Strategic Plan

Chair: Kate Butler, Josh Moermond
Champion: Whitney White
Team Members: Jaz Alastair, Dana Bisignani, Jason Hartsfield, Zoe Zgodzinski

This team and their work is focused on using data to gain transformative insights into the Bearcat experience.

• Develop a philosophical framework for divisional assessment practice.
• Develop standardized processes for divisional assessment practice.
• Build a culture of assessment literacy across the division.
• Support collaborative assessment partnerships.

• Establish an inaugural role to support the division’s data-driven, student-centered strategies.

• Conduct focus groups, group-level assessments, and interviews across all UC campuses. Collaborate across departments to gather actionable insights into the evolving student experience.   

• In collaboration with campus partners, launch a multi-pronged initiative that includes pre/post semester assessments and collaborative exit interviews. 

• Collect data on student mental health, food insecurity, environmental support strategies, and financial need.
• Develop a baseline well-being report to inform divisional planning.   

• Survey students to identify preferences for student-centered spaces.  
• Use results to develop prioritized recommendations for resource and space planning.

Chairs: Andy Cox, Meghann Littrell
Champion: Arin Napier, Heidi Pettyjohn
Team Members: Carina Carpenter, Daniel Cummins, Chad Freeman, Megan Henke, Diana Riggs, Whitney Saunders, Laura Wooldridge

This team and their work is focused on preparing and developing staff to provide exceptional student support. 

• Identify and define core university systems and processes integral to the student experience.
• Ensure all Student Affairs staff are proficient in core university systems to improve operational efficiency and enhance student support. 

• Deliver training on key student processes and customer service principles. 

• Implement a professional development passport program for emerging leaders. 

• Launch a mentorship program and development series with at least 25 mentor/mentee pairs.
• Develop ongoing manager leadership training for supervisors with clear expectations around input, output, outcomes, and accountability. 

• Hire a grant writer with a target of at least five grant proposals submitted annually.

Chairs: Suzy Culbertson, Trent Pinto
Champions: Tara Scarborough, Shaka Sydnor
Team Members: Brittany Bibb, Caitlin Borges, Asha Brogan, Derek Guy, Debra Love, Whitney Richardson

This team and their work is focused on championing campus-wide support systems to promote student wellness.

• Establish best practices for the Dean of Students Office and develop a university system for proactive intervention, case management, and culture of care. 
• Utilize data from the JED Campus Initiative and other sources to develop a multi-level model of student well-being with defined intervention tiers (preventive, developmental, responsive) and associated support resources and responsibilities.
• Develop and integrate the Residential Well-being Model for the on-campus experience to increase opportunities for student involvement, intervention, well-being, and engagement.

• Establish strategies and processes with Academic Affairs to align efforts around student well-being that intersect classroom and co-curricular environments. Ensure participation from advisors, faculty, and student support staff, and document joint interventions and practices.

• Deliver professional development to 100% of Student Affairs staff focused on navigating stress, supporting student resilience, integrating well-being into daily student interactions, and differentiating between typical developmental challenges and crisis situations. 
• Publish updated and role-specific guidance on supporting students in immediate crisis and ensure frontline staff and faculty advisors are trained in when, how, and whom to contact.

• Utilize findings from Student Experience goal to inform programs, funding priorities and targeted interventions, and educate camps community on identified student needs.

Chairs: Kristin Ford, Mercedes Johnson
Champion: Brandi Elliott
Team Members: Jessica Ashcraft, Terry Evans, Carly Griffith, Sydney Jefferson, Keith Lanser

This team and their work is focused on preparing Bearcats with the practical skills they need to apply in their NEXT.

• Leverage WBLI’s leadership framework “The Bennis Way” to deliver a Student Affairs leadership curriculum, structured across three developmental levels (self-leadership, active followership, and leading others) and implemented through workshops, reflective activities, mentor engagement, and an optional certification pathway. 

• Establish a professional development model for student employees and work-study participants, incorporating core competencies, intentional mentorship, and leadership assessments as part of their employment experience.  
• Identify funding sources (grants, divisional reallocations, partnerships) to provide stipends or wages for student leaders engaged in critical co-curricular roles.  
• Develop and pilot Student Affairs programs where students take a co-leadership role in designing, facilitating, or evaluating divisional services and events. 

• Implement mentorship models across campus where staff and students can engage in structured mentorship. Mentorship models will include structured onboarding, progression planning, and performance evaluation from staff advisors.
• Deliver staff training on developmental feedback, coaching conversations, and student capacity-building.
• Implement recurring feedback mechanisms for students to track leadership growth.  

• Create a credential/badging program that integrates leadership development experiences, combining academic workshops, applied leadership experiences, mentoring, and reflection.  

• Launch a recognition initiative celebrating student leadership milestones and growth annually.
• Develop and implement annual Student Leadership Appreciation Day.

Chairs: Sarah Jernigan, Cheri Westmoreland
Champion: Felicia Wallace
Team Members: Amy Adkins, Radhika Chitnis, Ashley Moermond, Spencer Penrod, Charity Winburn

This team and their work is focused on enhancing student success through intentional cross-campus collaboration.

• Develop, formally adopt, and operationalize a shared definition of student success across Academic Affairs and Student Affairs. Establish 3–5 shared success metrics (e.g., retention, academic performance, FYE, sense of belonging, flourishing, Learning Communities) and assign ownership for tracking and reporting to Institutional Research in partnership with divisional leaders.

• Establish a standing Academic Affairs/Student Affairs Partnership Committee that meets at least quarterly, with clearly defined membership and leadership roles. Charge the committee with identifying 2–3 shared priorities annually, advancing joint initiatives, and reviewing student success data to inform decision-making.

• Develop and implement a faculty engagement strategy with at least 3 scalable initiatives that connect faculty to student affairs programs, with clear participation goals and defined outcomes related to student engagement and success. 

• Develop and implement a structured, scalable pipeline in partnership with CECH that provides coordinated internships, practica, and mentorship opportunities for students pursuing careers in Student Affairs and higher education, with defined participation targets and post-graduation outcomes.