Work in Progress: Last Revision 5/10/02

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Strategic Directions For the University of Oregon

The University of Oregon is internationally recognized as among the nation's premier comprehensive research universities. We are the only Oregon institution that is a member of the highly selective American Association of Universities (AAU), and we are distinguished by the strength of our teaching and research in the arts and sciences and the professional schools.

We are committed, through the process of research and graduate education, to excel in the creation and application of knowledge. This places us in the critical role of producing intellectual capital that is central to the state's prosperity, as well as producing graduates who are well prepared to participate in both today's and tomorrow's economy. Because of the strength of our core mission in the liberal arts, our graduates have the critical thinking and analytical skills that allow them to adapt and thrive in a world defined by increasing complexity and rapid change.

In many ways, we are like all other major public research universities. In some ways, we are different. We have a relatively small student body and a very modest level of state support. We offer our students the education available at an AAU institution with the low student-faculty ratio typical of smaller campuses. And we do not let limited state support determine our quality.

The strategic directions listed in this document set forth the areas that will receive our primary focus for the next five years. They are: quality, access, the student experience, and research and economic development. The fifth component is a New Compact with Oregon, which will allow us to implement the first four.

QUALITY

"There is a sense of the distinctive and special about UO. Among the attributes frequently cited are the quality of the program, sense of community, people who care about their institution; the special character of Eugene, the climate and geography, the human scale of the University, and powerful traditions of collaboration, cooperation, openness, and friendliness. There is an ever-present pride and search for excellence. These are qualities that need nurturing and protection." -Report from the Decennial Review of the Commission on Colleges, 1997

A. Goal

We will improve overall institutional quality by investing significantly in the recruitment, retention, and recognition of nationally competitive faculty, by attracting stronger students to our undergraduate and graduate programs, and by developing distinctive excellence in academic programs. Our quality is reflected in our membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU), where we are the only member from Oregon and one of just 63 public and private institutions of the more than 2000 institutions of higher education in the United States. In addition to AAU affiliation our quality is evidenced through the creativity and innovation of our faculty, programs, and students.

B. Assumptions

C. Direction

Across all of our endeavors, our community-faculty, students, alumni, staff, and others-strive for excellence locally and distinction nationally. We cannot do less than compete for the sake of Oregon on the national and international stage. We must continue our commitment to cultivating excellence in our faculty, students and programs. This means we must:

ACCESS

"Bright and engaged students from Oregon and this region need to have available to them an affordable education at an internationally recognized premiere university or we will lose them, perhaps forever." -Dave Frohnmayer, President, 2002

A. Goal

The University of Oregon is committed to ensuring that all qualified Oregonians have the opportunity to attend and succeed, while maintaining our position as a high-quality research university with a mid-size, academically strong student body. This strategic direction is built on the following assumptions.

B. Assumptions

C. Direction

THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE

"A recent University of Oregon Orientation Week t-shirt sported a picture of a duck and the simple exhortation "Let your future take flight." The UO certainly offers many ways for those with lofty ambitions to succeed. With the UO's caring faculty, excellent academics, and abundance of social activities, the UO is all it's quacked up to be." The Fiske Guide to Colleges 2002 (Designated the UO for the 4th year in a row as one of the nation's top 40 "best buys" in higher education.)

A. Goal

The University is committed to providing its students an array of experiences that support academic and personal development within a residential campus experience. The residential experience extends classroom learning and plays a significant role in preparing students for effective participation in a global and diverse society. This strategic direction is built on the following assumptions.

B. Assumptions

The quality of the student body and the quality of the student experience are increasingly important factors in our ability to compete successfully for resources.

C. Direction

RESEARCH AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

"The wealth, civilization and development of a state depend upon the education of the masses of its people and upon the education of those who by a process of education become the leaders of these masses in the various departments of lifeÉ The state must make it possible for the university to attain the highest known standard, and then must insist on corresponding results." UO President Frank Strong, 1899

A. Goal

We are committed through the integrated missions of research, graduate education, and technology transfer, to excel in the creation, transmission, and application of knowledge. We will be increasingly competitive compared to other major research universities in the quality of our research programs and the applications that foster economic development and improve the quality of life. This strategic direction is built on the following assumptions.

B. Assumptions

C. Direction

A NEW COMPACT WITH OREGON

For us to maintain and increase the level and quality of service we provide to the state and to our students, a new compact with the state must be put in place. To compete in the educational marketplace with such limited state assistance, we must be able to make decisions that affect our future in a timely way to become more agile and efficient. We are not likely to see any increase in the percentage of state funding available to us. We cannot continue to serve the state or the increasing numbers of Oregonians who want a UO education at current levels of state support without significant policy and operational changes. We must be market oriented, entrepreneurial and flexible-something that is not possible with the constraints of state agency now in place.

At the same time, we have no desire to move away from our mission as a public university. We simply believe that in order to fulfill our mission there must be changes in our relationship to the State of Oregon. We have no desire to separate ourselves from the Oregon University System. We value our relationships with our sister universities and see significant growth in cooperative activities. We recognize the need for some central coordination and for a high-level governing board. However, the state's current governance form leads to inefficiencies, delays, and unnecessary costs. Therefore, we propose a "new compact with the State of Oregon," with the characteristics described below.

Benefits to the State of Oregon

Responsibilities of the University

Three additional provisions are required for the new relationships between the state and the university to succeed.

CONCLUSION

Whether our supporters or our critics are interested in the essential value of a liberal arts education- developing a responsible, creative, and critical citizenry-or in the pragmatic and instrumental outcomes of higher education, the pursuit of quality and the cultivation of excellence forms the foundation on which all success depends. It is not an accident that the finest public universities in the U.S.-Virginia, Michigan, Berkeley, UNC-set and maintain the highest standards of academic inquiry, student learning, and community and regional service in their states. The legacy of their excellence in those states is undeniable. The UO will focus its investments on quality, access, the student experience, and research and economic development to position itself in the State and in the nation to merit its AAU membership and the continued support of its faculty, students, and public.
Web page spun on 11 November 2003 by Peter B Gilkey 202 Deady Hall, Department of Mathematics at the University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403-1222, U.S.A. Phone 1-541-346-4717 Email:peter.gilkey.cc.67@aya.yale.edu of Deady Spider Enterprises