March 04, 2005
External Scan - Trends and Forces Affecting the School
Given the accelerating rate of growth in complexity in the world we are at the bottom of a cliff, looking at the most rapidly climbing rate of change. Old skills and ways of operating can’t be expected to handle the new changes; we won’t have time to develop new skills/resources when the next change arrives. Rather than reacting to situations and being already too late, we need to look to the future and develop strategic plans—ways of operating today while keeping the future in mind.
The group considered emerging trends and forces affecting the School in the following six areas:
• Science and Technology
• Organizations and Institutions
• Culture and Values
• Finance and Economics
• Population and Demographics
• Government and Politics
Based on this analysis, the group identified and prioritized key challenges facing the School in the next few years:
Priority challenges for the School, based on External Scan
15 stars - How do we provide quality education in an era of shrinking resources and increasing students?
11 stars - How do we do research & maintain FT teaching load with no dollars?
11 stars - How do we clarify and communicate to faculty and staff what is required, what is optional, and what is just nice to do?
11 stars - How do we maintain quality of work life for staff and faculty in light of increasing work load/higher enrollment?
11 stars - How do we develop a fair system to allocate resources to various departments? What is equity in this?
9 stars - How do we negotiate proactive planning with the University about resource allocation & enrollment?
6 stars - How do we raise the awareness of the University that we are visible to/important to the community & reverse the denial of our impact by the University?
4 stars - How to develop appropriate & clear priorities to guide decision we make, rather than o everything in crisis mode, so we can feel good about what we do, rather than bad about what we can never get to?
4 stars - Will we get adequate support from other organizations as we grow?
2 stars - How do we maintain balance between learning to learn + skill development with students?
2 stars - How do we recruit and advise students who will be successful at SSU?
2 stars - Can we define the distinction between SST & the JC?
2 stars - How do we reframe & reach agreement on our mission with the University as we grow?
1 star - How do we manage large classes that enable small majors classes?