November 30, 2005

 

TO:                  B. Bruce Bare, Dean

                        College of Forest Resources

 

FROM:            Ad hoc CFR Directions Steering Committee

                        Brian Boyle, Advisor to the Dean

                        Gordon Bradley, Vice-Chair and Professor

                        Robert Edmonds, Associate Dean and Professor

                        Richard Gustafson, Chair and Professor

                        John Marzluff, Professor

                        Cecilia Paul, Communications Director

                        Michelle Trudeau, Director, Student & Academic Services

                        Stephen D. West, Associate Dean and Professor (Committee Chair)

                        College of Forest Resources

 

RE:                   Final Report of the CFR Directions Steering Committee

 

 

The previous set of strategic goals and objectives for the College covering the years 2002-2005 were adopted on 27 September 2002 at the Strategic Planning Retreat at the Center for Urban Horticulture. On 14 March 2005 Dean Bruce Bare asked the above group to facilitate the College’s re-examination of its 3-year goals and objectives for the years 2005-2008. Our charge:

 

“1. Review existing performance criteria and benchmarks for continuing relevance as indicators of our overall success.

2. Perform an assessment of where the College is at this point and identify some things we might do to improve. In the process, identify activities that may contribute to a thematic-presence for the College.

3. Convene an open meeting with the College community to seek their input and feedback of these preliminary ideas. The purpose will be to seek their thoughts on future direction and how to move the College to achieve these goals. This presentation, based on a broad set of indicators, will also indicate how we intend to involve the CFR community in this comprehensive examination.

4. The output from this discussion will be presented to the College's Visiting Committee. We might devote an entire meeting to the discussion, encouraging full participation from the group. We could also invite people who participated in the Working Forest Forum or others from industry, agencies and NGOs. All of this will help convey that we take discussions about our future direction seriously and that we continue to think about the direction of the College and wish to bounce ideas off of them.

5. Refine all of this into something called "some preliminary considerations for future directions" and use it as a way to continue discussions with the broader College community (faculty, staff, and students). This could be the focus of our fall meeting, given that steps 1-4 may be scheduled over the spring and summer quarters. At this stage (or perhaps earlier) we may also want to enlist the services of the two facilitators who helped in the retreat a couple of years ago. “

 

At organizational meetings on 7, 12, 15, and 22 April 2005, the Committee consolidated information on past goals and objectives and supporting planning documents on the College’s intranet at http://www.cfr.washington.edu/internal/committees/committees/CFRDirections.htm (Committee website). Subsequent presentations and products of the Committee were placed on the website as well.

 

The Committee called a brief All-College meeting on April 26 to update the College community on the committee’s activities and tentative plans. A PowerPoint Presentation of the Committee’s approach (CFR All College Meeting April 26, 2005, Committee website) was followed by general discussion. As the first step in the planning process, the Committee sent out a brief online questionnaire that afternoon, fashioned after the similar successful effort 3 years previously. The questionnaire was in three parts:

 

•         What is currently going well at CFR? (3-5 items)

•         What is currently not going well at CFR? (3-5 items)

•         Identify 5 goals for CFR to accomplish in the next 1-3 years and how you would measure their achievement

 

The Committee collected responses to the questionnaire through May 9, collated the results, and posted them on the Committee website (Results of the 2005 CFR Survey Questionnaire, Committee website). There were 62 responses, which after collation and identification of themes yielded the information in Table 1. At the next Committee meeting on 20 May, further inspection of these data revealed clusters of associated themes (below). On May 24 the Committee identified and charged College focus groups with developing goals and objectives within their thematic areas (Goal Request to Focus Groups, Committee website):

 

Grouped Themes from Questionnaire          College Focus Groups

Undergraduate programs & core courses          Undergraduate students & TAs (Trudeau, lead)

(especially categories 1, 2)

Faculty hires & research issues              Elected Faculty Council (Johnson, Chair)

(especially categories 3, 10, 12, 16, 19, 28)

Workplace quality issues                                   Staff members (Paul, lead)

(especially categories 4, 6, 21)

Stakeholder perceptions of CFR                       Visiting Committee (Boyle, Chair)

(especially categories 4, 5, 8, 15, 17)

Recruitment and infrastructure               CFR Directions Steering Committee (West, Chair)

(especially categories 9,23)

 

On May 25 the Committee Chair met with the College’s Visiting Committee to explain the approach to planning and their charge. Focus groups reported their draft goals and objectives at the All-College meeting on June 3 (CFR All College Meeting June 3, 2005, Committee website). The CFR Directions Steering Committee collated and refined the draft goals and objectives for consideration at the fall All-College retreat (Goals, Committee website). The next meeting of the CFR Steering Committee was on September 9, when planning for the All-College retreat began in earnest. The Committee decided on a half-day format, formulated a draft agenda, and contracted with Ms. Chris Wooten to facilitate the meeting. The Committee finalized the agenda and made preparations for the retreat with assistance from Sally Morgan during the week of September 19 (Agenda, Committee website).

 

The All-College retreat was held from 8 am—1pm on September 20 at the Lake Washington Rowing Club. With facilitation from Chris Wooten the assembled discussed the draft goals and objectives at length, and produced a modified set of goals and objectives. Chris Wooten collated the material and provided the meeting record to the Committee on the afternoon of September 20.

 

The Committee Chair met with the College’s Visiting Committee to discuss the general outcome of the retreat at the Center for Urban Horticulture on October 10, 2005.

 

The last meeting of the Committee on 21 October 2005 finalized the goals and objectives which were sent that afternoon to the Dean and the Elected Faculty Council.

 

The six goals and associated objectives for 2005-2008 are presented below in no particular order of importance:

 

Goals and Objectives for the College of Forest Resources: October 2005 – September 2008

 

Goal: Recruit, mentor, and retain the highest quality students, faculty and staff

  • Design and implement a comprehensive recruitment plan for undergraduate and graduate students with metrics for success
  • Ensure that faculty hires over the next three years increase CFR faculty diversity including cultural and disciplinary backgrounds
  • Encourage collaboration and communication among students, faculty, and staff within CFR
  • Meet College staffing needs
  • Provide training opportunities for staff
  • Establish a faculty mentoring plan
  • Increase grants and endowed fellowships for graduate students
  • Seek scholarships to improve student diversity
  • Investigate use of TAs for recruitment

 

Goal: Provide highest quality educational programs

  • Assess and revise ESRM and PSE curricula including experiential learning and linkages to other UW programs
  • Develop ESRM learning outcomes and outcome assessment methods
  • Establish the Master of Forest Resources (Forest Management) and obtain accreditation (SAF)
  • Fully implement new graduate program

 

Goal: Build and upgrade facilities, incorporating innovative design, technology, and sustainability features

  • Seek upgrades for CFR-managed facilities
  • Seek funding for new facilities:
    • Learning Center in Bloedel Hall
    • Northwest Environmental Forum Building
    • Lodge and other facilities at Pack Forest
    • “Bridge” Building at main campus to enhance federal presence
    • Facilities per master plan for UWBG

 

Goal: Increase financial support for the College’s strategic transformation

  • Develop strategic funding plans for each center and research program area
  • Increase visibility of CFR’s fundraising plan with Dean’s Council and faculty review
  • Involve faculty in fundraising efforts
  • Seek endowed support for new faculty positions and existing faculty needs
  • Task a “New Money” group with finding untapped funding sources

 

Goal: Conduct internationally renowned research

  • Charge a “New Initiatives Team” to define interdisciplinary research areas of growth, foster their institutional base, and compete for a large research center at the College
  • Effectively communicate research activities and achievements to position CFR for research resources
  • Provide incentives for faculty to submit more research proposals

 

Goal: Provide an environment for collaborative problem solving, research, and intellectual debate

  • Promote high visibility outreach efforts such as the Denman and Alumni Lecture series
  • Enhance the visibility and influence of the Northwest Environmental Forum
  • Encourage active on-site participation in our research programs by local, state, and federal agencies

 

The Committee understands that these goals and objectives will be given to the CFR Planning Committee for implementation. The Planning Committee will assign responsibilities for the objectives and establish time lines for their accomplishment, and they will conduct periodic reviews of attainment progress.

 

Table 1. Thematic areas from the questionnaire and their frequency of occurrence.

 

 

Goal Thematic Areas

 

1          UG programs

2          ESRM core

3          Grad programs

4          College culture

5          Leadership

6          Communications

7          Website

8          Outreach

9          Recruitment

10        Faculty hires

11        Enrollment

12        Research

13        UW-wide linkages

14        Centers

15        Development

16        Program quality/rigor

17        Program assessment

18        $ resources

19        Student funding

20        Advising

21        Staff

22        Strategic planning

23        Infrastructure

24        College name

25        Inter-/multi disciplines

26        Diversity

27        Placement

28        Faculty support

29        International

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Goal Thematic Areas by Frequency

 

12 (Research)

24

10 (Faculty hires)

21

1 (UG programs)

15

9 (Recruitment)

15

11(Enrollment)

12

2 (ESRM core)

 10

19 (Student funding)

9

4 (College culture)

8

16 (Program quality/rigor)

7

17 (Program assessment)

7

21 (Staff)

6

23 (Infrastructure

5

3 (Grad programs)

4

6 (Communications)

4

8 (Outreach)

4

15 (Development)

4

24 (College name)

4

27 (Placement)

4

28 (Faculty support)

4

5 (Leadership)

3

13 (UW-wide linkages

3

25 (Inter-/multi disciplines)

3

7 (Website)

2

29 (International)

2

18 ($ resources)

1

26 (Diversity)

1

14 (Centers)

0

20 (Advising)

0

22 (Strategic planning)

0