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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Regionalism, Ecology, and Field-Based Learning

Partnerships Broaden Study Opportunities

By: Josh Harrold, BArch, BFA, AIA

In the rural and remote heart of the Ozark Mountains, Missouri State University and its Ozarks Education Center leverage the unique characteristics of the region to create a setting that supports hands-on active learning.

From Volume 51 Number 4 | July–September 2023

Abstract: Missouri State University’s Ozarks Education Center, in the heart of the Ozark Mountains, provides a case study for outdoor, field-based, and architectural regionalism education. It offers unparalleled student opportunities for tailored regional learning experiences and research options, while fostering partnerships with external organizations outside of the main campus environment. In this article, we share how being true to the region’s historical architecture and ecology, especially in undervalued and isolated locations, and incorporating site-specific approaches in a remote setting support off-the-grid learning in the post-COVID academic landscape.

Institutions Mentioned: Missouri State University
Planning Types: Campus Planning
Tags: Active Learning Environments, External Collaboration / Partnerships, Facilities Design, Facilities Planning, Landscape / Open Space, Learning Environments, Placemaking, Rural Campus, Science / Engineering Facility

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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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Destination 2030

The Need for Transformation Architects

By: Edward Inch, PhD, Minnesota State University – Mankato | Lynn Akey, PhD, Minnesota State University – Mankato | Linda Baer, PhD, Strategic Initiatives and Minnesota State University – Mankato

Institutions Mentioned: Minnesota State University-Mankato
Planning Types: Academic Planning, Strategic Planning, Resource Planning
Tags: Adaptable Plans, Alignment, Assessment / Analytics, Data, Disruptive Change, Enrollment Management, Environmental Scanning, Higher Ed Trends, Organizational Change, Planning Processes, Presidential Leadership, Student Demographics, Student Success

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Example Plans

Published
May 17, 2023

Strategic Plan

Public Master’s College or University (Colorado, United States)

The institution’s 2020–2030 strategic plan.

Planning Types: Strategic Planning
Resource Types: Strategic Plan
Tags: Budget Planning, Enrollment Management, Goals, Metrics, Strategies and Tactics, System of Colleges or Universities

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Book Review: The Agile College

How Institutions Successfully Navigate Demographic Changes

By: Bryan C. Harvey, EdD

From Volume 51 Number 2 | January–March 2023

Abstract: The Agile College: How Institutions Successfully Navigate Demographic Changes
by Nathan D. Grawe
Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore: 2021
298 pages
ISBN: 978-1421440231

Does hope motivate action or complacency? Does crisis induce change or despair? Nathan D. Grawe readily acknowledges this tension in The Agile College, his follow-up book to his 2018 Demographics and the Demand for Higher Education. The latter propelled the inescapable discussion throughout higher education of the looming “demographic cliff.” The Agile College suggests how agile institutions might prevent demography from becoming destiny.

Planning Types: Strategic Enrollment Management Planning
Tags: Change Management, COVID-19, Demographics, Disruptive Change, Recovery Planning, Resiliency, Shrinking Pool of Potential Students, Student Demographics, Student Recruitment, Student Retention, Trends External to Higher Ed

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Example Plans

Published
January 24, 2023

Strategic Plan

Private Master’s College or University (Wisconsin, United States)

This overview describes the strategic plan’s five high-level strategies and a few tactics for each.

Planning Types: Strategic Planning
Resource Types: Strategic Plan
Tags: External Collaboration / Partnerships, Goals, Medical / Allied Health Education, New Program or Department, Workforce Development

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Social Mobility and the Graduation Rate Paradox

Can You Advance One and Avoid the Other?

By: Roy Mathew, PhD, Elsa Bonilla-Martin, PhD, Luis A Aguirre, MS, and Naoko Tsuboi, MA

By using a metric-based planning framework, researchers at the University of Texas at El Paso identified areas for institutional intervention to enhance social mobility outcomes.

From Volume 51 Number 1 | October–December 2022

Abstract: Social mobility is an emerging area of focus for higher education institutions. In recent years, we have seen a proliferation of measures related to social mobility produced by publishers, scholars, think tanks, and foundations. However, it is still unclear which social mobility measures to advance, or when to intervene to improve social mobility outcomes. We rely on a century of literature from economics, sociology, and policy analysis to identify an appropriate framework to understand higher education’s contribution to social mobility. Using the metric-based planning framework, we identify areas for institutional intervention to enhance social mobility outcomes.

Institutions Mentioned: The University of Texas at El Paso
Planning Types: Institutional Effectiveness Planning, Strategic Enrollment Management Planning, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Planning
Tags: Attracting and Retaining Underrepresented Students, Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Enrollment Management, Student Demographics, Student Success, Underserved Students

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Book Review: Higher Education Systems Redesigned

From Perpetuation to Innovation to Student Success

By: Terry Brown, PhD

From Volume 51 Number 1 | October–December 2022

Abstract: Higher Education Systems Redesigned: From Perpetuation to Innovation to Student Success
Edited by Jonathan S. Gagliardi and Jason E. Lane
SUNY Press: Albany, New York: 2022
ISBN: 9781438487670
252 Pages

Institutions Mentioned: California State University-Chancellors Office, University System of Georgia, Tennessee Board of Regents, The University of Texas System Office, University System of Maryland, Austin Peay State University
Planning Types: Academic Planning
Tags: Assessment / Analytics, Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Innovation, Student Success, Student Support Services, System of Colleges or Universities, Teaching and Learning

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Webinar Recordings

Published
October 12, 2022

Campus Sustainability

The Role of Integrated Planning

By: Mike Moss, Society for College and University Planning | Megan Fay Zahniser, Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE)

At SCUP, we recognize that climate crisis, social justice, and sustainability are some of the biggest challenges facing higher education. And we believe that the practice of integrated planning will assist campuses develop the strong partnerships required to create durable solutions. Join us for a discussion that includes how you can start today.

Abstract: October is Campus Sustainability month! At SCUP, we recognize that climate crisis, social justice, and sustainability are some of the biggest challenges facing higher education. And we believe that the practice of integrated planning will assist campuses develop the strong partnerships required to create durable solutions. A few key questions to consider:

What are the top sustainability trends that my campus and higher education should be addressing?
What is the role of integrated planning in developing innovative solutions to critical sustainability issues?
In considering sustainability focused partnerships, where is the best place to start? Is it within the campus, or with outside partners?
What are ideas that attendees can move forward on their campus starting today?

Join us as we dive into these topics during an engaging conversation with Meghan Fay Zahniser, executive director of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. Hosted by Mike Moss, president of SCUP, we will spend time discussing sustainability trends across higher education as well addressing questions from attendees.

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Planning Types

Challenges