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Strategic Plan

What is ASPIRE 2025?

Our five-year strategic plan is intentional and provides a road map to expand upon our successes in preparing students for a global society, solving emerging challenges through data-informed approaches, continuing our academic excellence, and ensuring high-quality learning experiences for our students.

The challenges we face as a College come at a defining time that demands an urgent and comprehensive response. Through our steadfast focus on ASPIRE 2025, we will turn these challenges into opportunities and continue to provide our students a high-quality education and transformative learning experience that is the heart of the Three Rivers College mission.

ASPIRE 2025 is a bold and forward-thinking strategic plan developed through shared governance. The work of the fifty-member Strategic Planning Steering Committee is the culmination of over six months of collaboration and analysis that considered the voices of our students, alumni, faculty, local community, staff, as well as numerous internal and external stakeholders. Active participation and transparency were ensured through forums, presentations, campus meetings, community town halls, and surveys. This exchange of ideas led our Strategic Planning Steering Committee to build this ambitious, forward-thinking, and attainable plan.

While ASPIRE 2025 guides our planning efforts, our continuous assessment data and annual planning priorities inform our operational planning. We are prepared to adjust to changing conditions and shall continue an open dialogue with our stakeholders on our progress in implementing and/or revising our plans, based on what we learn.

The ASPIRE 2025 five-year plan is effective July 1, 2020.In closing, we wish to thank the members of the Strategic Planning Steering Committee for their commitment and dedication to this process. Our successes over the past 50-plus years would not have been possible without the confidence and support of our dedicated alumni and College community. Thank you to each of you for your continued dedication and support of Three Rivers College!

ASPIRE 2025 Strategic Themes

The ASPIRE 2025 Strategic Plan outlines the next five-year chapter in our continued growth and is focused on innovation and sustained excellence. The Plan centers on four strategic themes, which emerged from an extensive data collection and analysis process that included several years of trend data, benchmarking, and input from many constituents.

The Strategic Planning Steering Committee identified specific initiatives under the umbrella of each strategic theme. These initiatives are defined areas of focused effort and resource allocation by academic and administrative units. Through our annual strategic planning processes, these initiatives are developed into operational plans that align with unit-level planning efforts and with appropriate resource allocations. Through this process, the entire College community works together to ensure TRC builds on its successes and continues to move toward excellence for our students.

1. Innovation

Initiative

Expand operational innovation through newly developed products, tools, and processes designed to enhance performance.

Strategies

  • Adopt the usage of the Strategic Planning Online (SPOL) Assessment Module in support of institutional planning and improvement.
  • Develop the appropriate infrastructure in support of fully online degree programs.
  • Enhance cybersecurity and data security.
  • Ensure appropriate oversight of fully online programming.
  • Fully utilize Office365 to improve operations.
  • Improve student retention processes.
  • Improve student support for online learning.
  • Maintain institutional support for Quality Matters.
  • Provide additional avenues for learning and communication through technology.
  • Upgrade outdated systems.

2. Institutional Sustainability

Initiative

Improve the operational performance of all processes, systems, resource management, and facilities in order to provide the necessary support for students and employees to thrive.

Strategies

  • Actualize data-informed decision-making within all planning and budgeting practices.
  • Continue to improve community image and relationships.
  • Coordinate student recruitment efforts that shall include employees across the College.
  • Develop a plan to address future personnel needs.
  • Ensure appropriate employee staffing.
  • Expand the capacity to seek and manage relevant external funding sources and grant projects.
  • Increase employee knowledge and skills.
  • Institutionalize a positive student-focused culture.
  • Maintain compliance with all local, state, federal, and accreditation agencies while remaining transparent to all stakeholders.
  • Respond to change in anticipation of the developing needs of our community.
  • Systematically work to ensure an online presence that is consistent, accurate, current and student focused.
  • Upgrade outdated facilities.

3. Instructional Excellence and Relevance

Initiative

Deliver instructional excellence throughout the curriculum with timely and relevant content for improved student learning and success.

Strategies

  • Build an inclusive environment in support of all adjunct instructors.
  • Design initiatives to ensure that students are competent in the technology needed to succeed in the curriculum.
  • Develop a student-focused culture to celebrate students’ academic goals and achievements.
  • Enhance the academic assessment process through technology tools and innovation.
  • Ensure career programming that is relevant, viable and provides skills for meaningful employment.
  • Ensure relevant academic programming that aligns with the needs and desires of our community.
  • Improve student learning through maturing the use of student outcomes data.
  • Maintain a high-quality online learning environment.
  • Promote quality instruction in all learning modalities.
  • Provide timely feedback to students.

4. Student Success

Initiative

Enhance the experience of every TRC student by reducing barriers and creating an individual path to personal and academic success.

Strategies

  • Align academic advising with university transfer programs for improved transfer rates.
  • Champion a student-focused culture based on the educational goals of each student.
  • Design a course scheduling process that ensures classes are available when students need them for on-time completion.
  • Ensure technological and computing literacy skills for all students.
  • Improve the individualized student experience for every student.
  • Mature the comprehensive advising process.
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Strategic Planning Resources

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Mission, Vision & Values

Explore what drives the College to inspire, prepare and empower students through high-quality, open-access education.

Read Mission, Vision and Values
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