Members Present: Lawrence Abele, John Barnhill, Joe Beckham, Robert Bradley (chair), John Carnaghi, Ross Ellington, Randy Hanna, Janet Kistner, Alma Littles, Nancy Marcus, Frank Murphy, Charles Rasberry (vice chair), Anne Rowe, Jayne Standley, Joe Travis, Eric Weldy

Others Present: Ruth Feiock, Anne Blankenship, Ralph Alvarez, Mark Palazesi

Dr. Abele thanked the members of the Strategic Planning Committee for their willingness to serve on the committee and provided a brief overview of the mechanisms used by the university to monitor key processes such as enrollment and accountability.

Dr. Robert Bradley, Vice President for Planning and Programs, indicated that President T. K. Wetherell charged the Strategic Planning Committee with the development of an update to the university’s strategic plan. Dr. Bradley stated that the committee will produce a draft mission statement, vision statement, and a set of strategic priorities by November 2007. The President also directed the committee to map the strategic imperatives to the budgetary resources necessary to implement the plan. The imperatives should be developed by April 2008.

The Chair indicated that the purpose of revising the university’s Strategic Plan was multi-fold. First, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) requires the university to have a strategic plan. Second, Dr. Bradley stated that President Wetherell would like to have a strategic plan that he can share with potential donors.

Dr. Bradley indicated that several divisions and colleges at the university already had strategic plans. He indicated that the Strategic Planning Committee will use the terms used by Finance and Administration in the development of their strategic plan.

Mr. Charles Rasberry indicated that an updated strategic plan will be helpful with fundraising efforts by providing specific areas in which to seek financial support.

The Chair stated that strategic plans ask important questions about priorities, identify funding opportunities, and lay out the direction that the university will take. He indicated that the seventeen member committee included key campus leaders and urged members to adopt a broader view of the campus during the planning process. He asked committee members to send representatives to meetings in which they cannot attend. He also suggested that the committee might want to set up an external team or to sponsor guest speakers. Further, the committee might want to have a series of events, including “town hall” meetings and solicit feedback from the university community.

Dr. Bradley suggested that the committee move forward by consensus rather than taking votes on issues. Further, he stated meetings will generally be held on Friday afternoons lasting approximately one to two hours. The meetings will focus on process, product, and purpose.

At the September 14, 2007, meeting, the committee will engage in an exercise on environmental scanning facilitated by Mr. Mark Palazesi. Dr. Bradley distributed the environmental scanning worksheet and asked members to complete the worksheet.

The Chair stated that the current mission statement was developed using criteria specified by the Florida Board of Governors. Dr. Bradley indicated that the mission statement requires review and approval by the Faculty Senate, university president, FSU Board of Trustees, and the Florida Board of Governors.

Dr. Beckham questioned whether the mission statement needed to be revised. Dr. Bradley responded that the committee should review the mission statement to determine whether modifications needed to be made. Dr. Littles stated that strategic imperatives are usually tied to mission statements and questioned the timeline for completion of the imperatives and the mission statement. Dr. Bradley indicated that the timelines have been established by the president and that the mission statement would guide the imperatives.

Dr. Bradley indicated that the university’s current strategic plan (the Commission on the Future) could be found on the President’s webpage. He said that the committee will discuss a meeting schedule, communications plan, and possible strategic issue teams at the next meeting.

In response to a question from Dr. Beckham, Dr. Bradley suggested that the strategic planning efforts should go beyond the state’s current fiscal position.

The Chair stated that committee members will periodically receive assignments to complete and bring back to the full committee for discussion. For the next committee meeting, he asked members to complete the STEEPLE exercise.

Dean Joe Travis requested that the acronyms and terms used during the planning process be fully explained to the members who may not be familiar with the terms.

The Chair adjourned the meeting at 11:45 a.m.