Strategic Planning

In this meeting, the working group discussed feedback and insights from Art & Science Group’s campus visit and the lessons learned toward continual improvement. To this end, the group also discussed how they want to intake feedback on the process and communicate out to the steering committee and college as a whole about progress and improvements.

Meeting attendees:

• Shauna Morimoto (co-chair)
• Trish Starks (co-chair)
• Erika Almenara
• John Blakinger
• Autumn Spicher
• Ted Holland
• Kaleb Turner
• Romona West

In this meeting, Drs. Shauna Morimoto and Trish Starks, co-chairs, led a welcome and introduction for the working group. Specifically, they spoke with the group about the charge of the working group, which is to help carry out the logistical processes of the planning processes and serve as a liaison between the steering committee and Art & Science Group.

Kaleb Turner, chief of staff, also provided an update about the recruitment process for participants in the Discovery Phase, which included a campus visit by Art & Science Group, to conduct interviews and focus groups with more than 250 members of Fulbright College, visit college facilities, and learn more generally about Fulbright College.

Meeting attendees:

• Shauna Morimoto (co-chair)
• Trish Starks (co-chair)
• Erika Almenara
• John Blakinger
• Ana Bridges
• Ted Holland
• Autumn Spicher
• Shelby Stone
• Kaleb Turner
• Romona West

In this meeting, Dean Brian Raines spoke about the upcoming process, provided the committee’s charge, outlined expectations, and handed off the process to the co-chairs: Dr. Shauna Morimoto, associate dean for natural sciences and professor of sociology, and Dr. Trish Starks, director of the University of Arkansas Humanities Center and distinguished professor of history.

Drs. Morimoto and Starks provided more detail about the project timeline and the role the steering committee will play as an advisory group. They also tasked the steering committee with making faculty selections for the working group, which included Dr. Ana Bridges (PYSC), Dr. Ted Holland (GEOS), Dr. John Blakinger (ART), and Dr. Erika Almenara (WLLC).

Meeting attendees:

In this meeting, co-chairs Drs. Shauna Morimoto and Trish Starks opened the meeting with a discussion about the role of the Working Group and Steering Committee in representing, communicating with, and gathering feedback from college constituents. Kaleb Turner, chief of staff, provided an update on the success in-person focus groups, interviews, and facility tours; he also outlined next steps for virtual focus groups and interviews for those unable to participate in-person. Drs. Morimoto and Starks facilitated discussion about peer and aspirant institutions, thought leaders in academia and industry, and criteria for research excellence in the Steering Committee members’ respective fields and lines of work.

Meeting attendees: