 The plan that emerged details six new strategic initiatives that will shape the parameters of institutional development during the next few years. The first four—the renovation of Haberlin Hall, faculty salaries, curriculum and the President’s Discretionary Fund—fall under the heading of “strengthening” initiatives. These goals are not necessarily departures but rather efforts to bolster and broaden what the College already does well.
The final two initiatives—admissions/financial aid and marketing—focus on “leveraging.” They seek to make Holy Cross a stronger contender in the business that is higher education, addressing the highly competitive environment of admissions, increasing the diversity of the student body and improving the College’s position as it competes for the best students.
At its peak, in 2011, the estimated annual cost of the strategic initiatives will be approximately $9.3 million. Funding will come from a variety of sources. The Development Office will highlight support of the science center, financial aid and curriculum in its solicitation of gifts and donations. In addition, tuition, fees, and room and board will increase at a nominal rate over and above the College’s long-term planning targets through 2011. Operating budget support from the endowment will be increased through the activation of unrestricted endowment reserves and a one-time lifting of the spending stabilization cap which will allow spending from the endowment to be reflective of current market values. Finally, the targeted 3 percent operating budget reserve will be relaxed. The $60 million Haberlin project will be supported by gifts, capital reserves and $45 million in new debt to be issued in the spring 2007 to meet the project’s construction schedule.
Ultimately, says Fr. McFarland, these strategic initiatives “will help us realize our mission more fully: to take some of the brightest students and prepare them to make a big impact on the world. We’re looking at both the intrinsic quality of the experience here and making sure that it’s visible to prospective students.”
Clearly, it was not possible to address every suggestion made during the planning process. As the Strategic Plan notes, “hard choices had to be made.”
“Ideas weren’t lost because they were not respected,” says Laffey, “but because dialogue showed that they fell short, or other things needed to take precedence.”
Indeed, Vellaccio says, “Even if someone gave us $300 million, we wouldn’t want to spend that endowment immediately. That’s not the way change should happen in an academic setting.”
But both he and Fr. McFarland emphasize that the College’s efforts to bring about positive change do not begin and end with this particular Strategic Plan. Even the briefest overview of all of the initiatives undertaken in the past 20 years makes it clear that there has been vigorous and constant attention paid to improving campus life for students, staff and faculty alike.
Moreover, Fr. McFarland notes, “There are a lot of ongoing projects that are aligned with the strategic priorities but that didn’t get singled out. We consider them important as well.”
In particular, he cites efforts to enhance diversity, aided by the Cassin Educational Initiative, as well as the creation of the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture and improvements in the students’ social lives. Work on campus during the past two years has brought about the renovation of the Mary Chapel, the building of apartment-style student residences, new advances in technology, including wireless access, and curriculum and advising changes.
“The plan is founded on a very strong sense of who we are and what we value,” he says. “Our goal is to integrate moral and academic development. This will help us improve the quality of the experience at Holy Cross as well as our impact on church and society.”
In many ways, the discussion of how to accomplish that goal has just begun. “We don’t think of this as a stagnant document,” says Vellaccio. “It will be reviewed every year.” Built into the plan is a framework for what Laffey calls “more fine-tuning. It’s a shrewd way of continuing the conversation.”
As the Strategic Plan’s first year gets under way, it is clear that the dynamics of communication on campus have become more fluid. “I think the PSC made us more aware of the fundamental importance of assessment,” says Robert. “The value of the committee will not be forgotten as these initiatives are implemented and the need for others eventually identified.”
Laura Porter is a freelance writer from Worcester.
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