The Post

Dear Members of the University Community,

On behalf of the University Planning Council (UPC),  we invite you to join Father Maher and UPC members for a dialogue about the strategic objectives and goals of our emerging Strategic Plan.

Our process to develop the plan, with a horizon to 2025, follows from the Strategic Visions Commitments shared during the last academic year and emerges out of goals submitted by all sectors of the University in fall 2016.  You may recall participating in town hall sessions or at the community meeting when we shared and discussed the five strategic plan Vision Commitments.  These commitments speak to our vision for academic excellence in our interdisciplinary approach to liberal arts and professional programs.  They highlight our commitment to diversity and educating students as citizens of the world, while providing transformative leadership in the local and regional communities.  The commitments address the support of our University as a place of care for the whole person, strengthened by a commitment to shared governance, and they identify our promise to continue cultivating our physical campus environment and improving use of cutting-edge technology.

With these commitments as a beacon, the campus community then engaged in a broad effort, across all sectors and colleges, to develop draft goals in support of the vision commitments.  Simultaneously,  the comprehensive analyses from other major studies and initiatives,  the work of the University Budget Board,  the marketing and branding study,  and the Middle States self-study,  were considered in this development.   An action team of the UPC then identified shared objectives and goals across all of those submitted and worked with the greater University Planning Council to analyze and prioritize this framework for the plan. The UPC has since confirmed the prioritized objectives and goals.

We invite you to learn about these strategic goals and timelines as we move forward in the planning process during the following two open-campus sessions:

• Thursday, February 23: 11:05 a.m.–12:05 p.m., St. Vincent’s Hall, 405/406
• Friday, February 24: 1:20–2:20 p.m., St. Vincent’s Hall, 405/406

To ensure that we can accommodate all who are interested, we ask that you confirm your plans to attend with Claudia Fleckenstein at cgf@niagara.edu.

Ultimately, through our shared work, the strategic plan will affirm our core strengths, align our efforts to build on these strengths while anticipating and responding to challenges, fulfilling our commitment to our mission, and help to realize the power of Niagara University.

We look forward to your contribution during this important time of discovery and dialogue.

Sincerely,

Youngsoo Choi
Associate Professor
Co-Chair, University Planning Council

Debra Colley
Executive Vice-President
Co-Chair, University Planning Council