Members of the University Community
I am pleased, Dear Colleagues . . .
. . . to present you with a status report on our strategic thinking process. The attached document, Charting the Course, summarizes the best of our thinking. While this report summarizes an ongoing process, strategic "doing" also is underway. For example, our professional development and assessment efforts will take advantage of the institutional strengths and market opportunities identified by our strategic thinking (W.O.W.) working groups.
We continue to seek your input, as we work together to build our future, improve our services, and enhance our institutional decision-making. We already have benefited this past year from the perspectives shared at the meetings and retreats involving faculty, staff, deans and vice presidents, our Board of Trustees, The Faculty Senate, and numerous working groups throughout the campus.
As we present ourselves to the external world in broad terms, we must focus our internal vision on achieving the greatest return on investment by creating synergistic and leveraged opportunities. We must make decisions based upon the best-available data and expect thoughtfully projected outcomes. We must differentiate ourselves from the competition, while seizing opportunities and partnerships that help strengthen our position and reputation as the public research university for Northern Ohio and, indeed, as the leading public university in Northern Ohio.
There is no limit to what we can accomplish if we focus our energies and share in the vision . . . if we exchange timely and accurate information freely throughout the University . . . if we value diversity and remain open to new knowledge . . . if we each accept personal responsibility for constantly improving the University . . . and if we don't care about who gets the credit.
The responsibility for demonstrating our very best belongs to every one of us in the campus community. We all must be engaged and excited about where we are going as a university and about how we will get there. As we continue to map our future and to construct a common framework, I urge you to take a few minutes to peruse Charting the Course and to share your ideas.
With every good wish,
Sincerely,
Luis M. Proenza