December Virtual Strategic Planning Forums

Calling all Maverick students, faculty, staff, and community members:

UNO leadership have announced two important Strategic Planning events to take place this December, each with unique focuses and opportunities to help shape how our university moves forward.

The first Strategic Planning Forum, with the title "Access to Excellence: The Completion Imperative" will take place on Monday, Dec. 14, from 2 - 5 P.M., with the second planning forum, "Inclusive Excellence: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion," will take place Thursday, Dec. 17, from 1 - 4 P.M.

During these forums, the UNO community will be able to come together to reflect and discuss our experiences and ideas on our successes to date, current efforts, and next steps in these distinct focus areas.

Learn more about each of these forums below:

• Monday, Dec. 14 - Access to Excellence: The Completion Imperative
• Thursday, Dec. 17 - Inclusive Excellence: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

We hope to see each of you at both of these great campus events.

RSVP Today

Access to Excellence: The Completion Imperative

Monday, Dec. 14, 2 - 5 P.M.

Dear Colleagues,

In August 2019, we came together as a campus to hear from the teams working on the Completion Imperative, and following their proposals we launched a series of initiatives – Exploratory Studies, Academic Focus Areas, the Momentum Year, and enhanced investment in academic advising – targeted to improve retention and graduation. The theme for the Dec. 14, 2020 Strategic Planning Forum will be "Access to Excellence: The Completion Imperative." We will return to update the campus on these initiatives, as well as consider the next level of work that can enhance student completion.

As we all know, student retention remains one of the most important efforts for our campus, and Chancellor Gold has challenged us through the Completion Imperative to graduate 100% of our students. While we have made significant gains in our retention rates, our work is not done. Each year a significant fraction of our students “stop out,” not returning for Fall semester. UNO nor any other university accepts the current state of affairs as the status quo – we all own this challenge.

At this Forum, we will reflect and discuss our experiences and ideas on our successes to date, current efforts, and next steps. Listening to students, faculty, staff, and community partners, we will address the challenges of:

• Transforming the student advising experience
• Ensuring clear degree pathways for all students
• Humanizing the online environment
• Removing procedural barriers to student success
• Creating the teaching and learning environment of the future

Through your creative ideas and collaboration, the UNO community has always come together to attack the biggest challenges before us. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to our students and for your creative ideas to come.

In the Maverick Spirit,

Sacha Kopp, Ph.D.

Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

Dan Shipp, Ed.D.

Vice Chancellor for Student Success 

Inclusive Excellence: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Thursday, Dec. 17, 1 - 4 P.M.

Dear Colleagues,

Our campus, community, and our country continue to ask what can we do and how should we respond in light of local and national demonstrations calling for social justice and racial equity. As a premier metropolitan university, we must challenge ourselves to respond. President Carter has identified culture, diversity, and inclusion as a core strategy for the future success of the University of Nebraska. Along with initiatives in the colleges; Student Success; Business and Finance; student government; and more, our campus announced on October 20 UNO’s Strategic Investment in Race, Class, Social Justice, and Inequality.

The theme of the Dec. 17, 2020 Strategic Planning Forum is Access to Excellence: Inclusive Excellence. We will come together to listen, hear ideas that are emerging and ongoing, as well as brainstorm together on what all of us as students, staff, faculty, and community partners can do. We will challenge ourselves to explore questions such as:

• What does a commitment to equity look like?
• How do we create a culture/structures that empower marginalized populations on campus?
• What are the obstacles or challenges in our pathway to a more inclusive environment? How can we, as an institution, address these challenges?
• What does success in DEI’s efforts entail and how do we measure success?

For each of these topics, we seek your input to further enhance and expand our efforts. Through your creative ideas and collaboration, the UNO community has always come together to attack the biggest challenges before us. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to our students and for your creative ideas to come.

In the Maverick Spirit,

Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D.

Chancellor

Cecil Hicks, Jr., SPHR, MBA

Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion