USU positioning itself to handle budget shortfalls
During a time when Utah is experiencing its worst budget shortfall since World War II, knowing where to best spend dwindling higher education dollars is now more critical than ever.
Thanks to a process called compact planning, which Utah State University embarked on more than a year ago, the institution is positioned to make more sound decisions in the way it uses its resources to become an even better land-grant institution for Utah citizens, said H. Craig Petersen, chief of staff who headed up the compact planning process for the university.
Utah State presented the results of the compact planning process to its Board of Trustees Friday morning.
The purpose of compact planning is to provide a basis for allocating the university‚s resources, Petersen said. The process is intended to provide a vision for the university‚s future, serve as a guide for budget request to the legislature, and provide a blueprint for a comprehensive capital campaign.
“What we have today are scarce resources appropriately allocated against critical initiatives,” said Kermit L. Hall, president of Utah State University.
Compact plans are negotiated agreements, as in the “Mayflower Compact.” Under the direction of Hall, compact planning first involved the people in academic departments and administrative units deciding a course for the university‚s future and then prioritizing how to meet specific goals.
Compact planning is a top-down and bottom-up process: top-down in that basic university goals were established by the central administration after extensive discussion with the campus community; bottom-up in that units then proposed initiatives in support of these goals.
This process involved unit directors and their supervisors working together to revise the plans until they were mutually satisfactory. Plans were prepared by more than 120 campus units. Ultimately, the plans were negotiated with Provost Stan Albrecht and Hall, Petersen said.
By the end of April, the compact plans were ready for review by campus leaders and a panel of highly qualified people from other institutions who visited campus. They considered the feasibility of the proposed initiatives and also identified areas that might have been overlooked, Petersen said.
Invited guest C. Peter Magrath, president of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, applauded the process and the results. He said universities sometimes unleash planning processes that are redundant and unnecessary for many reasons, but that is not the case with Utah State‚s initiatives.
“You are on exactly the right path,” Magrath told Hall in a letter. “I am convinced that the university you now lead is an undiscovered jewel.”
He added that Utah State‚s stunning, spectacular setting also distinguishes it from many of the nation‚s other universities and makes it exceptionally well-suited to a high-quality university with a strong residential flavor.
Gretchen Bataille, vice president for academic affairs for the North Carolina System of Higher Education, praised the university for embarking on such a comprehensive assessment process.
“The compact planning process brought together the voices of the campus, state and national community, resulting in an outcome that will enable USU to enhance its position in higher education in the state and nation,” she said.
The results of the process were presented to members of the board of trustees, who will be asked to make final recommendations and to monitor and promote implementation of the compact planning initiatives.
So where does Utah State see itself in the future? Petersen listed several goals.
* It sees itself being somewhat larger but more selective, with some 28,000 students by 2010 ˜ up from 23,000 today.
* It sees itself as being more graduate-study oriented and research oriented ˜ with graduate student numbers growing from 16 percent to 20 percent of the student body. New areas of cutting-edge interdisciplinary research, such as genomics and environmental studies, will be emphasized.
* It sees itself as a more engaged university in the state by being more responsive to consumer demands to provide continuing education and extension offerings.
* It sees itself as being more customer friendly in responding to faculty, staff and student needs.
* Finally, Utah State sees itself becoming a better public university by acting more like a private institution. If goals and aspirations are to be realized, the university must increasingly look beyond state appropriations to provide sources for funding, Petersen said.
The seven initiatives to help the university achieve this vision include creating a more efficient, accountable and responsive business model; doing more to enhance its reputation; building a diverse and inclusive campus; emphasizing recruitment, retention and graduation; infusing new energy into graduate programs; fostering new partnerships; and embarking on a major capital campaign.
The next step in the planning process involves finalizing unit compact plans, prioritizing initiatives and developing a financial plan in support of the initiatives, Petersen said.