Dear Campus Community Members,
I hope this message finds you and yours well, safe and sound, making the best of it in these most unusual times. I am writing to update you on our Strategic Planning process and the path forward. Aligned with our mission and vision, Strategic Planning is an essential process for assessing the efficacy of our institutional endeavors, optimizing quality, building on our accomplishments, pursuing untapped opportunities, and laying the groundwork for future success. The new Plan for the Century will guide the Campus until the 100th anniversary in 2027.
First, let me take this opportunity to provide a summary of the planning meetings held to date. Last February we launched the plan with lots of excitement and promise when we convened the Johnstown Planning & Budget Committee (JPBC) at the Murtha Center. Consisting of faculty, students, and staff representatives, the JPBC members had an extensive brainstorm session where they proposed several ideas and initiatives for consideration as part of the next Strategic Plan. The Murtha Center event was followed by a meeting of our Board of Advisors, where members presented numerous initiatives for consideration. In September, we held a Campus Town Hall during which members of our community proposed additional ideas for consideration in the planning process. I have also had conversations with the Student Government Association and the Faculty Senate Council about emerging themes and topics for our planning.
Throughout these conversations, it has been quite evident that Pitt-Johnstown has achieved an enviable position of leadership among peer institutions in our region, educating students for success in the real world. At the same time, recognizing that our world is in great flux, there is a sense that we cannot rest on our laurels and that we need to do more to burnish our image and solidify our position. To achieve our promise and fulfill our potential in the years ahead, we would have to adapt to a changing environment while holding on to cherished strengths such as providing up-close-and-personal teaching, learning, and service in a mostly residential setting. While this is not always achievable during the pandemic, we know this too shall pass, and we will someday return to a more familiar campus.
Going forward, the environment is increasingly challenging, to say the least. The pandemic that has claimed nearly a quarter of a million lives in the United States is still raging, even gaining strength as fall turns into winter. The economic aftershocks wrought by the pandemic would reverberate for years to come, further adding to the burdens faced by families of current and prospective students. We also must contend with the demographic challenges in an aging state; it is no secret that too many institutions are going after a shrinking pool of students. On top of these challenges, public and governmental expectations are changing. Our consumers demand an engaging student experience, requiring us to compete not just with quality programs and faculty/staff but with expanded student services and top-notch facilities, technologies, and infrastructure.
To provide leadership for this effort, I have appointed faculty, staff, and students to the Campus Strategic Plan Steering Group and to several committees to focus on specific issue areas:
(1) The Success of Our People: Students, Faculty, Staff, and Alumni
(2) Enhancing Our Place: Facilities, Infrastructure, Technologies, and Environment
(3) Strengthening Community: Social Justice and Inclusivity, Healthy Aging, Sustainability, Workforce Capacity and Entrepreneurship
(4) Building Resources: Enrollment, Operational Efficiency, Auxiliary Operations, Marketing, and Fundraising
Members of the Strategic Planning Committee will hold town hall conversations with the entire campus community and present their preliminary findings by the end of spring semester. We will present a draft document to the Board of Advisors and to campus by the end of July 2021.
Over the past year, we have seen the world turned upside down by a raging pandemic accompanied by significant social and economic turmoil. Yet even in these turbulent times, I have been encouraged and inspired by the dedication, loyalty, and commitment to excellence in teaching, learning, and service demonstrated by our faculty, staff, and students. I trust that a successful planning effort will lay the groundwork for even greater success as we fulfill our institutional mission and vision.
Thank you.
Jem Spectar
President, Pitt-Johnstown