At a poster-session-inspired showcase of memories and milestones, the Trinity University community celebrated a decade of dedication: significant and promising progress made through the Trinity Tomorrow strategic plan.
During the event, held on Monday, April 3, in the atrium of the Center for the Sciences and Innovation (a building itself that signifies the plan’s impact), nine tables featured information from each of the four foundations and four objectives that formed the pillars of Trinity Tomorrow. Faculty and staff guided participants through poster presentations with data, highlights, and progress reports from each objective’s or foundation’s action steps.
In the CSI Atrium, students, staff, and faculty engaged with posters outlining important successes, milestones, and accomplishments in each Trinity Tomorrow foundation and objective.
“Today is a day to celebrate, and it should also serve as a reminder that our work here must continue,” Trinity University President Vanessa B. Beasley, Ph.D., said in her remarks at the event. “All of us—faculty, staff, students, and alumni—must hone each others’ thinking by answering questions and questioning answers. More than ever, we must learn how to gather and evaluate evidence, persuasively and respectfully articulate our ideas, and be open when listening to the ideas of others. This is what it means to embrace a liberal arts education in the 21st century.”
View a Photo Album from the Event →
Trinity Tomorrow outlined action steps that provided the vision for a liberal arts experience in the 21st century. And with the extraordinary work done over the course of this decade, Trinity is confident in saying that the University:
- Works much more collaboratively, not only in its academic programs but also in its administrative coordination. Departments, programs, and divisions have learned to work together rather than in silos, which has improved overall student success.
- Commits fully to hands-on, experiential learning and interdisciplinary discovery through undergraduate research, internships, and international engagement.
- Demonstrates an unwavering commitment to holistic student success through enhanced academic advising, student accessibility, inclusion, athletics, and career placement.
- Improves year-over-year in recruitment and retention efforts, attracting a brighter and more inclusive cohort of learners every year who are ready to listen, lead, and take on the challenges of tomorrow when they graduate.
- Continues to improve alumni and community engagement, which in turn helps enhance the University’s infrastructure, from facilities to a large-scale digital transformation.
These successes culminated in the University taking a major step forward: reclassification as a national liberal arts university. This designation better aligns Trinity University for national recognition in its commitment to student success in the liberal arts and sciences.
Michael Fischer, Ph.D., the Janet S. Dicke Professor in Public Humanities, delivered remarks on the origins and progress of the Trinity Tomorrow strategic plan.
The Trinity Tomorrow strategic plan was developed in 2012 under the administration of President Dennis Ahlburg, Ph.D., and was set into motion on June 1, 2013. President Danny Anderson, Ph.D., continued the work of the plan throughout his tenure, seeing many of the action steps through to completion. At the event, Michael Fischer, Ph.D., former vice president for Faculty and Student Affairs and co-chair of the Trinity Tomorrow committee, noted success would not have been possible without the dedication of all of those who contributed, past and present.
“The Trinity Tomorrow strategic plan was successful because of the strong support and efforts from students and alumni, staff and faculty from across the campus, Board members, and parents,” Fischer said in his remarks at the event. “We should all take great pride in the results accomplished under each objective and foundation.”
And while the plan concludes on May 31, 2023, the University is well-positioned to continue making strides on the national stage.
“Trinity Tomorrow is now the Trinity of Today,” Beasley said. “Now is the time to strengthen our community, learn from each other, and dream big. Once again, together we must pair knowledge with critical thinking, and we must be guided by Trinity's values of enduring excellence, perpetual discovery, and intentional inclusion.”
Want to refresh your memory?
- For some light reading, review the Trinity Tomorrow summary.
- Or, review the Trinity Tomorrow Full Plan.
- How we got to now: Trinity Tomorrow Mission, Vision, and Values.
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