Archives for October 2015

Responses to Feedback

When feasible, the Strategic Planning Committee will respond to feedback received through the Strategic Planning website.  Many of the comments received will require further discussion or investigation within the committees as part of the strategic planning process.  As such, not every comment received will be posted and responded to, but we will try to respond to those comments and concerns that can be easily addressed.  Please also read the minutes of each SPC meeting (found at: http://www.atu.edu/strategicplanning/minutes.php) for the weekly “Stakeholders Report” addressing feedback.

Feedback Received:

“The ‘Open Checkbook’ portion of the ATU website is no longer being ‘updated’ for the budget year ending 2016. This goes against ATU’s claims of ‘openness’ in its processes.”

Response from the SPC Chair:

On the Open Checkbook website (http://www.atu.edu/opencheckbook/), it states “Data updated quarterly within 10 days after the end of the quarter.”  The first quarter of fiscal year 2015-16 concluded on September 30, 2015.  The data should be updated by October 14, 2015.


Feedback Received:

“The HLC peer institution list is no longer posted on the web. Is this a broken link?”

Response from the SPC Chair:

The ATU Peer Institutions list is available on the research website under Miscellaneous Information: http://www.atu.edu/research/miscinfo.php

You can also view the list at http://www.atu.edu/overview.php or http://www.atu.edu/research/peers.php


Feedback Received:

“Students are complaining that Java and PDF files have been disabled on ‘lab’ and library computers even though faculty routinely assign ‘online’ work that requires one or both of these. This is creating a untenable learning environment for the students.”

Response from the SPC Chair:

The Office of Information Systems identified one computer lab which, due to a Java update, required an “exception” for Java to operate correctly.  This has been corrected and no other instances of issues with Java or PDF files have been found or reported.


Feedback Received (three comments):

“How can faculty who have not been appointed to a work group get more involved in this process? Also, how can older established faculty members participate? It seems that many faculty who have an active part in all of this are younger and/or newer. The older faculty have some institutional memory which might be helpful. Would you address this in minutes or on the web site? Many faculty I talk to are feeling disenfranchised and not involved. I know that open forums will be held, but folks need encouragement to come and need to feel like their voices are heard. The last time we went through this feedback was sought and mostly ignored. I love ATU and want to see this succeed.”

“I tried to go to one of the meetings (Finance). I stood around for 30 minutes and no one showed up. When do they really meet?”

“Faculty are attempting to attend meetings of the various working groups only to find that the groups are either not meeting or not meeting when/where they are scheduled to meet.”

Response from the SPC Chair:

Each week, the Strategic Planning Committee and each of the five Working Groups hold an open meeting and welcome any and all visitors to not only attend, but participate and have a voice.  The weekly  meetings are scheduled as follows:

  • Strategic Planning Committee:  Every Wednesday at 3:00pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 325
  • University as a Public Institution Working Group:  Every Monday at 3:00pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 325
  • Financial Structure and Operations Working Group:  Every Tuesday at 3:00pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 325
  • Academic Structure and Faculty Working Group:  Every Tuesday at 3:30pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 326
  • Enrollment and Marketing Working Group:  Every Wednesday at 1:00pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 325
  • Student Support Working Group:  Every Thursday at 2:00pm in Ross Pendergraft Library, Room 325

Any changes to these meeting times or locations will be posted on this blog and an email will be sent to subscribers.  We highly encourage you to subscribe to this blog for the most up-to-date information.

Please check the Strategic Planning website regularly to view meeting minutes, Working Group presentations, and updates on the white papers.  This is a campus wide effort and all voices are welcomed and needed to have a successful strategic outcome.

All Invited to Strategic Planning Open Forums

Arkansas Tech University will host a series of open forums to provide faculty, staff, students and community members with an opportunity to share ideas, information and suggestions related to the institution’s ongoing strategic planning process.

“These are the first in a series of forums,” said Dr. Jason Warnick, chair of the strategic planning committee at Arkansas Tech. “Additional forums will be announced as the process continues.”

Below are the themes, dates, locations and times for the forums on the Russellville campus. All forums are open to all interested individuals.

What Are Your Top Three Priorities for Tech’s Future?
Wednesday, Oct. 7, Doc Bryan Lecture Hall, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Hosted by the Strategic Planning Committee

Budgeting and Planning Priorities
Thursday, Oct. 8, Witherspoon Auditorium, 6-8 p.m.
Hosted by the Financial Structure and Operations Working Group

Improving Student Success
Monday, Oct. 12, Doc Bryan Lecture Hall, 1-3 p.m.
Hosted by the Student Support Working Group and the Marketing and Enrollment Working Group

One University: The Tech Brand and Identity
Monday, Oct. 19, Doc Bryan Lecture Hall, 4-6 p.m.
Hosted by the Institution as a Public University Working Group, the Student Support Working Group, the Academic Structure and Faculty Working Group and the Marketing and Enrollment Working Group

The Office of the President has announced that for the initial forum from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 7, offices that need to close during the lunch hour in order to allow all interested employees to attend the forum may do so. Offices that close during that time should post a note on their door indicating the reason for the closure.

Students, faculty and staff at Arkansas Tech-Ozark Campus will have an opportunity to participate in strategic planning open forums on Wednesday, Oct. 21, in Student Services and Conference Center room 117 A and B.

The student forum at Ozark will last from 1-2 p.m., while the faculty and staff forum will take place from 2-4 p.m.

The strategic planning working groups, which consist of faculty, staff, students and members of the community, are each developing 5-to-7 strategic initiatives during the fall 2015 semester.

The ideas formulated by the working groups will be forwarded to the strategic planning committee, which will consolidate them into a cohesive strategic plan proposal.

At that point, the executive planning committee will determine how the plan could be implemented, including the estimated cost of each initiative.

Dr. AJ Anglin, interim vice president for academic affairs, is chair of the executive planning committee.

After review by Arkansas Tech President Dr. Robin E. Bowen and public forums to allow for further input from faculty, staff, students and the community, the plan will ultimately go before the Arkansas Tech Board of Trustees for its review and consideration.

The process is expected to be complete by early summer 2016.

For more information, visit www.atu.edu/strategicplanning.