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Strategic Plan 2011College of Arts and SciencesLeading the Way in Academics, Research and Public Engagementwww.art-sci.udel.edu/VisionThe College of Arts and Sciencesat the University of Delaware willbe nationally recognized for ourexceptional educational experiencesand for integrating instruction,research and public engagement.As we continue to attract and retainexcellent faculty and students,we will be a model of intellectualand cultural diversity. We willencourage and support innovativeinterdisciplinary collaborations andengage local, national and globalaudiences through our research andcreative activity.

ValuesOur values shape our vision of the college’s future. We value:A Liberal Education. Along with in-depth study in specific areasof interest, exposure to wide-ranging educational experiences acrossmany academic fields inspires student achievement and establishes thegroundwork for lifelong success.Excellence in teaching and research. Outstanding learningopportunities, research excellence and a pervasive commitment tostudent success are our hallmarks. Teaching and scholarship are fullyintegrated, as we engage students at all levels in our research andcreative activities.Diversity. Diversity of backgrounds, interests, intellectual approaches,global perspectives and identities is essential to our culture of deepand engaged learning.Social responsibility. Public engagement with local, national andglobal audiences strengthens our impact and influence.MissionThe College of Arts and Sciences is the intellectual and cultural heartof the University of Delaware. We emphasize both the enduring valueof a liberal education and the importance of cultivating new andemerging fields of knowledge and artistic expression. Members of ourcollege are dedicated artists, scholars, scientists and professionals, whoteach, mentor and advise while creating new knowledge. We fosterexcellence in scholarship, creative work and public service, educatingstudents to be thoughtful, ethical and engaged leaders. We offer broadand balanced undergraduate, graduate and professional educationprograms. We engage with local, national and global communitiesto understand and address their needs, and to share the insights andresults of our academic and creative work.College of Arts& Sciences

Strategic GoalsGoal 1: Develop an outstanding faculty.An outstanding faculty, committed to educating studentsand engaging them in research and creative activity, is thebasis for everything we do. Enhanced infrastructure andsupport mechanisms will facilitate research, scholarship andcreative activity.Recruit exceptional faculty members. Actively recruit excellenttenure-track and continuing non-tenure track faculty with racial, gender,cultural and intellectual diversity to build a robust learning andresearch environment. Continue to augment core disciplinary areaswhile developing interdisciplinary and emerging areas.Strengthen support for the faculty. Eliminate barriers and updatepolicies to promote interdisciplinary research and teaching initiatives.Develop staff and financial support for exceptional learning opportunitiesand research initiatives, particularly those that extend outside traditionaldisciplinary boundaries. Foster the success of early-career facultyby expanding and strengthening our current mentoring system.Improve research infrastructure. Upgrade support for grantproposal preparation, including additional staff and improved coordinationamong departments and colleges. Expand and improve thecollege space dedicated to research, scholarship and creative activity,and provide systematic support to establish and strengthen core facilitiesand research centers.College of Arts& Sciences

Strategic GoalsGoal 2: Diversify our faculty,students and staff.The College of Arts and Sciences affirms our commitment tofostering a diverse and respectful educational environmentthat advances critical thinking, open inquiry and full participationby students, faculty and staff. Diverse backgrounds,interests, intellectual approaches, global perspectives andidentities are essential to a culture of deep and engagedlearning. The ethnic, cultural, regional, international and intellectualdiversity of our students, faculty and staff contributessubstantially to the living-learning community of a greatuniversity.Lead University-wide diversity initiatives. Lead the Centerfor the Study of Diversity’s initiative by hiring faculty doing researchthat informs practices in higher education, science, industry and otherorganizations. Partner effectively with other colleges and Universityoffices to globalize the curriculum and ensure that international studentsare welcome.Enhance diversity recruitment efforts. Improve the recruitmentof students, faculty and staff from underrepresented groups, and enhancethe academic and social support networks for underrepresented,first-generation, low-income and international students.Strengthen diversity retention efforts. Improve the retentionof underrepresented and international students, faculty and staff.Improve degree-completion and graduate application, acceptance andfunding offers for underrepresented students, and enhance the professionaldevelopment and career mentoring of underrepresented andinternational students, post-doctoral fellows, faculty and staff.College of Arts& Sciences

Strategic GoalsGoal 3: Lead the way in studentlearning and engagement.We are a large and diverse college united by our common goalof being exemplary teachers and mentors. We are committedto excellence in classroom teaching that is informed by facultyresearch and shaped by active-learning pedagogies.Improve student learning outcomes. Ensure that our pedagogicalapproaches are rigorous, engaging and effective. Be a campus-wideas well as a national leader in active and problem-based learning, andemploy instructional technologies innovatively. Improve assessmentpractices throughout the college.Improve student communication skills. Challenge students to developexcellent skills in written, oral and visual communication. Promotemulti-modal communication skills while expanding writing-across-thecurriculumefforts so that all academic units embrace this task and learnto identify opportunities to enhance our students’ communication skills.Strengthen advisement and mentoring. Provide thoughtfulmentoring that goes beyond curricular advising and fosters the intellectualdevelopment of students at all levels. Promote uniform excellencein advisement and mentoring by promoting best practices anddeveloping college-wide initiatives that help our students make themost of what our college and University offer. Help graduate studentsseek grants, publish their work and secure professional positions.Build interdisciplinary strengths. Support interdisciplinaryprograms that offer new opportunities for undergraduate and graduatestudents, and foster initiatives that promote interdisciplinary solutionsto societal and global challenges.Expand undergraduate research opportunities. Provide undergraduatestudents with early opportunities to make meaningful inquiry anessential element of their education at the University of Delaware. Be thelead partner with the Office of Undergraduate Research and ExperientialLearning, the Honors Program and faculty development centers, such asthe Center for Teaching and Learning and the Institute for TransformingUndergraduate Education, to design faculty projects and initiatives thatengage students in discovery learning and creative activities.Enhance graduate student support. Improve time-to-degreecompletion and strengthen graduate education and global impact. Useincreased stipend levels, 12-month funding, multi-year commitmentsand enhanced dissertation fellowships and summer and travel researchsupport to recruit and retain the best students. Implement a regularreview of Ph.D. programs and establish a Council of Graduate Directorsto promote cross-program and interdisciplinary collaboration.College of Arts& Sciences