This strategic plan reflects a purposeful shift in how SU approaches long-term planning. Rather than attempting to catalogue every possible initiative or aspiration, this plan establishes clear priorities and a focused framework for action and impact.
Previous plans sought to be comprehensive by listing everything we might do. This plan is comprehensive in a more meaningful way: it defines who we are choosing to be and concentrates our collective energy on what matters most for our students, our people, and the region we serve.
The plan creates a shared institutional direction while empowering divisions, departments, and shared governance groups to design solutions that best advance our goals within their unique contexts. In doing so, we believe it balances clarity and ensures innovation, responsiveness, and ownership across the University.
How This Plan Is Structured
The strategic plan is organized into three levels:
- Pillars that define the University’s highest areas of strategic priority.
- Goals that articulate what we aim to achieve within each pillar.
- Strategies that establish clear, measurable directions for accomplishing those goals.
Each of the four pillars is supported by a defined set of goals, and each goal is advanced through targeted strategies. What this plan intentionally does not include is a prescribed list of initiatives – and undeveloped fourth level that turns strategy to action:
- Initiatives are specific actions, programs, and projects that bring each strategy to life.
From Strategy to Action
Following the release of the completed strategic plan, on May 1, an implementation team will work collaboratively with divisions, schools, departments, and shared governance groups to develop initiatives. Together, they will develop division-level implementation plans that identify initiatives aligned with institutional strategies.
In this way, the strategic plan serves not as a static document, but as a living framework – one that guides decision-making, focuses investment, and aligns our daily work with our long-term vision for excellence and impact.
