Campuses:
CFANS supports an ‘ecology of education’ where students learn through an integrated web of experiences inside and outside the classroom. As members of the University community students should understand and play an active, participatory role in meeting all three areas of the University’s land grant mission: education, research, and outreach. As a result, we have identified a series of objectives that will provide students with transformative, interdisciplinary learning opportunities through coursework, student research and employment, relationships with faculty, student organizations and campus life, internships, mentoring relationships, and off-campus opportunities. Implementation of these efforts will be documented and disseminated via peer-review and professional publications. This priority will require a significant partnership among faculty, students, alumni, and stakeholders and will be faculty-led.
This constellation of learning opportunities will be informed by an overarching commitment to sustainable food systems and environmental health, which will also increase the accessibility of CFANS disciplines for students within the broader University community.
The “millennial” generation will have to contend with massive social, economic, agricultural and environmental changes and will require the skills, ethics, and leadership to successfully address them. CFANS will develop a comprehensive strategy to cultivate a deep commitment and passionate concern for global well-being of ecosystems and human communities by its students. We will seek to provide students with the entrepreneurial ethical, intellectual, and social skills they need while serving as an institution-wide leader in this capacity. Developing entrepreneurial skills will enable our students to be both successful and effective in the workplace. This priority will be a joint effort between faculty and Student Services, with a strong emphasis on student, alumni, other stakeholders, and community partnerships.
Sustaining ecological health and the well-being of communities will require skillful cross-cultural competency as we face these large issues in a global, culturally diverse context. We also recognize that we are responsible to meaningfully engage long-standing issues of social justice. As CFANS graduates, students will have acquired significant intercultural skills in a collegiate environment offering engaged learning in diverse community contexts and encouraging overseas study/travel. These and other learning opportunities must reflect the broad and increasing diversity of our society and the impact of participating on a global stage. While similar, interrelated and mutually informing, the skills required to effectively engage the challenges of international and domestic intercultural concerns necessitate differentiated approaches. Acknowledging this, we must develop capacity and programming around the following areas: the concerns of historically underserved communities, recent immigrant issues and international/global challenges. This priority will be led by key Student Services staff in close partnership with faculty, staff, students, alumni and community stakeholders.
Students will feel a lifelong commitment to CFANS and what it stands for as long as an inclusive, memorable collegiate culture and rich campus life exists. As the land grant university changes, the college and campus must expand to include a more diverse array of students and new priorities that resonate with contemporary concerns, including a series of meaningful, inclusive college events and a welcoming college culture. CFANS will work to deepen the collegiate experience of its students through an initiative to enhance collegiate identity and culture. This priority will require the collective effort of all CFANS community members, with Student Services in a unique position to help facilitate and organize work in this area.
Whether enhancing campus and collegiate culture; improving multicultural competency; deepening commitment to ecological and social well-being; or creating extraordinary education, intentional and well-designed communications will play a critical role in the CFANS Undergraduate Programs strategic communications planning process. We will work to identify the critical areas of focus, clarify our objectives, identify appropriate strategies and practices, conduct necessary training and development, and carry out communications efforts to effectively fulfill our goals. This priority also includes marketing our academic programs and classes creatively and appropriately to students both within and outside of CFANS to expand our educational impact and student base. The University and broader educational community will benefit from increased involvement from CFANS faculty, educational programs and the courses. This strategic communications effort will be led by the college’s communication team, who will work closely with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other stakeholders.
The organizational culture desired by CFANS Undergraduate Programs staff is team-oriented with a flat structure and shared leadership, one which works efficiently and effectively to fulfill its mission and goals. Student services staff will have the support and resources necessary to deliver improved services to students. Opportunities for professional, intercultural and personal development will cultivate a staff that is knowledgeable and prepared to assist our students as they negotiate their way through college. An environment that is transparent and vibrant-where ideas are expressed freely and responded to/adopted as appropriate, where work styles are flexible and success is acknowledged and celebrated will be upheld.
Our commitment to faculty is to help support the in and out-of-class student experiences, foster professional development in teaching and service, and promote and sustain an environment of open communication
