Learning Resources

Overcoming a $90M Budget Overage in Vanderbilt University’s Residential Colleges

A Multifaceted Team Worked Collaboratively to Stem Overruns

By: David Bailey, BA, AIA, LEED AP, and Walt Massey, BA

The University, architects, engineers, strategic planning consultants, and contractor teams worked hand in hand to peel back the onion to stem the overruns.

From Volume 52 Number 1 | October–December 2023

Abstract: When Vanderbilt University began seeing signs that cost escalation, scope additions, campus requirements, and authentic Collegiate Gothic architecture for their proposed new residence halls were all pressuring the budget, a multifaceted team worked collaboratively and arduously to stem the overruns.

Institutions Mentioned: Vanderbilt University
Planning Types: Campus Planning
Tags: Academic Facility, Engaging Stakeholders, Facilities Design, Facilities Planning, Implementation, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), Mixed-Use, Modifying the Plan, Project Management, Project Management / Delivery, Student Housing

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What Is Your Crisis ‘What If’?

Create a Sustainable Approach to Emergency Response Planning

By: Jessica A. Luedtke, PhD, and Mary M. Reinke, MBA, MS

The Medical College of Wisconsin planned strategically, engaged executive leadership, and operationalized an Administrative Response Team to navigate critical incidents impacting the university.

From Volume 51 Number 3 | April–June 2023

Institutions Mentioned: Medical College of Wisconsin
Planning Types: Continuity Planning
Tags: Building (or Writing) the Plan, Communication, Crisis and Disaster Management, External Collaboration / Partnerships, Leadership, Medical / Allied Health Education, Modifying the Plan, Recovery Planning, Response Planning, Risk Management, Scenario Planning, Security

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Conference Recordings

Published
July 26, 2022

2022 Annual Conference | July 2022

Weaving Planning and Accreditation Together for Action

By: Jamienne S. Studley, WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) | Lynn Akey (Moderator), Minnesota State University-Mankato

Join us for an intimate discussion with Jamienne Studley, president of WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), former college president, and deputy undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Education (2013–2016).

Abstract: Institutions will need to restructure at an unprecedented pace to achieve results vital for student success and institutional sustainability. Join us for an intimate discussion with Jamienne Studley, president of WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), former college president, and deputy undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Education (2013–2016). Synergy between strategic integrated planning and accreditation review can drive meaningful and efficient analysis in our institutions and become a catalyst for quality, continuous improvement for change, and pursuit of the results we want.

Planning Types: Academic Planning
Tags: Accreditation, Alignment, Continuous Improvement, SCUP 2022 Annual Conference

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A Practical Guide to Strategic Planning in Higher Education

Second Edition, with New and Updated Content

By: Karen E. Hinton, PhD

A resource for anyone engaged in college or university strategic planning, and an excellent primer for planning committees. This second edition also contains new strategies for using an institution’s strategic plan during times of institutional upheaval, and additional techniques for jump-starting various parts of the planning process.

Abstract: A Practical Guide to Strategic Planning in Higher Education is a resource for anyone engaged in college or university strategic planning; it is also an excellent primer for planning committees. Using clear definitions, practical tips, and examples drawn from actual situations, this short book acts as a manual for both experienced planners and those who are new to the process. This second edition also contains new strategies for using an institution’s strategic plan during times of institutional upheaval, and additional techniques for jump-starting various parts of the planning process.

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Blog Post

Published
July 6, 2022

What Is a Bridge Plan?

(And Does Your Institution Need One?)

By: Sadie Wutka, Director of Content Strategy, SCUP

A bridge plan allows a college or university to continue to pursue defined strategic pathways during times of uncertainty or rapid, unpredictable change. It’s also a good solution for when faculty and staff are overwhelmed due to a highly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) environment.

Planning Types: Strategic Planning
Tags: Adaptable Plans, Bridge Planning, Change Management, COVID-19, Disruptive Change, Modifying the Plan, Organizational Change

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Teetering on the Demographic Cliff, Part 3

Different Conditions Require a Different Kind of Planning

By: Bryan C. Harvey, EdD

Higher education has faced major changes for some time—COVID-19 accelerated that volatility—and now we’re anticipating the demographic downslope in student enrollment. How and when should institutions mobilize for the difficult work of planning in the face of wrenching change?

From Volume 50 Number 2 | January–March 2022

Abstract: Part 1 of this series described a major contraction in the pool of college-going 18-year-olds that will reverse decades of growth and stability for higher education. Part 2 explored how we can shape a planning context that supports success in the coming 10 or 20 years. Part 3 suggests how our approach to planning must shift to prepare for abrupt change.

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Teetering on the Demographic Cliff, Part 2

Turning Away from the Challenge Is the Riskiest Strategy of All

By: Bryan C. Harvey, EdD

Higher education has faced major changes for some time—COVID-19 accelerated that volatility—and now we’re anticipating the demographic downslope in student enrollment. How and when should institutions mobilize for the difficult work of planning in the face of wrenching change?

From Volume 50 Number 1 | October–December 2021

Abstract: Part 1 of this series described a major contraction in the pool of college-going 18-year-olds that will reverse decades of growth and stability for higher education. Drawing on the path-breaking analysis of Carleton College economist Nathan Grawe, it outlined how widespread but variable the change will be, and discussed some of the effects—on enrollment, revenue, facilities, staffing, and more—for which colleges and universities should be preparing. This Part 2 explores these implications: How can we shape a planning context that supports success in the coming 10 or 20 years? What attitudes and skillsets will remain useful, and what may need to change?

Planning Types: Strategic Enrollment Management Planning
Tags: Cost of Higher Ed, COVID-19, Demographics, Enrollment Management, Funding, Resiliency, Shrinking Pool of Potential Students, Student Demographics, Trends External to Higher Ed, US

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Association Between Accreditation & Integrated Planning

By: Sue Gerber, PhD, New Jersey City University

This is a SCUP Fellow Research Project Final Report for the 2019–2020 program. What is the relationship between accreditation and integrated planning? This research delves into this question, examining the perspectives from both the accreditor side (in particular, Middle States Commission on Higher Education) and the institutional side.

Abstract: What is the relationship between accreditation and integrated planning? This research delves into this question, examining the perspectives from both the accreditor side (in particular, Middle States Commission on Higher Education) and the institutional side. It goes beyond what’s written about planning in the MSCHE Standards, using interviews with Commission vice presidents and institutional accreditation officers, along with analyses of institutional self-study documents, to compare the intent of the Commission with the lived experience of institutions. Learn about the discrepancies between planning ideals and reality . . . and potential ways those discrepancies can be resolved.

Planning Types: Institutional Effectiveness Planning
Tags: Accreditation, Original Research

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Teetering on the Demographic Cliff, Part 1

Prepare Now for the Challenging Times Ahead

By: Bryan C. Harvey, EdD

A long-term decline in birth rates raises fundamental planning questions for higher education as the pool of 18-year-olds contracts after 2025. How can planners and leaders use the time we have to prepare for some of the most wrenching changes in a generation?

From Volume 49 Number 4 | July–September 2021

Abstract: A long-term decline in birth rates raises fundamental planning questions for higher education as the pool of 18-year-olds contracts after 2025. This Planning for Higher Education series explores how planners and leaders can use the time we have to prepare for some of the most wrenching changes in a generation. This article, Part 1, surveys the planning horizon as we emerge from COVID-19 and describes the challenges ahead. Part 2 considers specific planning strategies institutions can adopt to meet the challenge. Part 3 tackles perhaps the most daunting challenge: how to mobilize institutions to actually do what needs to be done, however inconvenient (or worse) that may be.

Planning Types: Strategic Enrollment Management Planning
Tags: Cost of Higher Ed, COVID-19, Demographics, Enrollment Management, Funding, Resiliency, Shrinking Pool of Potential Students, Student Demographics, Trends External to Higher Ed, US

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Conference Recordings

Published
July 15, 2021

2021 Annual Conference | July 2021

Don’t Get Me Started

Launching Integrated Planning Through Crises and Change

By: Brian Berry, University of Arkansas at Little Rock | Erin Finzer, University of Arkansas at Little Rock

This session will address the university's setbacks, challenges, opportunities, and solutions in launching a shoestring integrated planning process amidst multiple crises.

Abstract: In the midst of post-COVID enrollment and financial troubles the University of Arkansas at Little Rock learned to leverage planning and accreditation to build community and resilience. This session will address the university's setbacks, challenges, opportunities, and solutions in launching a shoestring integrated planning process amidst multiple crises: retrenchment, restructuring, leadership changes, an accreditation visit, COVID, and new enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Find out how your institution can apply out concrete, low-cost, real-life strategies for initial integrated planning initiatives as well as respond to common setbacks and pitfalls in a VUCA context.

Institutions Mentioned: University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Planning Types: Academic Planning
Tags: Accreditation, Alignment, Change Management, COVID-19, Disruptive Change, Engaging Stakeholders, Organizational Change, Planning Processes, Planning Technology, Professional Development, Resiliency, SCUP 2021 Annual Conference, SWOT Analysis

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