UH will celebrate its 100-year anniversary in 2027, and the University is planning on making the anniversary year one to remember.
The university-wide strategic plan UH100: Dare to Dream will talk to faculty, staff and students to gather ideas and input about big things UH can do over the next five to 10 years. The initiative aims to define the priorities of UH as it reaches its 100-year anniversary.
“The goals and objectives we set for ourselves will define our path forward, building on the unprecedented accomplishments of the past ten years,” said Provost Paula Myrick Short.
Past strategic plans have resulted in exponential growth for the University in the last decade, according to the UH100: Dare to Dream website. This includes achieving Tier One status, the founding of a Phi Beta Kappa chapter for UH, increasing the share of research funding and establishing the College of Medicine.
“Our University is too important on so many levels to be left without a strong vision for the next eight years,” Short said. “We are light years ahead of where we were eight years ago, and in another eight years, we will be equally advanced from where we are today.”
The process to create the strategic plan begins at the grassroots level. Short said participation from students, staff and faculty are critical to developing a successful future for the University.
“This is our opportunity to shape the potential of our great institution,” said Short.
The Strategic Planning Management Committee will do further research and development of ideas with “flash groups” of faculty and staff subject matter experts. The committee is comprised of a diverse number of faculty, staff and students, including Student Government Association President Allison Lawrence.
“A student, faculty or staff member in the future can look back at all the progress we made, and say, ‘I was a part of that,'” Short said. “That is a great opportunity for each of us.”
SGA and the Graduate and Professional Student Association will host listening sessions where the UH community can suggest goals and strategies for the University.
Students can also provide feedback through an online survey on UH100: Dare to Dream’s strategic plan website.
“We are, right now, an extraordinary university,” Short said. “UH100: Dare to Dream will help us dream big for our future as the University of Houston.”