Project Next - from Past to Present

From Past to Present:

Taking off in 1983 were discussions about the growing influence of technology in education at the University of Calgary (University of Calgary 1984). What was later termed as "An Institute for Computer Assisted Learning" (ICAL) at the University of Calgary, this initiative marked the beginnings of Blackboard, Student Centre, and the WebWork programs we rely on today. For almost 30 years, technology-assisted learning has been at the heart of the University of Calgary's discourse and will continue to be a carried into the future through campaigns such as the recently unveiled Project Next. Member of the steering committee for Project Next, Associate Dean of the Haskayne School of Business Jim Dewald states that one of the driving forces behind Project Next are changing technologies (Constantin 2011). Almost 30 years ago, with the advent of the ICAL campaign, the University of Calgary demonstrated its goal to be a competitive, forward-thinking institution that understood the eventual omnipresence of computers in education (University of Calgary 1984).

By undertaking the arduous task of introducing technology as both a learning and instructional tool, the University of Calgary demonstrated a noteworthy commitment to its students and continues to with roving booths and workshops providing a platform for students to voice their opinions about Project Next (Office of the President University of Calgary 2011). It is clear from both these campaigns that the University of Calgary has positioned itself as an institution that is receptive to the demands of its constituents. The ICAL initiative and today's Project Next are powerful exemplars of the University of Calgary's mission to modernize alongside the rest of society with technology as an integral part of its strategic direction.

University research has been and continues to play an integral role throughout many academic institutions across Canada. The quality of many universities is determined by the amount of successful research they have published. In addition to assessing the quality of an educational institution, academic research is the foundation upon which many individual's form their thoughts and opinions.

In 1998, due to the significance of research in formulating strategic plans for the future, the University of Calgary Senate initiated "A Curious Pursuit" which continues to be a project that gauges public opinion on research. This opened the floor to a better link between the university and the community, allowing an all-inclusive forum to gather thoughts and opinions on university research. After speaking with students and the community, the Senate found that university research was undervalued throughout, and often misunderstood. In order to change these perceptions, the University created a new "Strategic Transformation Plan" to serve as a blueprint for the next 30 years.

A Curious Pursuit has laid the foundation for Project Next as it established the importance of all-inclusive communication in university strategy. By using past collaborative aspects from A Curious Pursuit, Project Next is using a social media forum to ask students whether or not the University should direct more resources to research in order to be ranked in the top five research universities. This shows that the misguided perceptions on university research are changing, and in this way, the University of Calgary continues to modernize their strategic direction, by enhancing the university as well as the community through Project Next.

Factors Shaping Project Next:

Project Next was unveiled to the University of Calgary on January 11, 2010. It involves faculty, staff and students who as an entirety will be responsible for developing a strategic path for the University of Calgary. Project Next consults all individuals throughout the University of Calgary through social media forums such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube in addition to on campus workshops and roving booths. The main objective of Project Next is to develop a framework that consists of the university's core values, strategy statement, and strategy summary.

Competition among Canadian post-secondary institutions, especially those that are longstanding, is not a new phenomenon. Many post-secondary institutions have grown significantly over the past few decades and have gained a favorable reputation nationally and internationally, such as the University of Calgary (Office of the President University of Calgary 2011). The role of Project Next is to establish a framework for the decision-making of a series of initiatives and plans. As a result, it is imperative that Project Next conducts environmental scanning and understands the external competition before developing a strategic plan for the future of the University of Calgary.

Academically, the direct competition for the University of Calgary consists of all post-secondary institutions in Canada, but primarily in terms of size and geographical location - the University of Alberta is a direct competitor (AET Source Facts & Figures 2010). In regards to the quality of post-secondary institutions, associations around the world use many different methodologies in terms of ranking universities for prospective students (Canadian University Report 2011). Over the past few years, competition has increased among universities and also smaller academic institutions such as colleges and polytechnics. Polytechnic is an emerging institutional category and exemplifies how post-secondary institutions are moving toward a skills- based niche market.

Insofar as indirect competition high-end technology & research firms can be considered indirect competitors to the University of Calgary. The University of Calgary must compete with large research-intensive institutions to attract to attract the individual skills and talents as well as funding allocations. Institutions are using marketing strategies and branding to enhance their position in order to attract funding from private and public investors as well as providing benefits to attract innovative researchers (Snowdon 2005). Due to both the indirect and direct competitive environment, the University of Calgary needs an institutional strategic plan along with the proper values, principles, and priorities to attract prospective students and research talent to the University.

The student body is constantly changing, and in order to plan for the future it is important to understand how to cater to the developing needs of a dynamic population. In recent years we have seen an increase in overall enrolment, both in younger and mature students as well as an increase in the amount of international students and visible minorities. With a changing population comes a changing set of demands