AGENDA ITEM NO:
UNIVERSITY COUNCIL
PLANNING AND PRIORITIES COMMITTEE REPORT
REQUEST FOR DECISION
PRESENTED BY:
Bob Tyler, Chair, Planning and Priorities Committee
DATE OF MEETING:
December 16, 2010
SUBJECT:
Areas of Focus for the Third Integrated Plan
DECISION REQUESTED:
It is recommended:
That Council endorse The Third Integrated Plan: Areas of
Focus as a guide to assist colleges and administrative units
in the development of their plans for the third planning
cycle, 2012/13 – 2015/16.
PURPOSE:
The areas of focus for the Third Integrated Plan are presented to Council for
endorsement. Council’s endorsement signifies its agreement with the direction and intent
of the areas as expressed, and the anticipated outcomes within the University and the
broader community.
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT:
The four focus areas selected for the 2012/13 – 2015/16 planning cycle are:
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Knowledge Creation: Innovation and Impact;
Aboriginal Engagement: Relationships, Scholarship, Programs;
Innovation in Academic Programs and Services; and
Culture and Community: Our Global Sense of Place.
As indicated in the Areas of Focus document, these four areas are intended to touch
almost every area of University activity in some way, thereby ensuring their centrality to
the University as a whole. Each of the areas links to goals expressed within the
foundational documents on Research and Scholarly Work, Teaching and Learning,
Outreach and Engagement, Globalism and International Activities, and the Aboriginal
initiative. The renewal by the President of the University’s Strategic Directions in April,
2010 reaffirmed the vision for the University initially set in 2002 as the stage for The
First Integrated Plan. The Committee viewed the rearticulation of the President’s vision
as compelling and forming a solid basis for the Third Integrated Plan.
In its review and discussion of the focus areas, the Planning and Priorities Committee
paid particular attention to the extent that each area integrated across multiple planning
dimensions, reflecting the breadth and depth of the area and the related initiatives brought
forward by units. The Committee viewed the reflection of the commitments of previous
plans in the areas of focus as demonstrating a maturing of the planning process and an
index of progress made.
CONSULTATION:
The areas of focus proposed arise from a collegial discussion model. The Planning and
Priorities Committee discussed the areas of focus at its meetings on November 17th and
December 1st. Members of the Committee also participated in the Community Planning
event held October 29-30th which was attended by over 100 participants. This key
planning event provided constituents of the University community with the opportunity
to hear about emerging themes in academic environments, and in light of these, to discuss
and begin to identify key areas of focus for the University in the third planning cycle.
Drafts of the Areas of Focus document also were presented to the Research, Scholarly
and Artistic Work Committee of Council, Deans’ Council, PCIP-AC and PCIP. The
Board of Governors will receive the areas of focus at the December Board meeting.
The Planning and Priorities Committee supports the circulation of the Areas of Focus as
widely as possible amongst the University’s stakeholders, particularly at the department
level, to ensure the planning process engages units at the outset of the planning cycle.
IMPLICATIONS:
Following endorsement by Council, the areas of focus will be integrated into the
templates provided to colleges and administrative units to guide the development of
college and unit plans for the third planning cycle. Although colleges and units may
focus to a greater or lesser degree on each of the four areas, the intent is that each area, as
an expressly stated cross-cutting theme, will be considered and inform the college and
unit plans
SUMMARY:
In summary, the Planning and Priorities Committee considers the areas of focus
articulated for the Third Integrated Plan to be far-reaching and transformative, while
remaining firmly grounded and connected to previous integrated plans and commitments.
Ultimately, the degree to which the areas presented are deemed credible will be reflected
in the extent to which they resonate with colleges and administrative units, and how
closely the college and unit plans resemble the goals and ideas presented in the Areas of
Focus document.
FURTHER ACTION REQUIRED:
The templates to be developed by the Institutional Planning and Assessment Office and
distributed to planning units will reference the areas of focus selected for the third
planning cycle.
ATTACHMENTS:
The Third Integrated Plan: Areas of Focus