Lehigh University’s first Inspiring the Future Makers Strategy Town Hall of the 2024-2025 academic year focused on building momentum as the university moves into the second year of implementation. The event, held on November 12, brought together faculty, staff and students to reflect on the progress made during year one and to discuss key priorities for the upcoming year. Mark Erickson, interim vice president for strategic planning and initiatives, led the session, emphasizing the collaborative nature of the strategy and the importance of collective involvement.
“This is OUR Plan”
President Joseph J. Helble '82 opened the Town Hall by reiterating a key promise made at the start of the strategic planning process nearly three years ago. "We committed to making this strategy a living, dynamic blueprint for action, not a document that sits on a shelf," said Helble. "That’s why we continue to gather together, to get your feedback, to refine and move this work forward."
Helble emphasized that the success of the strategy depends on integrating its goals into the daily work of the university. "We're not here to create more work," he said. "We’re aligning as much as we can the objectives and goals of the strategy with the structures we already have in place, to enable us to make meaningful progress towards goals without compromising what we need to do on a daily basis as a university.”
Ten Initiatives, Ten Years: Strategic Momentum and Support
Mark Erickson reinforced President Helble’s message, highlighting the substantial progress made in the first year of the plan. "We have strong leadership support, a clear infrastructure, and growing momentum around the ten initiatives we’re pursuing over the next decade," said Erickson. "To be successful, we’ll need clarity, agility and focus—and we also need to celebrate milestones along the way."
Provost Nathan Urban highlighted several key milestones from year one, including the launch of the Center for Catastrophe Modeling and Resilience, the introduction of a new Integrated Business and Health undergraduate program, and the completion of the Community Perception Survey. He also pointed to the initiation of a comprehensive campus planning effort, a new branding campaign, the launch of the Lehigh Commitment, and significant investments in student success, among other achievements.
“We had a number of successes in year one—some we had planned for, others we achieved along the way, and a few that emerged unexpectedly but allowed us to advance related efforts," said Nathan Urban.
For a complete list of Year-one’s progress and accomplishments, access Lehigh’s Year-one Progress Report.
Tracking Our Progress
In keeping with Lehigh’s commitment to transparency and accountability, the university has developed a comprehensive tracking system to monitor the progress of its strategic initiatives. This includes a dashboard as well as a list of completed actions, ongoing projects, and key milestones. "We’re taking a data-driven approach to ensure accountability and transparency," Erickson explained.
