Winter 2006 Alumni News

Transforming the U

The University of Minnesota has embarked upon a system-wide strategic positioning process with the goal of making the University one of the top three public research universities in the world within a decade.

During the fall of 2005, eleven task forces (out of a total of 34) prepared recommendations on college design, undergraduate and graduate reform, diversity, international university, and pre K-12 strategy. In addition, task forces will address areas such as research; the Academic Health Center; administrative areas such as student services, human resources, enterprise reporting, and best practice management tools; and metrics and measurement.

College design focuses on transforming five collegiate units into three. Affected units are the Colleges of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Sciences, Natural Resources, Human Ecology, Architecture and Landscape Architecture, and Education and Human Development. From these five will be formed a college that focuses on design, one that focuses on education, and one that focuses on agriculture and environment.

A new campus-wide honors college would seek to attract high quality students who might not have otherwise considered the University of Minnesota. In the area of student support, the goal is to articulate high expecations and standards and to improve student outcomes and enhance the total student experience.

The eleven task forces have prepared preliminary reports. After a period of public comment during January 2006, final recommendations will be submitted. The process is ongoing, but implemention will be starting on July 1, 2006.

For more information on how strategic planning will affect Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, see Kevin Janni’s article on page 1. You can visit www.umn.edu/systemwide/strategic_positioning/ for more information on the entire process.