THE STRATEGIC PLAN FOR AUGUSTANAHORIZONS 2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Message from President Rob Oliver 1Our Roots 2Our Future 3Mission and Values 5Horizon 2019 Goals and Objectives

Serve More Students and Foster Their Success 7Provide Substantive and Innovative 9

Educational ExperiencesCultivate Strategic Partnerships 10Steward Human, Physical and Financial Resources 11Pursue Greater Brand Awareness and Recognition 12

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MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

It is with pleasure that I present to you “Horizons 2019,” the strategicplan designed to lead Augustana through 2019.

The goals and objectives outlined in this plan were carefully developedwith the help of Augustana faculty, administrators and staff whopurposefully devoted their time over the last year to analyzingemerging trends in higher education, evaluating geographic, economicand demographic shifts in demand, and eliciting feedback from alumni,students and the broader community.

It goes without saying that I am immensely grateful to all those whoserved our strategic planning process. I can say with all certainty thatAugustana is indebted to you for helping to steward and shape itsfuture.

In this document, we look back on Augustana’s 154-year history and, we look ahead to its future – to the horizons we’ll encounter over thenext five years. Here, we outline our hopes and dreams for thisremarkable institution and the extraordinary students we serve, whileconsidering the great responsibility we have to explore and discover the solutions that will create a better tomorrow.

We also share our mission and values, the foundations that have servedAugustana and our students well through the course of time. While thisplan seeks to boldly serve as our vision for the future, it is intentionalabout maintaining the integrity of our past.

What that means is this: We know that our mission and core values are today what they should be. They will remain our guiding principlesand they will continue to serve as Augustana’s bedrock for many, many years to come.

Finally, this document shares five major goals designed to helpAugustana transform and grow in the vastly competitive and ever-changing world of higher education. Our goals are to:

• Serve more students and foster their success• Provide substantive and innovative educational experiences• Cultivate strategic partnerships• Steward human, physical and financial resources• Pursue greater brand awareness and recognition

We believe these goals will help us inspire even more meaningfulexperiences in our students and create graduates who are even betterequipped to lead exceptional lives rooted in service to others.

While these goals celebrate our traditions and promote our areas ofinstitutional distinctiveness, they also challenge us to be innovative. The onus is on us to find and create new and better ways to servestudents in and outside the classroom, to manage our resources in themost effective ways possible, and to share the Augustana story in a waythat inspires, engages and influences those near and far.

It’s important to note that in order to be successful, this plan must go farbeyond just ink on paper. As a campus community we must all make theeffort to embrace these goals as our own and infuse them into ouroffices, divisions and departments each and every day.

This journey promises great things for Augustana. I’m thankful inadvance for your help in charting our course to Horizons 2019.

Yours, for Augustana,

Robert C. Oliver

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On June 5, 1860, Norwegian and Swedish church leaders met in JeffersonPrairie, Ill., to form the Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran AugustanaSynod. The controversial move paved the way for Professor Lars PaulEsbjorn and a group of followers to establish a completely new institution –the Augustana Seminary. Christened in the basement of the NorwegianLutheran Church on Franklin Street in Chicago, the Seminary’s name wasdrawn from the Augsburg Confession in 1530, during the time of theReformation. The document’s Latin designation was the “ConfessioAugustana.” Augustana Seminary held its first class on Sept. 1, 1860 –a founding date shared with Augustana’s sister-college, Augustana, Rock Island, Ill.

Through the remainder of the 19th century and into the early 20th, the school moved to Paxton, Illinois (1863) then to Marshall, Wisconsin (1869).Following the westward migration, the school “followed the people” andsettled in Beloit, Iowa in 1881. In 1884, Augustana moved to Canton,Dakota Territory, and by 1903, the College moved into a permanent home where it stayed until 1918.

By 1918, Sioux Falls city and business leaders were lobbying hard forAugustana College in Canton to relocate to Sioux Falls to merge with the Lutheran Normal School when word spread that church leadersbelieved that a merger would be good stewardship of scarce resources.They made the decision to merge the two under the name AugustanaCollege and Normal School. By 1920, the Administration Building was builtand a new president was influential in changing the direction from alargely vocational institution to a credible American Lutheran four-yearliberal arts college.

The last 154 years have been a mix of challenging financial struggles andthe excitement and optimism of a determined mix of faculty, students andadministration. As Augustana looks to the future, its horizons are limitlessto serve a broader demographic, a diverse student body, older adults and adynamic Sioux Falls community.

OUR ROOTS

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History will remember today as a time when 140 characters canrevolutionize nations, when seen and unseen borders and barriers arebreaking, when innovation and entrepreneurship are curatingunprecedented creativity, and when scientific exploration and discoveryare mapping new and extraordinary frontiers.

This is today.

Imagine what the future holds. Just imagine the possibilities beyond the next horizon.

As Augustana looks ahead five years to 2019, we will strive to encouragestudents to imagine what’s possible in the classroom, in co-curricularpursuits and via experiential learning opportunities. We will do so byproviding:

■ A Foundation in the Liberal Arts: 21st Century Skills. What we dohere – the broad-based knowledge our talented professors provide;the support and guidance offered by our seasoned residential lifeteams; the exposure and perspective gained through internationaltravel; and the ideas that swell from a culturally and ethnically diversecampus – define the liberal arts. After their time at Augustana, webelieve our graduates are well-suited to contribute and thrive invirtually any field because they are equipped with key 21st centuryskills – the ability to think critically, analyze information and drawconclusions, communicate effectively, collaborate, engage withtechnology and act with global awareness.

■ A Caring and Engaging Community. Our students will learn frompassionate and renowned scholars, award-winning authors, respectedresearchers, revered musicians and celebrated artists. They will buildfriendships with classmates from 29 states and nearly 40 countriesaround the globe. They will create connections with others who have

experienced Augustana – more than 25,000 alumni around the world.They will make memories through their involvement in intramurals or Viking athletics, campus clubs and organizations, the performingand visual arts, student government and campus ministry. And theywill benefit from the energy and opportunities found in Sioux Falls, a city of more than 166,000 known for its robust economy, countlessoutdoor activities, a vibrant dining and entertainment scene, sought-after internship and clinical opportunities, part-time jobs and a wealthof employment possibilities upon graduation. As a result, we call SiouxFalls “the ultimate college town.”

■ Experiential Learning Opportunities. Imagine what’s possible whenthe world is your classroom. Our students’ perspectives will changewhen they immerse themselves in another culture through a studyabroad course. They will gain skills and insight by working alongsiderevered scientists on campus and around the globe through ourundergraduate and graduate research programs. And, they will earntraining, develop understanding and create connections through the many internship, student teaching, practica, service learning,leadership and clinical opportunities available to Augustana studentsthrough our many partnerships in Sioux Falls, around the U.S. andoverseas.

By finding their vocation here, Augustana graduates will go on tobecome the answer-seekers, problem-solvers and change-makers of tomorrow.

OUR FUTURE

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MISSION AND VALUES

We believe that the preparation of our students for a life of serviceinvolves more than ensuring that they find excellent jobs when theygraduate; it includes helping our students determine what their gifts are and how they might use those gifts productively in a variety ofsettings across their whole lifetimes. Students are educated to be well-informed, engaged citizens and servant leaders in theircommunities, churches, and across the world.

MISSION STATEMENT

Inspired by Lutheran scholarly tradition and the liberal arts, Augustanaprovides an education of enduring worth that challenges the intellect,fosters integrity and integrates faith with learning and service in adiverse world.

OUR SHARED CORE VALUES

Christian

Built on a Lutheran tradition of higher education, Augustana professesthat God’s transforming grace in Jesus Christ invites and challenges usto be seekers of truth, lovers of wisdom, and bearers of compassion. We are inspired in study and worship, reflection and action to engagefaith, encounter God and explore creation. At Augustana, we believe weare called to live freely and in daring boldness so that we can love andserve our neighbor.

Liberal Arts

Augustana offers a dynamic, comprehensive educational program thatengages students in learning about a broad range of subjects throughour shared liberal arts core along with specialized study in one or moredisciplinary areas. All of our students learn to think critically andcreatively, to communicate effectively through written, oral and visualmeans, to understand multiple perspectives, to apply ethical standards,and to care for one another and the world. Engaging with the

intellectual practices embodied in the liberal arts prepares ourgraduates to lead and serve effectively in the workplace, thecommunity, the family, and the church. At Augustana, we affirm acommitment to teaching and learning as central and lifelong.

Excellence

To pursue excellence is to be committed to high standards, striving forquality in all we do. At Augustana, we recognize that excellence may bedemonstrated in many different ways in a wide variety of areas. Thus, we seek to provide a broad range of opportunities and experiences thatpromote risk-taking and learning from success and failure. We commitourselves to use our gifts to the best of our abilities to achieve ourdreams and to serve the world with vision and hope.

Community

Living, learning, and serving in community, we acknowledge theimportance of fellowship and care for one another and the world. AsAugustana citizens we learn to be mutually accountable for how weeach respond to the human needs of kindness, compassion,encouragement, support and respect for individual differences. We seekto empower and support one another in order to strengthencommunity. Living in community affirms a shared sense of purpose and mission.

Service

We become whole when we accept the call of servanthood, reachingout to others, and giving freely of our time and talent. A wide variety of experiences prepare us to live a life of service to God and society. We recognize that accepting a call to servanthood commits us to putothers before self and to promote generosity and justice. At Augustana,we commit to integrating faith with learning in order to beappropriately prepared to serve in a diverse world.

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HORIZONS 2019 GOALS

SERVE MORE STUDENTS AND FOSTER THEIR SUCCESS

We will … ■ Increase enrollment of undergraduate, graduate, and continuing

education students. ■ Enhance academic support, advising, mentoring, career

counseling and placement programs. ■ Provide rich experiential learning opportunities such as

internships, practica, student-faculty research, study abroad,service learning, and leadership.

■ Promote a vibrant campus life atmosphere that includes adistinctive first-year experience, leadership opportunities, worshipand outreach, performing and visual arts, wellness, recreation andintercollegiate athletics.

■ Create attractive facilities that invite student engagement.

OBJECTIVES 1. Grow our enrollment to 2,500, comprised of 2,000 undergraduate

and 500 graduate students.

2. Increase our diverse student population, domestic students ofcolor and international, to 20 percent of our enrollment.

3. Expand existing and establish new connections betweenAugustana and schools, institutions of higher education, andemployers, providing innovative higher education accessprogramming, curriculum enhancement, articulationsagreements, support of special projects, and more.

4. Create and launch a student resource center by January 2015which will provide enhanced academic support, career planningand support of experiential learning endeavors.

5. Develop an infrastructure to support graduate and non-traditionalstudents.

6. Develop facilities that serve students’ co-curricular needsincluding a wellness and recreation center, new and enhancedresidential housing, and enhancement of the studentunion/commons and performing arts facilities.

7. Create a plan to further engage students, faculty and staff inmeaningful worship, faith development experiences anddeveloping an appreciation for and understanding of traditionsother than their own.

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We will … ■ Provide an academically rigorous, dynamic and relevant

curriculum. ■ Assess existing and develop new academic programs that are

responsive to student interests and societal needs. ■ Expand graduate and continuing education offerings to serve a

growing market of adult learners. ■ Engage secondary educational systems by providing unique, high

quality offerings that enhance and expand student learningopportunities.

OBJECTIVES 1. Review the current undergraduate curriculum, including the

shared core and majors and minors to ensure that our currentprograms are responsive to Augustana’s mission, student interestsand societal needs and that our resources are allocatedresponsibly. Provide recommendations for addressingprogrammatic issues that emerge from this review.

2. Research and implement new undergraduate and graduateprograms that build on Augustana’s strengths and broaden ourcapacity to serve students effectively. Develop a strategicimplementation plan for new programming.

3. Provide a technology-rich learning environment for all students;identify and implement technology-enhanced learning strategiesinto the curriculum as appropriate.

4. Develop an appropriate organizational structure to supportexisting and new graduate and continuing education programs.

5. Strengthen existing and develop new models of engaging highschool students in higher education learning opportunities andexperiences including higher education access programming,dual-enrollment credit, and potentially providing credit forappropriate secondary school experiences.

PROVIDE SUBSTANTIVE AND INNOVATIVE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES

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CULTIVATE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS

We will … ■ Leverage the abundant resources of Sioux Falls to provide new

opportunities for our students and graduates to learn from andserve the community.

■ Seek creative ideas and resources from partners who will invest inand become co-creators of educational opportunities.

■ Pursue relationships with agencies and organizations to fostercontinued growth in international programs.

OBJECTIVES 1. Ensure that relationships with partners are nurtured and that

existing partner relationships across and within organizational unitsare effectively leveraged.

2. Expand existing, and establish new employment and post-graduateopportunities for graduates through strategic relationships withemployers and graduate programs.

3. Partner with constituent groups to advance Augustana’s mission byproviding mentoring, internships, and other experiential learningopportunities; serving on advisory groups; and providing financialresources where appropriate.

4. Establish and maintain key relationships with regional, national andinternational institutions and organizations to further enhanceeducational opportunities.

5. Nurture relationships in the Augustana neighborhood by reachingout as generous hosts and enthusiastic partners to promote safetyand citizenship for our community.

6. Create an integrated program of communication and events thatacknowledge family members of students as key influencers andpartners.

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STEWARD HUMAN, PHYSICAL, & FINANCIAL RESOURCES

We will … ■ Invest in professional development for faculty and staff. ■ Encourage an atmosphere of inclusivity, innovation, and entrepreneurship. ■ Increase endowment and annual giving for scholarship support, program

expansion and facility enhancement. ■ Diversify revenue sources to stabilize financial performance amid enrollment

fluctuation. ■ Enhance and expand facilities to provide an exceptional and safe living and

learning environment.

OBJECTIVES 1. Strengthen professional development opportunities for faculty and staff.

2. Conduct a staffing analysis and resource allocation review to ensure optimizationof our resources to serve students with excellence.

3. Improve employee compensation to become more competitive with appropriatecomparison institutions.

4. Strengthen efforts to increase the diversity of our faculty and staff.

5. Define infrastructure and resources to best support the strategic plan andincorporate into an implementation plan.

6. Update the Facilities Master Plan to guide the development of new and existingspaces, provide for maintenance and facility upgrades, equipment, landscaping,and other campus needs. Develop a plan of action including timeline for funddevelopment and execution.

7. Grow the endowment to $100 million.

8. Achieve and maintain $3 million per year in annual gifts by increasing alumniparticipation in giving to 21% in 2014, 22% in 2015, and 27% by December 2019.

9. Identify, pursue, and leverage external grant funding to support key institutionalinitiatives. Double active awards managed by Augustana to $8M. Understand therisks of depending on external grant funding and develop mitigation strategies.

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PURSUE GREATER BRAND AWARENESS & RECOGNITION

We will … ■ Develop and execute an overarching marketing strategy that

creates greater awareness and informed advocacy across the rangeof Augustana’s constituencies.

■ Ensure that marketing and communications activities for allundergraduate, graduate and administrative units are coordinatedin support of strategic plan priorities.

OBJECTIVES 1. Provide enhanced marketing support for all undergraduate,

graduate and continuing education programming in support of theAugustana’s strategic initiatives; enhance the system for thecollection of data and information sharing across campus to developmore effective communications.

2. Re-design Augustana’s brand identity and messaging to promoteareas of institutional distinctiveness to our key audiences: students,alumni, parents, donors, friends, and the broader community.

3. Create memorable brand experiences through effective planningand execution of Augustana-sponsored events on campus and inthe community that engage our key audiences.

4. Develop event-specific marketing tactics and the metrics to measureprogress.

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