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Chancellor Kent Syverud introduced the early stages of Syracuse University’s new Academic Strategic Plan at a launch event Thursday.

The plan defines academic objectives for the university through categories like research and public impact, according to an August SU News release. At the event – hosted by SU Provost and Chief Academic Advisor Gretchen Ritter and Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs Jamie Winders – university administrators and faculty addressed key components of the refreshed plan.

Syverud said the efforts of the SU community are critical in planning SU’s long-term academic direction and goals.

“The Academic Strategic Plan doesn’t belong to the provost, or the deans, or the chancellor,” Syverud said. “It belongs to the whole university, and it really will drive the priorities of this university for the years ahead.”

Amid national and local crises, such as the pandemic, global warming and racial injustice, Ritter said SU needs to step up and make a difference. Enhancing the Academic Strategic Plan in the wake of these issues, she acknowledged, is essential.

“This is a moment when power and need for great research universities has never been clearer,” Ritter said. “We have both the opportunity and the obligation to build on the excellence that is here to make a difference in the world.”

A working draft will be finished by Jan. 2023, with feedback provided throughout by SU students, faculty, and staff. Winders said the update should be inclusive, collaborative and reflective of the university’s core values.

“A good academic strategic plan is a document that keeps us focused and honest,” Winders said. “It reminds us of what we collectively think is important and where we collectively want to go.”

Three “core pillar” working groups and four “cross-cutting” working groups will be responsible for developing the plan, Winders said.

The “core pillar” groups will focus on research, creative excellence, educational excellence, student success and public impact, she said. The “cross-cutting” working groups are dedicated to budgeting, enrollment and global engagement as well as diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility.

“I hope we treat the process like community design and not box-checking,” said Kelly Chandler-Olcott, the interim dean of the School of Education. “We need lots of involvement and participation from lots of different people. We need people’s input and we need to integrate it.”

The various working groups will collect input from the SU community throughout the fall, and they will begin drafting the updated plan in the middle of the semester, Winders said. Each of the groups will host two zoom meetings to give the campus community the chance to contribute.

Mary Grace A. Almandrez, another panelist and SU’s vice president for diversity and inclusion, said she’s hoping the plan will provide structural change and long-term, effective solutions.

“I want five years from now for our students to say (going to SU) was the best experience they’ve had,” Almandrez said. “I’m very hopeful given this inclusive process and very transparent process that we’re able to accomplish that.”

Through distinctive collaboration, Ritter said she hopes the SU community can work together to make real change moving forward.

“I want to suggest that at this challenging historical moment and given what we see on the horizon, we have both the opportunity and the obligation to build on the excellence that is here to make a difference in the world,” she said.

Published on September 9, 2022 at 12:36 am