Strategic Plan 2026-30 (DRAFT)
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Learn: Goal #1
Innovate academic curricula and pedagogy to ensure career relevance, instructional quality, and engaging student learning.
Design, refine and implement transdisciplinary programs that integrate emerging technologies to develop a future-ready workforce equipped to continuously drive innovation.
Establish an integrated faculty development model for high-impact teaching excellence.
Expand access to higher education opportunities for all learners — including first-generation, urban and rural, Pell-eligible, adult, online, transfer and international students — while systematically addressing barriers to improve retention, ensure timely degree completion and promote equitable outcomes.
Broaden the recruitment pathway and enhance access for diverse learner populations.
Implement data-informed student success tactics to drive equitable completion.
Learn: Goal #2
Amplify transformative learning opportunities, community and global engagement, research, scholarship and creative innovation to empower all to lead and inspire change.
Encourage an infrastructure that promotes student engagement in High Impact Practices (HIP) such as research, scholarship and creative innovation, internships, experiential learning, study abroad, community engagement and mentored student employment.
Integrate intentional curricular and co-curricular experiences to equip everyone with essential workforce and life skills, fostering adaptability and global awareness for a rapidly evolving world.
Develop and deliver dynamic curricula that align with workforce demands and equip the university community with the skills and confidence to thrive in a competitive world.
Develop and implement a standardized method for collecting and evaluating student reflections drawing attention to learning outcome and essential employability skills development.
Discover: Goal #1
Strengthen foundational research excellence and accelerate scholarly output in high-impact areas.
Invest strategically in research infrastructure, facilities and support systems.
Implement a centralized cluster hiring program to recruit and retain interdisciplinary faculty teams in identified high-impact areas.
Build a comprehensive innovation and translation platform to drive economic growth and AI adoption.
Streamline and resource the innovation-to-market translation pipeline: Redesign the technology transfer process to simplify access points, reduce bureaucratic friction and provide dedicated professional staff and internal seed funds to accelerate the conversion of faculty research and IP into market-ready assets and new startup companies.
Create diverse funding streams to support AI research infrastructure and development of interdisciplinary teams that are well positioned for external funding applications and to address humanistic and technical aspects of AI applications.
Discover: Goal #2
Drive scholarly distinction and cultural impact through targeted investments in Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS).
Establish a dedicated framework and resources to accelerate Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Scholarship.
Ensure high-quality, accessible physical and technical environments for academic programs.
Accelerate high-impact STEM and biomedical research by prioritizing interdisciplinary talent and securing large-scale, complex external funding.
Implement a centralized cluster recruitment program to hire interdisciplinary faculty and research teams in areas of recognized STEM and biomedical strength.
Provide high-level scientific editing, project management and strategic guidance for large, multi-investigator center grants (e.g., NIH P- and U-series, NSF Centers).
Discover: Goal #3
Propel health technology innovation by fostering cross-disciplinary research in the physical sciences and biomedical research.
Establish and resource dedicated cross-college innovation hubs and core facilities.
Drive transformative research focused on health span, prevention and equitable health outcomes.
Drive cutting-edge research and innovation aimed at prolonging health span and improving overall health outcomes by focusing on what promotes health in addition to what treats disease, establishing seed funding programs for clinical research tires to these areas.
Connect: Goal #1
Execute a data-driven growth model to maximize annual philanthropic revenue.
Achieve a milestone annual fundraising run rate.
Implement sustained, data-informed philanthropic model.
Develop and scale institutional capacity to achieve comprehensive campaign readiness.
Invest in, train and structure the university advancement workforce.
Establish the technical and data infrastructure for campaign operations.
Connect: Goal #2
Implement a unified, data-driven alumni engagement strategy across the institution.
Modernize alumni engagement strategies.
Formalize cross-unit collaboration and shared engagement metrics.
Connect: Goal #3
Integrate community-engaged learning and scholarship into all academic pathways.
Expand curricular and experiential community-based learning opportunities, such as paid internships and co-ops, service-learning projects and community-based research within academic programs.
Develop and implement impactful student outreach and service initiatives to maximize community impact and student learning.
Embed cohorts of students in Louisville organizations through service-learning sections linked to partnership schools.
Connect: Goal #4
Increase place-based engagement in Louisville through expanded and intensified collaborative initiatives focused on improving quality of life and addressing community-identified needs.
Host biannual community partner convenings to set shared research agenda and build teams across campus and community.
Co-create 1- to 3-year partnership compacts with cornerstone organizations outlining goals, roles and metrics.
Work: Goal #1
Establish a transparent, performance-based talent management and compensation system.
Align compensation adjustments with demonstrated contributions, leadership and training milestones through a transparent performance-based system.
Regularly benchmark and allocate budget to maintain market-competitive compensation.
Champion well-being, belonging and a flexible, adaptive work environment.
Institute a comprehensive repository for tiered training in leadership, research, teaching and staff development.
Assess university-wide wellness and well-being programming and develop a proactive employee outreach and awareness campaign to improve access to wellness, growth and recognition opportunities.
Work: Goal #2
Systematically audit, redesign and digitize all core administrative functions (HR, Finance, etc.) to eliminate redundancies, enhance efficiency and provide real-time data for decision-making.
Conduct thorough process audits and redesign workflows to eliminate redundancies and enhance efficiency.
Digitize core administrative systems (HR, finance, academic and faculty affairs) with real-time, accurate dashboards for improved transparency.
Institutionalize disciplined fiscal management and multi-year financial planning.
Strategically expand and diversify the institutional revenue portfolio.
Implement multi-year fiscal practices and workforce planning models to maximize the efficiency of existing resources, control structural costs and ensure the long-term financial stability required for strategic investment.