MISSION STATEMENT FIRST STEP

Strategic Planning

Getting Underway

At SUNY Oneonta

By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com

ONEONTA – SUNY Oneonta’s new 13-word mission statement, released Tuesday, is almost immediately being followed by a process to create a new five-year strategic plan for the college by January, according to President Barbara Jean Morris’ spokesman, Hal Legg.

With this Saturday’s commencement behind her, the president will convene a meeting of her cabinet May 23 in the campus Welcome Center to talk through the planning process, which “should, in a broad sense, tie back to the mission,” said Legg, director of communications & marketing.  “We’re not wasting any time.”

While Legg arrived after former President Nancy Kleniewski’s first five-year plan was adopted in 2010, he was involved in its implementation, and in the three-year update initiated in 2015.

“If the process behind the new mission is any indication” – Morris conducted a five-week “talking tour” with students, faculty, staff and administration – “the process behind this one will also be inclusive,”  The gathering will determine “schedule and structure.”

In addition to Legg, the president’s cabinet includes four vice presidents, Paul Adamo, college advancement; Franklin Chambers, student development; Andre Melendez, academic affairs & provost (interim), and Julie Piscitello, finance & administration.

Also, Morris’ Chief of Staff Colleen Brannan; Kevin Jenson, associate VP & chief enrollment management officer; Lisa Snyder, associate VP for strategy planning & effectiveness, and Lisa Wenck, Senior Executive Employee Services Officer.

The new mission statement, announced in a video the president emailed to the campus community, reads, “We nurture a community where students grow intellectually, thrive socially and live purposefully,” reduced from one that was 407 words long.

Said Legg, “That’s really who we are.”