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Greetings,
As we welcome spring, we also welcome the progress Clarke has made on the five-phase plan that I shared in January.
After a celebration of the successful completion of Phase One, we entered Phase Two. I’m pleased to share the progress we have made on the four elements of Phase Two:
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Strategic Plan/Budget: I have appointed a 23-person Strategic Plan committee representing all aspects of the University and the Board of Trustees. The committee meets weekly, and the facilitator, Mariann Kurtz Weber, gives me an update after each meeting. Among topics of conversation and planning are a review of current and future budgets and students’ first-year experience. Recruitment and retention of students is the main focus of this work. In fact, surveys were recently sent to students so that we can add their input to the strategic vision and upcoming action plans.
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Academic Program Assessment: The Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs has created a template for program assessment and a rubric that will be utilized to provide feedback to programs. Program assessments have been submitted by academic departments and review of them has begun.
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Athletic Program Assessment: The Director of Athletics is working in tandem with VPAA to plan and implement a thorough assessment of the athletics program. Like the academic assessment, the athletic assessment will address the value and effectiveness of the program and identify ways that it can be improved.
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Academic Advising: The Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs has devised a description for an Academic Advising Office, shared it with employees at FLED, posted job descriptions, and formed a search committee, which will begin interviewing candidates next week.
Our Focused Learn and Engage Day (FLED) Employee Retreat was a much-appreciated gift. Dialoguing with more than 160 employees about trust and high-performance organizations was inspiring, and I appreciated the meaningful, robust, and healthy discussions. They will serve us well as we continue to work toward the future of Clarke. And I have heard that Clarke students positively engaged in the 2023 College, Career, and Professional Development Fair on the same day. FLED gave us a lot to be thankful for.
We recently celebrated our 9th annual #ClarkeDay, at which we raised over $160,000. These funds will not only facilitate bringing our strategic plan to life, but they will enhance the scholarships, research, and programming already taking place at Clarke. Thank you to all who took part and to those who show up every day to do the work that makes our University great.
Sincerely,
Fletch
Interim President
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