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Urban Foresters Lydia and Adam

Urban Foresters Lydia and Adam

A message from the associate dean for Research and Graduate Education about the process of developing this plan and our motivations to do this work.

The process of strategic planning is often underappreciated until the lack of a plan becomes evident and limits an organization's ability to document progress, demonstrate impact, and address emerging needs. It is also sometimes difficult to follow a strategic plan given shifting priorities outside the organization and sudden and unanticipated political or societal events that require immediate and focused attention (e.g., a global pandemic).

It is for these reasons that we have chosen an approach that involves "Strategic Doing" so that our directions are not restrictive, and course corrections are made as appropriate through an iterative process of self-examination and benchmarking to document progress and impact.

In June 2023, we began this process with the assistance of Franklin Solutions, a consulting organization that provided us with the framework and facilitation to develop the plan that follows (see the timeline of the full process). Through their guidance, we formed an Executive Committee (Appendix A) consisting of department heads, institute directors, and faculty leaders and representatives who assisted in formulating our identity, vision, and values statements. Their work included identifying our distinctive characteristics in the "What We Do" (Appendix B) and "Who We Are" (Appendix C) sections, as well as formulating the priorities that are identified in this document. We also received stakeholder input through multiple interviews conducted by Franklin Solutions of University administrators, office directors, government liaisons, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture leadership, and stakeholders from commodity organizations, industry representatives, and others whose interests are impacted by the College of Agricultural Sciences' Office for Research and Graduate Education. Through this process, we recognized the need for two additional priorities that entailed consistent and targeted engagement with Pennsylvania stakeholder groups in identifying and guiding research infrastructure and efficiencies. A complete list of the strategic planning team, focus groups, and individual interviews is provided in Appendix A (see also the diagram of stakeholder groups).

Through the collective input of the planning committee and the information obtained through stakeholder engagement sessions, we have identified three priority groups, all of which overlap with one another, including: 1) network priorities, 2) engagement priorities, and 3) infrastructure priorities (see diagram of strategic priorities). Network priorities include specific initiatives that we believe are critical to the future of agriculture, food security, and natural resource protection and will require robust networks to succeed. Our engagement priorities are intended to ensure that our work is recognized both internally and externally and that efforts remain essential to the economic vitality of the state and to the well-being of our citizens. With all that we do, there is an overarching goal to improve the lives of citizens both locally and globally and a recognition that Pennsylvania provides an import testbed to address issues beyond our state borders. Importantly, we remain firmly committed to ensuring a smooth transition from discovery to delivery by maintaining and encouraging partnerships with our Penn State Extension colleagues. Finally, we recognize that research support and processes depend on an infrastructure and staff that are both efficient and forward thinking, and we have identified two priorities specific to research infrastructure.

Each priority is described in terms of opportunities followed by a framing question that asks "What if" or "How might" types of questions. The implementation of this plan will center on these questions, which are intended to serve as guides for priority task teams to develop agile strategies on a regular annual cycle (see the Implementation Process diagram). In the first phase of implementation, we will be seeking out leaders for each priority task team to guide teams in proposing a series of strategies intended to provide answers to the framing questions posed. Each strategy will include a project or activity intended to ensure that the priority is being addressed and that decisions to move forward or make course corrections are appropriate.

We believe that this document provides clear direction that is consistent with the mission, vision, and values of the Office for Research and Graduate Education and positions our efforts for continued growth and relevance. We invite your feedback and input as we move to implement the doing phase of our efforts.

Blair D. Siegfried
Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education
Director, Pennsylvania Agricultural Experiment Station

Office for Research and Graduate Education

Address

217 Agricultural Administration Building
University Park, PA 16802-2600

Office for Research and Graduate Education

Address

217 Agricultural Administration Building
University Park, PA 16802-2600