愿景在行动: 领导

Planning in this century has built on the foundations of yesteryear. TCU校园 has grown in both size and splendor. New buildings sprout from the campus with such speed that older alumni may get lost on campus. Academic and athletic successes mount and we have achieved prime destination status for an increasing number of both students 和老师.

However, increasing in size and complexity creates risks of which we must be aware. Two themes will assume great importance in the coming years. 首先，我们如何应对 to the changing, increasingly diverse, demographics of the nation and in particular Texas, will require sustained strategic thought and action. 其次，我们必须反制 changing public and political perceptions of higher education. 很多，各种各样的政治 persuasions, question the relevance, cost and, especially recently, basic fairness 接受过大学教育. Regulations may be looming in the mist!

The great driving force of TCU has been the morale of those who work and study here. TCU has always been a place where decency has been a paramount value. 正派, high morale thrive best when camaraderie and good humor are constant companions. 维护 a warm sense of community requires shared aspirational thought and action in which 所有人都能找到共同的原因. TCU should avoid the descent into bureaucracy.

There is no cause to extract gloom from the preceding observations – but there is a need for sustained commitment to exciting ideas and bright unifying actions.

This report presents some of those ideas and suggests pertinent actions. 有, 当然，还有价签. Budget sagacity has always been a feature of planning at TCU. Put simply, we have always “cut our coat according to our cloth.“我们的保守派 (small “c”) stewardship has permitted us to expand our operations in a consistent and integrated way, avoiding dyspeptic moments of budget frenzy.

This strategic approach has revolved around the simple idea that on a rising tide 所有的船都是向上漂浮的. Thus, we can mark academic and athletic successes, an extraordinary improvement in facilities, a remarkable emphasis on the quality of the experiences that we offer to our students and, for our workforce, a commitment to enhancement of reward that has not faltered even during a climate of dismal national finances. At the same time, we have been cognizant of the challenges afforded to us by the dramatic and diverse demographic changes that are taking place in the nation and world. We are and will continue to respond to these changes with vigor.

Against this background we offer many recommendations. They come with a variety of price tags and timelines for implementation. Some have a greater priority, or perhaps a greater sense of urgency than others. None of the recommendations is revolutionary, but many are exciting and all, we believe, will improve the essence of this great 大学. It is a time for this 大学 to be both brave and wise.

Dr. R. 诺维尔多诺万 &
Dr. 特蕾莎·阿比-纳德·达尔伯格
教务长 & Vice Chancellors for Academic Affairs