Any institution of higher education needs to continuously adapt to its changing environment, and periodically evaluate its long term strategic direction. This is necessary to ensure continued relevance to students and the world at large, and to plan for the future.
Delaware Valley College initiated a formal strategic planning process in February, 2008 about six months after the arrival of Dr. Joseph Brosnan as the College's new president.
A broad-based Strategic Planning Committee was created representing alumni, trustees, students, faculty, staff and community members. Through the work of several sub-committees, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges were determined in the following areas: academics, student life, culture and diversity, facilities, and alumni and community relations. An educational research firm was hired to determine and document student, prospective student, faculty, and alumni opinions and perceptions about the College. An extensive financial analysis was conducted. Thousands of hours of work involving well over 100 people went into the development of the Plan.
The Board of Trustees endorsed the new strategic plan at its meeting on February 19, 2010. The Plan includes a new mission, core values and vision statement, and identifies key goals, strategies, initiatives and implementation metrics. A Vision for a University was also developed that includes four key components: a School of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, a School of Life & Physical Sciences, a School of Business & Humanities, and a Division of Graduate & Entrepreneurial Programs.
The implementation of the plan is organized around six major themes in two phases. An Implementation Management Structure involving the Board of Trustees, the President, a Strategic Planning Oversight Team, the Cabinet, and an Implementation Coordinator has been established to ensure that the Plan is implemented efficiently and effectively.
Questions can be directed to: strategicplan@delval.edu