Bozeman News

MSU opens expansion plan to public input

Posted: Jan 17, 2013 7:18 PM by MTN News
Updated: Jan 17, 2013 7:26 PM

Thursday night, dozens of people showed up to the Strand Union ball room to discuss MSU's Academic Strategic Draft Plan.

The plan focuses on 6 goals and specific ways the university can meet those goals over the next 7 years.

Those goals include; Learning, Discovery, Engagement, Integration, Access & Stewardship. The goals center around, raising the graduation rate, increasing the retention rate, increasing MSU's research prominence, diversifying the student body, stronger faculty salaries... The list goes on.

"I would like to see us increase in strength in terms of our national and international reputation as a university that does a good job in training students for the jobs of both today and tomorrow," Said Provost Dr. Martha Potvin.

During Thursdays open meeting, each page of the 14 page draft plan was pasted to the wall of the Strand Union Ballroom. People left comments via post-it notes. Some opposed to the portions of the plan had suggested that MSU should increase infrastructure before recruiting more students. Others were anxious to see how MSU officials would fund the plans once they became concrete.

Potvin said they will take the feedback received from Thursday's public meeting and refine the strategy. Potvin hopes to have the plans finalized in the spring so officials can begin discussions about funding.