A Strategic Plan translates the Mission and Vision of the College into a Plan for the foreseeable future that includes concrete action steps for realizing our collective goals. The Plan also prioritizes, among a universe of things that we could or would like to do, into a disciplined set of projects and initiatives that are most significant, achievable, and critical to our success as a College and a community. MICA’s 2021-2026 Strategic Plan will be informed by our Mission/Vision/Tenets and Core Values, and will serve as our road map for MICA’s development over the next five years.

There are several reasons for the development of MICA’s 2021-2026 Strategic Plan at this point in our history:

• In Fall 2017, MICA announced its new Mission and Vision. The new Strategic Plan is the next step in translating the new Mission and Vision into action.

• There are important changes in the world and at MICA that require the MICA community to think and work toward bold development and smart change in order advance the MICA educational experience and position our students to thrive with these new realities.

• MICA’s last strategic plan will sunset in 2020. For accreditation and other reviewers, it is important for MICA to demonstrate our thoughtful planning.

At MICA, we envision an integrated education in art and design to be:

A proudly art + design centered education that intersects with multiple fields and spheres, in order to empower MICA graduates to succeed and contribute in a diverse and changing world.

An integrated approach to art and design education is:

• Student-centered and connected to students’ lives and development

• Inter-/multi-/trans-disciplinary

• Multi-sited, involving both on- and off-campus experiences that are part of the curriculum

• Practice and career-focused

• Project- and problem–based with a range of opportunities for experiential learning

• Holistically supported

Below is a succinct planning timeline, with accomplished (✓) and planned activities:

✓ Developed a Draft Strategic Plan Framework with Goals & Themes via wide-net collection of strategic ideas with Senior Team Retreat (8/18), Leadership Team Retreat (9/18), Board of Trustees meeting (10/18)

✓ Formed a Strategic Plan Steering Committee (HUB for 2018-2019) launched with broad college constituency representation including alumni, faculty, parents, staff, students, and trustees. (12/18)

✓ Engaged Campus & Community to finalize Plan Framework and generate plan content. (2/19)

✓ Multiple campus presentations to all constituencies (2/19-4/19), Pan-College Convening (4/19), online collection of feedback and ideas. (4/19-6/19)

✓ Hosted MSCHE and NASAD Accreditation Team Visits. (3/19–4/19)

✓ Planned Expansion of Strategic Planning Website to engage campus constituencies and external stakeholders.

✓ Considered MSCHE and NASAD Accreditation Team Visit Reports’ Recommendations for Strategic Plan content development.

• Further Engage Campus Community and Engage External Constituents in Planning. (10/19-11/19)

• Develop a Draft Strategic Plan. (11/19-12/19)

• Conduct Initial Community Review of Draft Plan. (12/19)

• Develop Final Draft of Strategic Plan. (12/19-1/20)

• Conduct Final Vetting of Strategic Plan. (1/20)

• Finalize Strategic Plan and Submit to Board of Trustees for Review and Approval. (2/20)

The inclusive planning process is designed to solicit many voices to shape one coherent plan. To ensure the success of the planning process, there are defined duties for the following groups and individuals:

• Strategic Planning Steering Committee = The 2018-2020 HUB

• Primary Input & Feedback Providers = Campus Community (faculty, staff, students, trustees)

• Additional Input & Feedback Providers = Extended family (e.g., alumni, donors, parents) and key external stakeholders (e.g., institutional partners, neighbors)

• Plan Drafting Team = President’s Council

• Chief Editors = President and Provost

• Final Approval Authority = Board of Trustees

As with the successful articulation process of the MICA Mission and Vision in 2017, the strategic planning process will again be guided by the principles of transparency, inclusive engagement, internal and external resonance, and balance between expediency and process.

The resultant 2021-2026 Strategic Plan will be S.M.A.R.T.:

• Specific

• Measurable

• Achievable (+ Audacious + Assignable)

• Results-focused (+ Relevant + Resourced)

• Time-Bound (+ Team-based + Transparent)

In addition, the Plan will a living plan that adjusts and evolves during its implementation period.

Many Voices, One Plan: Any interested party has a role to play and ideas to offer in the inclusive planning process.

At the January 9, 2019 Leadership Team Retreat, a group of close to 100 administrative, faculty and student leaders identified the following internal and external constituency groups for planning engagement:

Campus community: Faculty, staff (MICA, non-MICA, volunteers), students, and trustees

Off-campus community: Extended family (alumni, donors, parents) and special friends and partners (employers, institutional partners, neighbors, public/community leaders, vendors, visitors)

These constituency groups will be engaged for three phases of planning work: 1) wide-net input of plan ideas; 2) critical response to shaping of key plan ideas; and 3) review of draft plans.

In addition, the planning input process will be open-ended and encouraging for the above constituents to broaden the engagement with others.

Engagement methods will be varied for optimal effectiveness, including the use of existing meetings, special forums, one-on-one interviews, and web-based input.

If you are a MICA campus member, please feel free to contact any of the 2019-2020 HUB members. If you are an external community member, please feel free to send your inquiry to planning@mica.edu.