University drafts strategic plan

By Laura Pelner
Campus Editor

Purdue University has no clear vision, but with the help of strategic planning efforts it should be getting one soon.

On March 1, Rabindra Mukerjea began as Purdue's first director of strategic planning and assessment. In one month he helped create task forces that have drafted the University's mission and vision statements.

"There isn't any clear vision statement in document so we are preparing a new vision and mission statement based on the different kinds of expectations and different reports that Purdue has issued in the past," said Mukerjea.

President Martin Jischke said strategic planning is about achieving goals that will take the University to the next level. To that end, Jischke said the first step in the process is coming to an agreement and understanding about Purdue's role in higher education. The mission statement will provide this.

The strategic planning process has already begun with the creation of task forces on each of Purdue's regional campuses. "The task force has been formed and begun its work," said Mukerjea. "We have already met and will continue to meet until the plan document is completed."

At Friday's Board of Trustee's meeting, first drafts of the West Lafayette campus' mission and vision statements were presented. According to the mission statement draft, "Purdue University's mission is to discover, disseminate, preserve and apply knowledge through leading-edge scholarship and innovation."

This includes educational programs, learning outcomes that will be measured against other universities' programs and distinctions between Purdue's campuses and other universities.

The drafted vision statement said Purdue will be a preeminent world-class university and the world-leader in technology-intensive areas.

After the task forces create the University's final mission and vision statements, the task forces will work on Purdue's goals and the methods needed to reach those goals. All of this should be done during this summer and early next semester.

"It's going to be an intensive period," said Mukerjea.

He said the task forces will submit a draft of the plan to be recommended by Jischke and eventually the University's Board of Trustees.

Jischke said the final document would probably be presented to the trustees in November.

"We'll have some specific goals and suggestions of means of getting those goals," said Jischke.

He said the strategic plan will deal with the undergraduate education responsibility, the technology transfer and outreach programs.

Each regional campus will have its own strategic plan and Jischke said these individual documents would ultimately have to fit into Purdue's overall responsibilities.

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Campus editor: Laura Pelner

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