UNI has unveiled its strategic plan for 2023-2028 with the slogan “Create. Empower. Innovate.” The plan consists of four main goals. Goal 1 is to create equitable, diverse, and inclusive opportunities, Goal 2 is to empower communities to shape their future, Goal 3 is to innovate for learner success and Goal 4 is to steward resources effectively. 

Drew Conrad is one of the co-chairs of the 2023-2028 Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) and has worked at UNI for 30 years as the director of the Institute for Decision Making, which is one of UNI’s economic development outreach programs within UNI’s Business & Community Services (BCS) division. “President Nook asked myself and Nicki Skaar, associate professor & coordinator, School Psychology Program, to co-chair the 2023-2028 Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) and help manage the strategic planning process. We had a great group of students, faculty and staff who served on the SPC. We also had great facilitation leadership from Randy Pilkington, executive director of BCS, and Andrew Morse, President Nook’s former chief of staff,” Conrad said. 

According to Conrad, the new strategic plan is just one more step towards a larger plan that will culminate in the future for UNI. “The new strategic plan continues UNI on our journey of working toward achieving UNI’s Future Vision – what we hope UNI will be by 2051 when UNI celebrates its 175th anniversary. I think current and future students are the core focus of the new plan,” Conrad said. “This is reflected with creating equitable, diverse and inclusive opportunities being front and center in the new plan, along with learner success both inside and outside the classroom. Community engagement and helping to build a better Iowa is also elevated through the new plan.”

The new plan will also go beyond the classroom. One of UNI’s main goals is to further connect with the greater Cedar Valley community and provide opportunities for students in new and developing areas of study. 

“I think it is an exciting time at UNI. The new strategic plan is part of this excitement and will help to keep us focused on our priorities,” Conrad said. “The new strategic plan has also spurred a lot of strategic planning efforts across campus by colleges, academic departments and other programs. This is great. It has individuals and units truly thinking about where they want to be in five years and what they need to accomplish in order to help achieve what they have envisioned and how their priorities will help with accomplishing the priorities in the 2023-2028 UNI Strategic Plan and help the University in achieving its Future Vision.”

For more information on the 2023-2028 UNI Strategic Plan, visit strategicplan.uni.edu