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Strategic Plan

Planning & engagement

Creating a new vision for UVic was an exciting opportunity for our community to come together to discuss what the future might hold and how the university could position itself well for that future.

UVic’s Strategic Plan was developed using your ideas and engagement, while weaving our institutional plans together to present an ambitious and aspirational vision. It highlights where we want UVic to be in 30 years and establishes an initial 5-year action plan for achieving our vision.

For most of 2022, we talked with the campus community about what was important to them and about the vision and future of our university.

Project phases

We heard your hopes, ambitions, concerns, big ideas and perspectives on areas critical to the success of UVic through the following engagement activities:

6000
ENGAGEMENTS
over 8 months
62
EVENTS
2,500+ participants
2900
SUBMISSIONS
+ hundreds of sticky notes

Phase 1 of the plan was informed by the President's Listening Tour and began with pre-engagement planning and preliminary consultations with:

  • local Indigenous communities (including the Indigenous Community Engagement Council)
  • UVic leaders
  • UVic governance bodies

What we did

  • 6 town halls for staff and faculty, with 493 participants
  • 4 meetings with Indigenous students, staff and faculty attended by approximately 250 participants
  • 13 faculty/division council meetings, with 664 attendees
  • one online and physical survey, with 820 responses
  • 325 ideas, comments and votes shared on our online ideas board
  • 2 group discussions (staff and student led), with 14 participants
  • 9 pop-up booths, with over 1,000 visits and 335 written responses
  • 2 Executive Council retreats
  • multiple meetings with governance bodies including the Board of Governors and Senate

What we asked

Many of the engagement activities asked members of our campus community to reflect on the following:

  • Our future world: Looking ahead 25-30 years, what will be the major contributing factors that characterize our world? 
  • Future success: Given the characteristics shared in that future world you described, what will universities need to do to be successful?  
  • Achieving success: For UVic to be among these successful universities of the future, what would we need to do over the next 5 years? 
  • Guiding core values: As we develop and implement different initiatives over the next 5 years as part of our strategic plan, identify core values by which UVic should be guided. 
  • Reputation: Ultimately, what should UVic be known for on a national and global scale? 

What we heard

We have heard the following topics are most important to the UVic campus community:

  • Campus experience. Cultivating a campus of care that provides needed supports and services and creates a vibrant campus culture. This includes fostering collaboration and connection, housing affordability and financial supports. It also includes access to mental health services and valuing the student voice.
  • Diversity, equity, inclusion. A desire for priority around creating values and actions specifically related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. This includes accessibility and values such as transparency, accountability and integrity.
  • Indigenous rights. Commit to decolonizing practices and reconciliation, and support Indigenous community members.
  • Research and educational excellence. UVic is an institution that continues to focus on educational excellence both in learning opportunities and research.
  • Climate action. Leading the way in climate action and sustainability, including renewable energy, waste reduction and carbon neutrality.
  • Societal issues in a changing world. Adapting to our changing world with regards to global upset, threats to democracy and technological advancement.

In Phase 3, we explored the themes that emerged from feedback we received about areas of focus for the university. We engaged with our campus and local community to further explore these themes and identify strategic initiatives that will drive our activities over the next 5 years.

Equipped with the details of our themes and feedback, we established Thematic Advisory Groups who incorporated all this great work and were charged with creating draft content for the new plan. These groups were led by our executive and included experts relating to each theme. They delved into the themes, reviewed the feedback we received and refined the themes by developing strategic aspirations/goals, key initiatives and success metrics.

Throughout this time the vision, pledge and guiding principles of the plan have also been drafted to help keep us focused on what we heard was important to our campus and local communities.

Internal engagement

  • Phase 3 Town Hall
  • Academic & Administrative Leader's Retreat
  • Joint Board & Senate retreat
  • Research Advisory Committee and Research Chairs event
  • Email correspondence
  • Updates to Board of Governors, Senate, President's Leadership Council, Dean's Council, Executive Council
  • Imagine UVic pop-up booths
  • Bang the Table online idea boards
  • Survey

External engagement

  • Alumni Association AGM
  • Community Association Liaison Committee
  • Chamber lunch
  • South Island Prosperity Partnership
  • Regional Mayors Meeting
  • Community market pop-up info tents
  • Federal government meetings
  • Survey

Resources