SIU System Working Groups
In January 2020, nearly two months before President Dan Mahony officially started work, he initiated the formation of seven (later eight) Working Groups to begin the strategic planning process for the SIU System. Each group was given its own assignment:
- Academic Program Development
- Student Success
- Diversity and Inclusion
- Employee Satisfaction
- Shared Services
- Economic/Community Impact
- Partnerships
- Research
With representatives from both SIU Carbondale and SIU Edwardsville, each group was charged with assessing the present state of the System by answering three distinct questions: What are we already doing well? What needs more attention? What benchmarks should we set going forward? President Mahony also asked group members to provide five to ten recommendations, including a cost-benefit analysis and a time frame estimating how long each recommendation might take to be realized.
Since the work began, President Mahony has convened meetings of the co-chairs from each group to discuss their efforts, troubleshoot problems, and stay on track. Once the Working Groups have completed their reports, the co-chairs will form a group of their own to develop the outline of a strategic plan based on the overall recommendations. This broader conversation will involve many more stakeholders on the campuses and guide the drafting of a plan for further discussion by Fall 2020.
