On January 1, 2005 Dr. Lou Anna K. Simon became President of Michigan State University. Dr. Simon, the Board of Trustees, and her leadership team have worked hard to gain input from both on campus and through our stakeholders worldwide. “What she heard was: Focus. Simplify. Become more nimble. Play to your extraordinary strengths. Take what is true about Michigan State University and recast it to address 21st century realities. Be the university that defines the relevance of the land-grant mission for the 21st century” (Simon, 2005, p 4).
Based on this feedback and analysis five strategic imperatives were developed to guide MSU into the future:
- Enhance the student experience—by continually improving the quality of academic programs and the value of an MSU degree for undergraduate and graduate Students.
- Enrich community, economic, and family life—through research, outreach, engagement, entrepreneurship, innovation, and diversity
- Expand international reach—through academic, research, and economic development initiatives and global, national, and local strategic alliances
- Increase research opportunities—significantly expanding research funding and involvement of graduate and undergraduate students in research and scholarship
- Strengthen stewardship—by appreciating and nurturing the university’s financial assets, campus infrastructure, and people for optimal effectiveness today and tomorrow” (Simon, 2005, p 4).
These strategic imperatives are at the core of SPDC’s mission and vision for the future.
From the very beginning of MSU in 1855 the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources has sought the lead in the service to the citizens and communities in Michigan and around the world. In response to the Boldness by Design strategic imperatives the CANR and the ever changing needs our its stakeholders, the College identified cross-cutting themes that 1) are relevant to our mission as a research-intensive, land grant university with international obligations; 2) have the greatest potential for socio-economic impact; and 3) represent growth areas for the future investment.
The College’s Priorities are:
- Food and Health: Work in Food and Health spans a range of activities associated with food production—from traditional areas of commercial agriculture to the development of new markets, here and abroad. This theme is a placeholder for a variety of recently emerged and emerging areas of public interest, including sustainable agriculture; community-based food systems; food safety; the diet-human health connection; and the animal-human health link;
- Ecosystems Health and Services: This area encompasses our work to protect, conserve, and improve human and natural landscapes. The work ranges from enhancing the quality of the built environment to serving the agricultural and rural development interests to enabling sustainable environmental and natural resource policy. Fundamental to this work are efforts to 1) integrate agricultural, natural resource, economic, and social development and to strengthen the quality of civic engagement with special emphasis on serving the public good.
- Expansion and Development of the Bio-Economy: the bio-economy domain draws on a core ANR strength—food and fiber production—in the quest to help society move toward a more sustainable economy. The work includes the development of new technologies and processes for producing bio-based products, as well as marketing and distributing new, bio-based products. Work cuts across ANR departments and schools—from forestry to bio-systems and agricultural engineering—and provides abundant opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. Overall, our intent is to pursue economic opportunities while proceeding simultaneously in socially responsible, culturally relevant, and environmentally sustainable ways” (Armstrong, et al., November 3, 2006, p. 1).
Priorities two and three are at the core of SPDC’s mission and vision for the future.
The College of Social Science’s strategic intent is to build upon the strength they have developed over the past decade and add value by linking these strengths with those of other colleges, with university-wide research thrusts, and with the University’s Boldness by Design imperatives. The College will focus on where it can endeavor to provide intellectual leadership. The College has identified seven strategic Goals:
- 1. Signature Programs and Interdisciplinary Collaborations: special emphasis will be placed on signature programs in two broad groupings; A) collaborations with Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, and Medicine (STEMM) partners; and B) academic programs that strengthen diversity, inclusion, and international/global research.
- Research Enhancement Program: SSC has developed a comprehensive plan for research enhancement in the College that builds on their past success and takes a multi-level, faculty life cycle approach and considers all aspects of the process by which the College obtains external research funds, as well as the role of faculty, units and the Deans’ Office in supporting this process. Principal aspects of this plan include: 1) a new college policy on unit research plans as an integral component of unit strategic plans; 20 requirements for betting prospective faculty for their research potential; 3) additional research mentoring and support for junior faculty; 4) research expectations for pre-tenured faculty; 5) research expectations for faculty post-tenure; 6) college-level support for research activities.
- Transformation of Integrative Studies: The College’s key strategic goal for teaching and learning continues to focus on Integrative Studies in Social Science (IS-SS). They believe that this enhancement is important to the College’s partnership with STEMM disciplines because IS-SS influences the way students across campus perceive, understand, and appreciate the current state of social sciences.
- Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in College Affairs: The College has established a new Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusive Affairs. Led by the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusive Programs, the Office serves as a hub where faculty, staff, and students can go for information, confidential consultation, support, and referrals to resources relating to equity, diversity and inclusion.
- Enhancement of Resources: The College’s development efforts have become more refined and resulted in the College raising 133% of its goal during the Capital Campaign. A full-time alumni relations professional recently joined the development staff, and the College has posted a position for a new major gifts officer.
- Stewardship: The College is making a concerted effort to strengthen a supportive culture at the administrative leadership level. The College is working with a consulting firm, which is helping to identify where to target its future efforts. The Deans’ Office is developing a plan that will foster growth and development the full potential of all the College community’s members. Information technology infrastructure and services, grant support, and identifying areas of staff expertise are just a few of the initiatives the College intends to implement.
- Communicating with Stakeholders: Specific internal communication initiatives include: 1) Creating more opportunities for the Dean to listen and respond to faculty, staff, and student ideas and concerns, both formally and informally, and 2) Sharing news and highlights about faculty, staff, and students to the entire College community in a more consistent and concentrated manner. Closer relations with the MSU’s central media relations office and increasing our activities with the university’s federal government relations office will facilitate our ability to participate in enhancing the university’s image and reputation to our external audiences. (SSC, Current State of Strategic Planning, November 9, 2007)
All seven priorities are core to SPDC’s mission and vision for the future.
During 2005/06 MAES and MSU-E conducted a comprehensive, statewide process to determine what Michigan citizens felt were the most important issues facing them that could be addressed by both organizations. The process involved almost 10,000 stakeholders. The end result was to develop and define five strategic priorities (MAES and MSU-E, Strengthening Michigan’s Economy, 2006).
The five strategic priorities are:
- Developing entrepreneurs
- Promoting healthy lifestyles
- Preparing for the expanding bio-economy
- Education and supporting decision makers
- Building leaders for today and tomorrow
Under SPDC’s core focus on the sustainable built environment, faculty meet each of these priorities through their teaching, research, and outreach programs. We deal with the impact analysis of changes in the human environment; including the physical, built, social and economic resources. This includes work that integrates diverse housing solutions, lean and green design and building practices, healthy communities, smart growth, quality of life, regional and local land use patterns, economic growth, and environmentally friendly development and rehabilitation.