Year Two: The Planning Year

It’s easy to forget as adults the sense of drama that infuses everything college students do. They make choices every day that could affect the rest of their lives. But the choices of Central’s faculty and staff aren’t any less dramatic. “Just as our students are composing a life, so, too, are we—the life of our institution” says Mary Strey, vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty.

During Putnam’s inaugural year, he listened carefully to the community and reflected back what he heard: seven planning initiatives, which were summarized in a white paper after a faculty retreat. In August, the faculty members, students and administrators on the seven planning teams met to work on a written, actionable plan to come out in May. There are 150 members of the Central community serving on the teams and the steering committee.

Strey says the seven themes encompass the values of the Central community. And the ideas the teams come up with will give life to those values. Because the process is such a community undertaking, the teams include people from all aspects of the Central experience. Ten percent are Central students.

Although there’s a lot of work left to be done, these are the themes and goals the community will reflect on, Strey says, as they “move forward with an authentic voice of where Central College should be in the future.”

Central College as a Global Campus
Goal: To invest Central with a more robust global identity and signature

Preparing for Health-Related Careers
Goal: To prepare students with a broad array of interests for careers in the health industry and partner with the Pella community to become a Blue Zone

Clinical Health Sciences – Professional Degrees
Potential goal: To create a partnership with Pella Regional Health and/or develop professional programs, RN to BSN bridge and others in the clinical health sciences

Strengthening Creativity, Connections and Community Through the Arts
Goal: To realize the full potential of the arts as a signature element of the college

Sustainability
Goal: To provide pathways for a more substantial engagement with sustainability and sustainable communities

Civic Engagement
Goal: To develop faculty, students and staff to realize our full potential as engaged, responsible global citizens

Learning and New Technologies
Goal: To make Central an exemplar of a global campus in the 21st century

The strategic planning process is meant to be open, transparent and inclusive. Look for more information about these initiatives and the ways you can provide feedback in the next issue of Civitas.

 

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