Posted on April 8: Town hall meetings to provide overview of Refining Directions
Over the next two weeks there will be several opportunities to learn about the work underway on the implementation of Refining Directions, McMaster's strategic plan, and to ask questions and provide your input. Members of the McMaster and Hamilton communities are invited to attend one of the following town hall meetings:
- Tuesday, April 13 3 p.m. MUSC-314/315
- Thursday, April 15 2 p.m. HSC-1A5
- Friday, April 16 10 a.m. Council Room, Gilmour Hall-111
- Monday, April 19 3 p.m. DTC-216
Refining Directions was approved by the University's Senate and Board of Governors in June 2003. Since that time a process has been developed for the implementation of the strategic plan goals and critical success factors through the leadership of Ken Norrie, provost and vice-president academic. To help implement the process, Norrie recruited Andy Hrymak, chair of chemical engineering, as project manager for the first phase of implementation planning.
The first stage of the implementation plan involved the establishment of 12 working groups comprised of McMaster staff, faculty, and student representatives to focus on different areas of priority to achieve the organizational goals. They include: undergraduate education, graduate education, research, student recruiting, life-long learning, inclusive community, library, information technology, planning and managing, relationship and reputation building, and internationalization. In concert with this stage of the implementation was the creation of a working group to recommend long-term enrolment targets to support the achievement of the strategic goals. What is the optimal size for McMaster? Three scenarios for different long term target enrollment options were developed for discussion and to provide an opportunity to consider the respective pros and cons of reducing the size of the University, remaining at approximately the same overall size with some differential changes between programs, and growing substantially larger in the years ahead.
The town hall meetings, hosted by Norrie and Hrymak, will provide an overview of the strategic plan implementation process and progress to date. Norrie will present the three scenarios of enrolment targets for discussion and feedback. Hrymak will provide an overview of the implementation planning process and the schedule for the balance of work to be completed. McMaster President, Peter George will also share in the presentation on April 13. Each session will provide time for questions and discussion on all areas of the process.
The input received through the town hall meetings will contribute to a draft implementation plan that will be presented to the University Planning Committee in June.
The original Directions document was written in 1995. Its continued commitment to a planning culture has helped McMaster advance its stature as one of Canada's premier universities. Refining Directions was successfully developed through the dedicated efforts of numerous individuals and work groups throughout an extensive consultation process. To ensure that the implementation plan is equally effective, the participation of the McMaster and local communities in this process is essential to help ensure that the University achieves its goals, targets and continued success.
Further inquiries about the Refining Directions implementation process may be directed to Andy Hrymak, ext. 23136 or refining@mcmaster.ca.
