The following initiatives were established during the summer and fall of 2011 and are well underway. They are broadly-focused projects that support the mission, vision, and strategic directions of the university.
- Redesign the Core Curriculum
Design a core curriculum that promotes student engagement and retention though integrated learning grounded in the liberal arts. - Strengthen Undergraduate Research and Scholarship
Establish faculty/student research and creative inquiry as a distinguishing feature of an undergraduate education at USD. - Engage Students in Themed Living-Learning Communities
Promote academic engagement through themed living-learning communities that combine shared courses with shared living. - Renovate General Use Classrooms
Strategically renovate classrooms through coordinated long-term planning that uses pedagogy-driven design standards focused on teaching and learning.
Based on input collected from the campus community in workshops held during Fall 2011, the Executive Council formulated five new initiatives. Task forces with chairs will be appointed during Spring 2012, and work on these initiatives will be underway by Fall 2012.
- Leverage the Ashoka Partnership
Propel involvement of students, faculty, staff, and alumni in social change activities that showcase USD’s designation as a “Changemaker Campus.” - Engage Alumni and Build Relationships
Involve alumni with USD programs and offices to implement portions of the Alumni Association’s strategic plan. - Expand USD’s Global Presence
Develop a “USD footprint” in major cities abroad to promote international partnerships, exchanges, and collaborations. - Assess Programs Expressing Our Catholic Character
Examine the programs that express and develop USD’s Catholic character, identifying interrelationships as well as gaps in services provided. - Imagine Alcalá Park West
Consider ways “the bottom of the hill” could be developed as a mixed-use “college town” to serve the campus community and the adjacent neighborhoods.
