Virginia Tech
PAE-2: Strategic Plan

Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger has made sustainability a university priority. The Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment Resolution #2 states: "The university will represent the Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment and Sustainability Plan (VTCAC&SP) in the Virginia Tech Strategic Plan." The 2006-2012 University Strategic Plan includes many references to sustainability and the environment. The Selective Mid-Term of the 2006-2012 Strategic Plan also includes references to campus sustainability.

"The 2006-2012 Strategic Plan":
http://www.president.vt.edu/strategic-plan/strategic-plan.html

"Selective Mid-Term Review of the 2006-2012 Strategic Plan": http://www.provost.vt.edu/documents/mid_term_review_12_17_09.pdf

Most recently, President Steger has charged the university to begin developing the next long-range university plan, titled “The Plan for a New Horizon.” In President Steger’s 2011 Year-End comments, he stated that “Sustainability must become part of our culture” and challenged the Presidential Task Force to help answer tough sustainability questions such as “How do we inculcate a mindset that lightens our footprint on the community and, by extension our planet?” The Long Range Planning website provides additional information about the development process of the university’s next long-range plan, “The Plan for a New Horizon.” http://www.longrangeplan.vt.edu/

To view President Steger featuring sustainability in his "Virginia Tech Year in Review, January 2010" message, please see: http://www.reports.president.vt.edu/2009_year_in_review/

To view the summer 2011 Message from President Steger titled “Campus makes Sustainability Gains” in the VT Magazine, please see: http://www.pageturnpro.com/Progress-Printing/28415-Alumni-Magazine-Summer-2011/index.html#2

The 2006 – 2012 Strategic Plan is comprised of three Scholarship Domains and three Foundation Strategies that serve to achieve Virginia Tech’s mission and core values. The Scholarship Domains include Learning; Discovery; and Engagement. The Foundation Strategies include Organizational Development; Campus Infrastructure; Resource Development, Allocation, and Management. The three dimensions of sustainability (environmental, social, and economic) are intertwined throughout the University Strategic Plan.

Environmental sustainability is addressed primarily within the Energy, Materials, and Environment subsection of the Discovery section within the Scholarship Domain. The Executive Summary of the Strategic Plan states that “[energy, materials, and environment] are interwoven and require focused and multidisciplinary research activities. Energy, in particular, promises to be an area for innovative research in sustainable energy supplies. Materials research is a strength upon which collaborations and multidisciplinary efforts can be built within and outside the university. Water quality and environmental health are signature areas for environmental research.”

“Continued efforts will be made to maintain this research foundation; to establish new, internationally recognized research programs within these fields; and to apply this technical expertise to fashion a sustainable future both nationally and globally.”

The Energy, Materials, and Environment section further outlines goals and strategies for the university in regard to environmental sustainability.

Social sustainability is addressed within the Learning, Discovery, and Engagement sections of the Scholarship Domain and within the Organizational Development section of the Foundational Strategies. These sections highlight a commitment to a diverse and inclusive student community.

Specific language within the Learning section of the Scholarship Domain states “this plan emphatically reaffirms the university’s longstanding commitment to increase access and inclusion of students from underrepresented groups, particularly underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities and first-generation, low-income students…The goal is to work toward doubling the number of students from these underrepresented groups by the end of the planning period. Vigilant attention to the recruitment and retention of students from underrepresented groups and from international backgrounds will change the profile of the student body over time and help create a community in which the educational benefits of diversity can be realized for all undergraduates.”

The Organizational Development section addresses faculty and staff, stating that “the university must foster a diverse and inclusive community that supports mutual respect. Efforts to diversify the university by increasing the number of women and underrepresented minorities hired and promoted into faculty and staff ranks must continue to be a priority.”

The Engagement section of the Scholarship Domain promotes “engaging [Virginia Tech’s] intellectual assets to address economic and social needs of communities around the commonwealth, the nation, and the world.” Additional information that highlights diversity and inclusion are set forth in the goals and strategies of the Learning, Discovery, Engagement, and Organizational Development sections.

Virginia Tech also has a separate Diversity Strategic Plan titled “Growing and Sustaining a Diverse and Inclusive Environment: the 2010-2013 Virginia Tech Diversity Strategic Plan.” The Diversity Strategic Plan is available at: http://www.diversity.vt.edu/announcements/documents/dsp-2010.pdf

The Virginia Tech Principles of Community adopt and practice diversity and social sustainability principles “as fundamental to our on-going efforts to increase access and inclusion and to create a community that nurtures learning and growth for all its members.” To view the Virginia Tech Principles of Community, please see: http://www.vt.edu/diversity/poc-doc.pdf

Economic sustainability is addressed in the Engagement section of the Scholarship Domain and within the Organizational Development, and Resource Development, Allocation and Management sections of the Foundational Strategies.

The Engagement section of the Scholarship Domain promotes “engaging [Virginia Tech’s] intellectual assets to address economic and social needs of communities around the commonwealth, the nation, and the world.” The Engagement section further states that “Virginia Tech will connect innovations in the scholarship of learning, discovery, and engagement to the economic well-being of individuals, families, businesses, and communities. Central to this goal are entrepreneurial initiatives advancing technology transfer, intellectual property, and the transfer of knowledge in domestic and international partnerships.” Additionally, the Engagement section outlines specific goals and strategies for the university in regard to economic sustainability.

The Organizational Development section of the Foundational Strategies states that “analyses indicate that the salaries of teaching and research faculty will achieve the 60th percentile over the six-year planning period with 4 percent annual increases; however, the university must continue to evaluate trends in faculty salaries to ensure that steady progress is made in providing competitive compensation. Without attention to staff compensation as well, the university will not be able to continue to recruit and retain the caliber of staff members needed.”

This section also states that “Virginia Tech has been considered one of the region's employers of choice for many years. However, to sustain this position, the university must continue to promote the health and welfare of the university community through family-friendly policies and a competitive benefits package.”

The Resource Development, Allocation, and Management section outlines the current sources of university funding and future funding opportunities. “As part of its land-grant mission, the university has historically maintained affordable tuition and fees to ensure access to all. Increasing student access and affordability to the institution is at the heart of Virginia Tech's new "Funds for the Future" program, which increases the level of institutional funding of student financial aid. The university is committed to continuing programs that will ensure accessibility.”

The Engagement, Organizational Development, and Resource Development, Allocation, and Management sections further outline goals and strategies for the university in regard to economic sustainability.