ɫ��ɫ

• Developed a Land Acknowledgment statement to acknowledge the university’s location in Lenapehoking, the traditional homeland of the Lenape
• Launched the , the Zora Martin Felton Symposium: Empowering Women of Color, and the Ubuntu program to mentor new students from historically underrepresented communities 
• Established the Center for Inclusive Excellence, previously known as the Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 
• Created the office for First-Generation Student Initiatives

KEY INITIATIVES

Universal Skills & Career Success:

• Launch the Elevate experience for full-time undergraduate students; real-world work experience, leadership and teamwork skills, communication, diverse perspectives, and career support are at the center of the educational experience, thus ensuring that students achieve post-graduation success and meet future employers’ expectations. (Complete)
• Implement a digital badging program as part of the Elevate experience, providing students with the ability to earn up to eight Career Readiness Digital Badges based on the skills and competencies that employers are seeking, according to NACE (National Association of Colleges and Employers). Students earn points toward these badges by attending lectures, joining student organizations, participating in research, studying abroad, and more. Students can feature completed badges on their resume, LinkedIn profile, and highlight them during job interviews, as a digital record for highlighting work experiences and skills earned outside of the classroom. More than 67% of all eligible students took advantage of the program in 2021-22 where the national average for other badging programs was 33%.  (Complete)
• Introduce the Career Promise a commitment from the University that graduating students who complete all eight Career Readiness Badges, have consistently met with their Career Development Strategist, and who have maintained a certain GPA, will be eligible for the Career Promise. The Promise ensures that students who are not employed or in graduate school within one year of graduating from ɫ��ɫ will qualify for financial support to help make payments on their student loans or free enrollment in select undergraduate or graduate courses. This offer supports ɫ��ɫ’s commitment to successful post-graduate outcomes and enhances our commitment to lifelong career support services. (Complete)

Next Level Advising:

• Develop the Career Development Strategist role within the Center for Career and Civic Engagement and hiring a total of 8 Career Development Strategists by 2024. Upon matriculation, each undergraduate student is paired with a Career Development Strategist to assist students with identifying strengths, interests, and values; choosing or changing majors; developing resumes, cover letters, and other professional documents; preparing for interviews; connecting with alumni; finding internships/externships, job opportunities, and graduate schools; and navigating the Career Readiness Digital Badging Program. (Complete)
• Evaluate and encourage student connections, developing pathways and programming to ensure that every student has the opportunity to make at least one purposeful/structured connection with faculty, staff, peers, alumni, and professionals. (In progress)

Connecting the Curriculum:

• Launch the RISE (Reflection, Integrity and Skill-Building to Elevate students) Program in Fall 2022. This four-phase undergraduate experience is designed to impact and empower students to more fully realize their potential to transform their community and the world. It was developed as a result of the Elevate experience’s core pillar of Teamwork and Leadership. (Complete)
• Create a First-Year Research Experience (FYRE) or Pre-research academy that uses culturally responsive pedagogy to encourage students to engage in research practices across all disciplines. (In progress)

SPONSOR

• Dr. Nicole Loyd

• Developed a new model of career coaching, providing each undergraduate student with a dedicated career development strategist
• Created the Elevate experience for full-time undergraduate students 
  • Implemented a career digital badging program as part of the Elevate undergraduate experience with 84% of first-year students participating as of 2024 
• Increased participation rates in our Global Greyhound Travel Program 
• Introduced the Career Promise, emphasizing the university’s willingness to help students without a job and not in graduate school within 10 months of graduation 
• Established a new student experience called RISE that integrates teamwork and leadership into university curricula 
• Combined various and degrees and certificates to create joint curricula

KEY INITIATIVES

Equity as a Core Value:

• Establish Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) community values for ɫ��ɫ University to feature on website, during new student orientation and new employee onboarding and in the recruitment process. Communicating these values widely ensures that current and future ɫ��ɫ community members understand and embrace our culture of inclusion and equity on campus. (In progress) 
• Promote inclusive language and pedagogy throughout the graduate and undergraduate curriculum. ɫ��ɫ is committed to taking purposeful action in ensuring the educational experience that we provide is inclusive and representative of all. Accepting that we have a societal responsibility to educate the next generation on how to be anti-racist, faculty working groups for both the seminary and the undergraduate/graduate areas are now piloting initiatives for collecting/assessing and developing new course materials. (In progress)
• Develop a university-wide Land Acknowledgement statement to create permanent, on-campus recognition of the statement, recognizing and honoring the Native inhabitants of this land and their historic and everlasting relationships with it. ɫ��ɫ University is located in Lenapehoking, the traditional homeland of the Lenape, which includes Delaware, New Jersey, eastern Pennsylvania, and southern New York. (Complete)

Increasing Access:

• Launch the Black and Latino Male College Readiness Program: A comprehensive, 5-day, overnight campus experience that helps prepare college-eager students and their families for the extensive college search process and strategies to navigate their respective collegiate journeys. The program is aimed at dismantling the status quo of disproportionate dropout rates for Black and Latino men in college by means of education, motivation, and mentorship for the betterment of society. (Complete)
• Launch the inaugural Felton Symposium, a multi-day symposium for high-school-aged young women of color in honor of the first Black woman to graduate from ɫ��ɫ College for Women. (In progress)
• Enhance support networks for historically underrepresented and marginalized students. Our attention on providing support resources for underrepresented and marginalized students is consistent with the national and regional data on college stopout rates. Collaborate with administrative offices and academic departments to improve the University’s communications to students about resources available to support their academic pursuits. (In Progress)

Transparency and Accountability:

• Develop and Administer a Campus Climate Study: In an effort to better understand and enhance our student’s sense of belonging and inclusivity, ɫ��ɫ will improve the frequency of our climate surveys. This effort is also designed to promote transparency and accountability utilizing the survey design and outcomes to improve communication and engagement across the institution. The university’s DEI department will launch our next climate survey in the spring of 2024. (In progress)
• Establish a university-wide DEI department through a commitment of resources that enabled the University to hire and fully staff a critical department at the institution with a concentrated focus to support DEI work. (Complete)

SPONSOR

• Dr. G. Christopher Hunt

• Broke ground on a new state-of-the-art student center, the new Haupert Union Building (HUB), planned for 2025 opening 
• Preserved historical significance with  
• Established professional development opportunities with the Lehigh Valley Association of Independent Colleges () and with additional online resources

KEY INITIATIVES

Designing Our Future:

• Student Experience Expansion: Investment in new living and learning experiences beyond the classroom, leveraging and developing both real and virtual environments that allow students to take advantage of new technologies and ways to engage with each other. (In progress) 
• Learning Extension/Expansion: Advance institutional capabilities by improving technology adoption, usability and value in the classroom as well as the continued growth in the development and integration of hybrid and online learning instruction. Examples of such initiatives include the digital scheduling panels to improve space utilization and the upgrades for Apple airplay technology that improve soft study spaces. (In progress) 
• Create a cohesive 'Family' Program connecting prospective and current students along with their families to ɫ��ɫ alumni and other offices across campus thereby facilitating the success of a lifetime engagement model for students and family members who are part of the ɫ��ɫ University community.  (In progress)

Invest in People:

• Education and Training for Employees: Establish a plan for professional development that helps cultivate a culture of curiosity and growth as individuals, professionals, and as a community. (In progress) 
• Develop and implement an internal communication plan that serves the needs of all constituencies, increasing transparency and engagement in University activities and service. (In progress) 

Leveraging Technology & Integrating Data:

• Enable digital transformation to develop a culture of innovation, data sharing, and technology integration that advances the digital transformation of the student experience. Such transformation efforts will be focused on optimizing current and future software, data usage, and technology platforms that prioritize a more inclusive and flexible student experience. (In progress)
• Strengthen the foundation for leveraging digital tools, ensuring a renewed focus on the documentation related to data governance, technology training, auditing of data architecture, data recovery and associated workflows, and resources to enable continual knowledge sharing. (In progress)

Adaptive & Vibrant Spaces:

• Innovative & collaborative student-centered spaces that develop a sustainable strategy to revitalize campus spaces and strategically invest in new energy-efficient infrastructure. Such plans will prioritize student-focused space development including a commitment to developing a student center (HUB 2.0), the refurbishment of South Hall into usable spaces, and the eventual creation of a one-stop that supports advising, student accounts, financial aid, and registration. (In progress)
• Preserving & Promoting Our History: Leverage the historical significance of ɫ��ɫ’s campus and buildings, capitalizing on the opportunity to create and support a ɫ��ɫ World Heritage and History Institute in collaboration with transnational partners in the UK, Germany and Denmark. (In progress)

SPONSOR

• Mark Reed
• Jill Anderson
• Dave Brandes