WI Forward Award 2012 - Welcome to MATC - Milwaukee Area ...

Leadership: Category 1
staffing needs and trends. Training sessions on succession
planning were held in 2009-10, and vice presidents developed
plans for their areas to identify options for future succession and
leadership development needs. Stretch assignments are given
to individuals to enhance their skills and exposure to areas and
processes outside their current assignments. These tasks are
monitored to identify successes and further training needs.
1.1.b COMMUNICATION
AND ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE
1.1.b(1) Communication
Because of the size of our workforce on four campuses, MATC
leaders use a variety of methods to communicate with the
various stakeholders. Figure 1-1c presents an overview of the
various communication vehicles and their frequency among our
stakeholder groups.
Senior leaders practice open, two-way communication
throughout the organization through many methods that
reflect our values of Excellence and Accountability. Internal
surveys indicate room for improvement in this area. As a result,
objectives, strategies, and action plans connected to our strategic
goal of enhancing relationships have been adjusted to focus on
our internal communication systems. Since 2005, MATC has
used Conversation Days as a way to specifically engage the
college community regarding areas of improvement. These
annual events are held at each campus, and in 2008 online
discussion boards were added to encourage more participation.
The results of these conversations can lead to either “quick
fixes” or formal action projects. Annually, college leadership
reviews this feedback along with input gathered from a variety
of stakeholders, research studies compiled by IRSP and SWOT
analyses to understand college, community, and employment
trends that will affect student, industry, and community needs.
Key announcements of changes, decisions, and other pertinent
information are presented to the community either through
the email, posted on our website, and/or publicized in media
releases, as appropriate. For the first time in February 2012,
a non-student contact day usually used for faculty in-service
training was transformed to the first annual “MATC Day.” A
shared-governance committee planned this day to celebrate
the college’s achievements with a focus on student completion
as a school-wide effort for the future. All faculty, staff, and
administration were invited to the day’s events, including
listening to student speakers share their stories.
Members of the administration also take an active role in
recognition programs that reinforce high performance and
student learning, including scholarship events, the Lamp of
Knowledge ceremony, and banquets held for: student athletes,
African-American students, and honor societies, to name a few.
Recently, changes were made by the Provost’s Office regarding
inclusion of students on the Dean’s List, lowering the number
of required credits for students to be eligible for recognition to
six while adding additional levels of acknowledgment. Now,
students taking at least six credits per semester with a 3.5 – 3.74
GPA are placed on the Dean’s List, those achieving a 3.75 – 3.99
GPA are on the Provost’s List, and earning a 4.0 GPA puts them
on the President’s List. These changes resulted in more students
being recognized for academic achievements.
Employee contributions to the college and community
are formally recognized by the president in the monthly
Communiqué newsletter, distributed to the MATC community
online and posted on the website. The president also developed
“Burke’s Blog” this year, posted on the MATC website, to better
communicate with constituent groups, students, and the public
(Figure 7-3h #1).
1.1.b(2) Focus on Action
Leaders focus on action plans to accomplish MATC’s strategic
goals, improve performance, and achieve the college’s vision
by aligning improvement projects with the mission, vision, and
values through the strategic planning and budgeting processes.
Further, vice presidents, deans, and managers develop specified
plans for their areas based on the college’s foci and needs of
their areas that are aligned with the mission, vision and Strategic
Plan. Through the performance evaluation process, each nonrepresented
employee aligns their goals to the strategic and
divisional plan. Improvement projects are then carried forward
into the academic, budget, facility, and technology planning
processes. In this process, actions are identified in a number of
ways as described in Category 2. Improvement opportunities are
also identified through innovation grants, MATC Foundation
initiatives, and through communication with feeder schools,
transfers schools, and business and industry partners. In
addition, program Advisory Committees and faculty provide
knowledge of industry and community changes and trends. This
information is used to adapt and update academic programming.
College leaders remain focused on creating value for students
and other stakeholders by identifying short- and long-term
goals and objectives for the institution and working to achieve
those goals. With equal representation of faculty and staff,
core committees are linked to specific strategic goals and
objectives, and are the primary vehicles for completing action
projects (2.1.a(1)). Each of the seven core committees creates
Action Plans and subsequent strategy work teams to complete
improvements projects identified on the Strategic Plan.
1.2 GOVERNANCE
AND SOCIETAL RESPONSIBILITIES
1.2.a(1) Organizational Governance System
As explained in the Organizational Profile (P.1.b(1)) and reflected
in the Organizational Charts, Wisconsin State Statue Chapter
38 outlines the governance roles of the WTCS and the District
Board. The Shared Governance model at the college allocates
responsibilities between the District Board, the administration,
and the faculty. Accountability is an articulated value at MATC,
and accountability for the District Board and its policies occurs
in their monthly public meetings. Also, accountability for
administrative actions is ensured within this system through
Performance Evaluations of top administrators, including the
president. Fiscal accountability, including the protection of
stakeholders’ interests, is maintained through the reporting of
the CFO to the District Board, the President’s Cabinet, and the
Strategic Planning and Budgeting Steering Committee (SPBSC).
The Finance, Personnel and Operations committee of the District
Board holds open meetings and posts its minutes on the public
website. These communication venues offer transparency in
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