Pillar 1: HU Experience

Strategy Pillar 1 – Strengthening The Huntington University Experience

Today's Environment:

Huntington University (HU) currently provides a positive and distinctive student education and engagement experience resulting in high student retention, graduation, and job securement rates that exceed benchmarks. Students and stakeholders frequently cite the “HU campus community culture,” Christ centered mission, excellent faculty, caring environment and engaging culture as key attributes of the unique HU Experience. It is important for student recruitment and retention that Huntington University intentionally seek to maintain HU Experiences that are key strengths, improve in strategic opportunity areas, and adapt as the needs of current and future students change.

Preferred Future:

Huntington University sees future students desiring the strengths that have historically made HU distinctive in addition to an environment that is increasingly provides real life career experiences and pathways to great jobs. Among the many areas of excellence within an enhanced HU Experience will be:

Benchmark levels of post-undergraduate employment and advanced education in major or related field.
Benchmark levels of student engagement in co-curricular experiences.
Clear pathways to accelerated and on-time graduation, and graduate degrees.
Continuously improving student satisfaction measurements.
Support for the entrepreneurially aspirational student.
Increased alumni and student networking opportunities.
Increasing numbers of minority students, faculty, and
More applied learning experiences including active scholarship and internships.

The overall HU Experience will be further advanced by improvements in such areas as contemporary facility and campus upgrades, dining and food choices, lounge spaces, and technology as support needs and student expectations change and increase.

Objectives:

Align departments and services across disciplines and functions to provide high levels of in-major applied learning experiences, internships, and as applicable, collaborative research projects, publication and presentation of scholarship and entrepreneurial opportunities.
Provide best in class support systems for students to obtain in-major jobs or graduate school admission.
Systematically review student, faculty, and staff satisfaction data identifying and addressing the most important continuous improvement areas.
Prioritize capital investment allocations that support the highest needed HU Experience facility improvements.

Recommended Success Indicators:

Development of a benchmark student applied learning model.
Development of a benchmark student engagement model.
Campus investment prioritized to support enhanced HU Experience improvements.
Growing number of options for degree completion; i.e. dual credit, articulation agreements,degree acceleration, 3 year degrees, etc.
Increasing student satisfaction with multi-cultural campus climate and services.
Increasing percentage of minority students, faculty and staff
Increasing Student Satisfaction Indicator trends.
Top shelf dining experience.
Enhanced commuter experience and support.
Increased campus, community, alumni and partner related student engagement.
Increased internship opportunities and hiring by alumni and alumni connections.

Measurements of Success:

Retention/Graduation rates - Annually exceed benchmark performance.
Student graduation engagement – 90% Employed in major or related field by 2022.
Experiential (applied) learning in field of study – 100% by 2022.
Graduate school acceptance rate – 95%.
New or renovated student center – Fall 2018.
Multi-cultural engagement - Increase in student participation in multi-cultural experiences (academic, co-curricular). Increase in number of students, faculty and staff from diverse backgrounds.
Identified student satisfaction indicators – Trend improvement. Annual senior leader review.
Student learning outcomes – Trend improvement in graduate exams, senior assessments, etc.