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Seton Hall University
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Strategic Planning Process

Shortly after President Nyre arrived in Summer 2019, the University embarked on a strategic planning process for the first time in more than a decade. The process advanced with the full support of the Board of Regents, the expert guidance of Keeling & Associates (K&A), and the unprecedented involvement of hundreds of Setonians who offered their thoughts in town halls, focus groups and surveys.

Led by Alyssa McCloud, Ph.D., Senior Vice President for Enrollment Management, and Andrew Simon, Ph.D., Psy.D., Associate Professor and Vice-Chair of the Faculty Senate, the Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) convened regularly from October 2019 through April 2020, meeting with K&A throughout the process.

While COVID-19 forced many institutions into crisis-management mode and into abandoning their strategic planning, Seton Hall pressed forward. More than 140 members of the faculty, staff, student body and priest community met through the spring and summer to prepare reopening plans guided in large part by strategic planning goals.

The draft Academic Vision Statement, Goals and Objectives were presented to the Board of Regents at its annual retreat in September 2020. The Regents supported the direction of the plan and made minor additions to the Goals, Objectives and Academic Vision Statement and added some high priority action items outlining work to be done during the 2020-2021 academic year. These include:

  • Advancing key objectives in Goal 3: Student Success, which includes, but is not limited to, the Affordability and Accessibility agenda, which are designed to strengthen recruitment and retention;
  • Taking meaningful action to advance student engagement, retention, and persistence during and after the COVID-19 pandemic;
  • Advancing key objectives in Goal 4: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, which includes, but is not limited to, initially inventorying and assessing key DEI work across the University;
  • Conducting critical Accelerated Program Sustainability Assessment in support of the University’s Academic Vision and Goals 1, 2, and 5;
  • Evaluating and recommending changes to the University structure to promote the University’s sustainability and Goals, 1, 2, and 5; and
  • Launching the University’s Capital Campaign(s) in support of Goal 5.

From September 2020 to November 2020, the Implementation Steering Committee co-chaired by Katia Passerini, Ph.D., Provost and Executive Vice President; and Michele Nelson, Ph.D., Vice President for Board Affairs and University Strategy; and made up of the co-chairs of the Strategic Plan goal and ad hoc implementation committees with over 110 members of the University community, met weekly to report on the progress of their committees in developing implementation procedures and to recommend priorities for years one, two and three of the plan. The Implementation Plan is an integrated management tool to guide the University over the next three years, track and measure progress, and respond nimbly to changes as needed.

The Mission, Academic Vision, Guiding Principles, Goals and Implementation Plan make up "Harvest Our Treasures." The name of the plan was submitted by Eilish Harrington '08, Institutional Planning and Communications Analyst for the School of Theology, as part of a campus-wide naming contest.

The Board of Regents enthusiastically endorsed by the Strategic Plan on December 4. The three-year plan launches in January 2021 and lasts through December 2023.

At a Glance

September 2019:

  • Project Launch
  • Preliminary Telephone Interviews
  • Campus Visit #1: Board Retreat
  • Data and Document Review (–October)

October 2019:

  • Campus Visit #2: Campus Engagement and Information Gathering
  • Online Survey of Campus and External Constituents (October through December)

November 2019:

  • Campus Visit #3: Additional Small Group and Individual Interviews
  • Ongoing Data and Information Analysis and Theme Development (November through February)

December 2019–Mid-January 2020:

  • Data and Information Synthesis and Theme Development

Late January–February 2020:

  • Campus Visit #4: Review of Findings, Analysis and Planning Themes
  • Campus Visit #5: Board Meeting

March 2020

  • Campus Visit #6: Strategic Planning Retreat

April–August 2020:

  • Pandemic and Reopening Planning within the Guidelines of the draft Strategic Plan Goals

September 2020:

  • Present the Draft Academic Vision Statement and Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives to the Board of Regents

September - November 2020:

  • Develop Implementation Plans

November 2020:

  • Present the Draft Plan, including implementation plans, to the Executive Cabinet for review and endorsement.

December 2020:

  • Present the Draft Plan, including implementation plans to the Board of Regents for approval.

January 2021:

  • Launch the Strategic Plan