At its April meeting, the Planning Advisory Council discussed recommended planning parameters and principles for development of Compass 2020, the college’s next multi-year strategic plan. Compass 2020, the college’s Strategic Plan for FY2016—FY2020, has a theme of Aligning Resources with Priorities. It will guide collegewide, functional, and unit planning through June 30, 2020. Operational plans will be clearly linked to Compass Priorities.

Compass 2020 will identify four or five broad “Compass Strategic Priorities” to advance the college’s mission and achieve its vision for the next five years. It will specify priority credit and Continuing Education and Training instructional programs and incorporates the facility, financial, marketing, staffing, and technological resources necessary to support them. This will enable preparation of a five-year college budget plan.

The strategic plan will include specific Strategic Initiatives under each Compass Priority that have clearly-stated objectives and desired outcomes, name the staff responsible, and state a target completion date. Initiatives may take more than one year to complete. Target dates for interim steps may be identified.

The Strategic Plan will be updated annually. Completed Initiatives will be removed; ongoing Initiatives will be updated. Status reports will be given at the May meeting of the Planning Advisory Council, following current practice. Development of Compass 2020 will reflect four guiding principles: (1) maintain and enhance the quality of instruction, programs, and services, (2) focus on the student and meeting community needs, (3) attract and retain a superior workforce with competitive compensation, and (4) shepherd resources wisely and operate efficiently.

Determination of what credit and Continuing Education and Training instructional programs to introduce or emphasize over the next five years will drive much of the planning process. Programs that attract new student populations to the college, utilize existing resources to the fullest extent possible, have a positive return on investment, and add value to the community and meet county needs, will be favored.

Given the current and anticipated financial outlook for the college, with constrained governmental support and declining enrollment, a key component of Compass 2020 will be a five-year financial plan. Executive Vice President of Administration Alan Schuman outlined several steps in the development of this budget plan. The college will analyze the cost implications of new and expanded credit and CET programs, and commit to improving the college’s return on investment in programs and operations by developing a model for analyzing cost efficiency in programs, courses, and operations and then implementing methods for improving cost efficiency.

With employee compensation accounting for 78 percent of college expenditures, the budget plan will reflect the results of a staffing analysis to identify areas impacted by changing student enrollment patterns. The college’s Organizational Structure will be reviewed, including all classification of employee, to ensure that the structure supports the Strategic Plan. Each position that becomes vacant will be evaluated for its relative priority in meeting the priorities in the Strategic Plan. Positions may be reallocated as appropriate.

The resulting Five-year Budget Plan will include staffing and expenditure assumptions, governmental funding assumptions, and the likely consequences for tuition and fees.

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