performing arts, accessible graduate degrees, 3+1 and 3+2 undergraduate + graduate pathways and new graduate degree programs.
Thrive: An inclusive and healthy community for success
“This new strategic plan envisions a community where every member thrives, where every member feels the welcome of inclusivity, is committed to equity and supports the well-being of all,” said President Book.
She described how the university will continue to grow in the representation of multiple forms of diversity among students, faculty and staff; double international student enrollment; and ensure that all students, faculty and staff advance their intercultural learning and multi-faith understanding. Excellence in inclusive teaching will be supported through the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning.
“To fully thrive,” she noted, “our campus needs to be healthy—physically and mentally—and embrace a culture of well-being.” Striving to be a national model on what President Book described as a “critical issue,” will entail significant new resources, including renovations to Koury Center to develop a community wellness center that synthesizes recreation, mental and physical health, academics and social spaces.
Advancing the mentoring of the residential campus was also mentioned, including growing to 80 percent of students living on campus and more faculty and staff engaged in teaching linked classes, advising living-learning communities, and living on campus.
Book said the plan will also “accelerate efforts to foster a dynamic and healthy faculty and staff work environment, characterized by respect, inclusion, well-being and professional development.”
These efforts will include additional leadership and learning programs across career stages and professional ranks, supervisory skill development and coaching opportunities, opportunities to deepen skills as mentors and a range of retention strategies. Book pointed out that the university remains committed to further increases in the quantity and quality of full-time teaching faculty and also mentioned competitive compensation, benefits and work-life scheduling.
Partner: Lifelong connections near and far
Significant investments will be made to enhance alumni professional development, such as lifelong learning opportunities and leadership development programs. New Elon Centers in New York City, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and other locations will be developed as alumni hubs.
The plan also includes a clear commitment to better serve Elon’s local communities on priorities regarding education, health and economic development. The work will include every student participating in service and also doubling the number of graduates in service-year positions in local communities. Support will be expanded for the Elon Academy access and success program and The Village Project literacy program, and the university will strive for carbon neutrality by 2037.
Phoenix athletics will continue to lead the Colonial Athletic Association on and off the field, winning conference championships and tournament bids, while enjoying an elite student-athlete experience with unprecedented access to mentors and support for mental and physical well-being as well as the advancement of athletics facilities.
The Town of Elon will develop as a premier college town through public-private partnerships, new and redeveloped housing, and development of new businesses, such as The Inn at Elon, a new on-campus hotel that opens in January 2020.
Book pointed out, “We are confident that the community’s vision that has unfolded will advance the university’s strengths to national and international audiences.” She closed her comments on the strategic plan draft, saying, “I’m confident in this community, the community that laid out this plan, and I’m confident that the next chapter of Elon University will bring us ever closer to our destiny, that one that’s always within arm’s reach, our destiny of excellence.”
The strategic plan draft was developed by a 40-member strategic planning committee chaired by Trustee Kerrii Anderson and Vice President Jeff Stein and comprised of trustees, alumni, faculty, staff and students. Six Community Working Groups (Enrollment for the Future of Elon, Academic Innovation, Dynamic Work Environment, Enhancing STEM at Elon, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, and Community-Partnerships) including more than 100 faculty and staff members who met during the year to develop a vision for their topic. A community survey distributed in November received 5,500 respondents and more than 10,000 open-ended responses; more than 812 faculty and staff members attended 12 campus listening sessions; and 11 boards and councils were included in discussions.
The Strategic Planning Committee, leaders of the Community Working Groups, representatives from Staff Council and Academic Council, academic deans, and senior staff met on June 4 and 5 to review campus feedback and begin to develop themes for the plan. Seven members of the committee worked this summer to craft the first draft of the plan. The committee will use the feedback from the day’s discussions to revise the draft to be distributed in September.
The plan will be discussed at the Oct. 4 campus conversation and faculty meeting and there will be three campus forums: faculty/staff forums on Sept. 17 and 20 and a student forum on Oct. 3. The board of trustees will consider the draft at a special retreat set for late October.