Citing competitive advantages such as an interdisciplinary faculty, unique research, and a premier location, the College of Arts and Letters announced its Five Year Strategic Plan on October 5, 2018 through an announcement on the Stevens website. The Five Year Strategic Plan sets ambitious goals for Stevens’ smallest academic school, all of which align with goals set in Stevens’ overarching strategic plan, The Future. Ours to Create. These objectives include increased enrollment, expansion of graduate programs, and improved research and creative activity.
The College of Arts and Letters’ stated vision, which is reiterated in the announcement of the Five Year Strategic Plan, is “to be acknowledged as a premier institution dedicated to technology-focused interdisciplinary research and education in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.” CAL currently offers eight undergraduate programs as well as 13 minors and one graduate program. The school also operates five centers and labs in the Morton-Pierce-Kidde Complex and has obtained recognition for its research in fields such as sound synthesis and technology policy. Recently-issued CAL newsletters highlight accomplishments such as CAL professor Lindsey Cormack appearing on NBC News to discuss artificial intelligence and CAL alumnus and adjunct professor Will Stackpole receiving the ASCAP Foundation Nissim Prize for his composition fEED, a 16-minute work for orchestra.
From late 2016 through 2017, CAL’s faculty and staff participated in planning exercises in order to develop a vision for the school’s future, as the School of Systems and Enterprises and Schaefer School of Engineering & Science have also done in recent years for their respective strategic plans. Dr. Ann Murphy, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Academics in the Howe School of Business, was asked to facilitate discussion and assist in organizing the planning exercises. The result of these sessions is the Five Year Strategic Plan itself, which outlines five specific strategic priorities: enrollment, faculty, curriculum, research and creative activity, and reputation.
CAL seeks to “increase the number, quality, and diversity of undergraduate students enrolled in CAL major programs of study in the next five years.” In the Five Year Strategic Plan, CAL cites an enrollment goal of 300 students by the 2022-23 academic year, compared to an enrollment of 168 in the Fall 2018 semester, with specific enrollment goals for each major also specified. These growth targets assume historical year-over-year retention rates of 95%. CAL also seeks to increase the percent of female students from 35% to 50% and the percent of underrepresented minorities from 15% to 20% by the 2022-23 academic year.
Following the retirement of several senior professors in recent semesters, CAL has already been in the process of hiring new faculty, including the first dedicated research position in its history. CAL cites three specific goals related to faculty in the coming years: to recruit and retain excellent faculty, improve governance, and support faculty. In line with The Future. Ours to Create, CAL seeks to hire “tenure stream” faculty, improve governance by enhancing student advising and distributing service responsibilities effectively, and support the faculty through initiatives such as increasing funding for equipment purchases.
CAL has also set ambitious goals for its curricula. CAL plans on launching a new undergraduate degree which will seek to attract more new students in order to take part in reaching enrollment goals. Although CAL did not name a specific degree program in the Five Year Strategic Plan, it stated, “[the new undergraduate degree] will capitalize on CAL’s strengths, attract new majors, and grow enrollment. We will leverage our interdisciplinary breadth and Stevens’ successful career placement infrastructure to create a degree program situated at the intersection of computing, data science, and the liberal arts.” CAL also seeks to revisit its only graduate degree program, the Master of Arts in Policy and Innovation, while exploring other potential offerings as well as improve current undergraduate programs.
Although CAL had near-zero annual research expenditures several years ago, the school posted nearly $260,000 in the 2017 fiscal year. CAL seeks to continue increasing the quantity and quality of its research and creative activity. In order to do so, the school has set research goals of $1.5 million in annual research expenditures, an enhanced spirit of collaboration across units, and the development of new facilities for research and creative activity. No specific space plan for future growth has been developed as of yet.
Lastly, CAL seeks to strengthen its brand. To do so, CAL will be measuring its impact and developing a strategy to increase its prestige and visibility. In doing so, CAL will being tracking and enhancing alumni relationships and launching a marketing campaign to strengthen its brand. Additionally, CAL seeks to develop partnerships with precisely three organizations in an effort to pursue more public-facing arts and music initiatives and enhance outcomes for research. CAL currently has such a partnership with Nokia Bell Labs, which led to the Human Digital Orchestra, a multimedia performance showcased at an event held on the Bell Labs campus in the Spring 2016 semester.
“The plan lays out who we want to be and where we want to be,” said Kelland Thomas, Dean of CAL, “especially with our research, creativity, and visibility.” The Five Year Strategic Plan, according to Dean Thomas, is built on the same principles which guide the school’s current initiatives and offerings. When asked what Stevens students should be especially aware of with regard to the plan, Thomas said, “CAL serves all undergraduates here at Stevens; that’s something we want people to know.”
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