Expand Transformative Student Experiences

From beginning to end — from the admissions and financial aid process; through student-centered advising, support services, dining and housing options; to preparing graduates to lead successful lives of meaning and purpose — SJU is well-positioned to provide a transformative student experience. To ensure that students achieve the maximum benefit of an SJU education, we will offer a continuum of diverse opportunities for intellectual and spiritual growth, along with personal development extending well beyond the classroom.

Develop and implement a strategic enrollment management plan that recruits and graduates talented and diverse students who embrace every aspect of an SJU education, enabling great success in their professional and personal lives.

Rationale

SJU will continue to strengthen its selectivity while at the same time attracting talented students from ethnically and socioeconomically diverse populations. Additionally, SJU will offer exceptional educational support strategies for undergraduate, graduate and degree completion students, along with building retention/student success strategies to ease the navigation of the campus experience — ensuring student success at SJU and beyond.

Highlights

• Reimagine and implement a revised, comprehensive financial aid strategy — with an emphasis on need-based aid and scholarships.
• Strive for yearly growth in the proportion of students from underrepresented communities among the undergraduate student population, as well as for women and populations in underrepresented graduate and professional fields, so that SJU more accurately reflects the world we serve.
• Develop, resource and implement an international graduate and undergraduate student recruitment strategy.
• Commit to an inclusive excellence framework with policies, services and programs to assist students in understanding diversity and to aid SJU faculty and staff in supporting all students.
• Develop new programming throughout the academic and student life experience to prepare SJU students to change their communities and the world at large for the common good.
• Enhance educational support delivery through innovative technologies and services to ease students’ navigation of the institution and to facilitate their persistence and success. - Implement a tracking and communication infrastructure to support student advising, retention and on-time graduation.

Deliver an integrated and developmentally sequenced range of enriching experiential, leadership, spiritual and service opportunities to all students.

Rationale

Students’ academic journeys routinely intersect with life and career experiences at SJU, providing multiple opportunities to be fully prepared for future personal and professional success. Students benefit most when the broad spectrum of these learning opportunities — from professional internships, Co-op experiences, Summer Scholars programs and to study abroad and meaningful spiritual and service commitments — are integrated across campus through a systematic approach to program development and delivery.

Highlights

• Ensure a superior and supportive first year for our undergraduate students by fully integrating a meaningful first-year experience into every First-Year Seminar, and by encouraging and supporting early move-in and other First-Year co-curricular programs.
• Build a robust platform to increase coordination among University of offices that support student academic experience programs, including the Faith Justice Institute/Service Learning, HSB Co-op, Career Center, Study Abroad and Office of Mission Programs.
• Improve internal marketing of experiential learning opportunities to extend the reach of these programs to all students.
• Increase advocacy and community organizing involvement, education and training, to enhance students’ self-efficacy and to prepare SJU graduates to change their communities and the world for the common good.
• Create and enhance systemic, interrelational approaches to diversity, inclusion and wellness education for all students, especially through peer-to-peer efforts.

Empower students and alumni to lead successful, purpose-driven lives.

Rationale

Upon graduation, SJU students should be poised for professional and personal success, demonstrating integrity and concern for others in ways that reflect Jesuit, Catholic values. SJU is characterized by a strong sense of community that recognizes and honors differences as assets. Providing opportunities for students to bring their full selves to their experience aligns with our mission to educate whole persons. If done well for all students, we will see a long-term involvement with SJU and strong attachment to their alma mater that serves as a guiding example for how to live in the greater world as engaged citizens.

Highlights

• Develop creative new pathways to expose students to a broader range of experiences and perspectives.
• Encourage additional campus and civic engagement opportunities in order to build leaders and prepare students to address structural inequity.
• Affirm and ground a first-rate student experience in educating whole persons of solidarity for the real world. 
• Connect students and alumni in mutually beneficial ways to facilitate lifelong connection with the institution.
• Provide opportunities for students to develop a coherent leadership identity grounded in the Jesuit model of contemplatives-in-action.
• Create a culture and structures encouraging student reflection, discernment and self- awareness.
• Emphasize the unique Jesuit identity of the institution and our values — to promote full human formation of students.

Create additional learning and gathering spaces that meet a variety of student and community needs.

Rationale

SJU has experienced immense growth in recent years and must continue to enhance the residential and campus experience to match expectations of students and their families. SJU will actively work to improve student facilities and community spaces, including the look, feel and utilization of the campus grounds.

Highlights

• Inventory and evaluate existing student-centered facilities and create long-term strategic facilities plans to address the needs of students, faculty and staff for flexible, responsive spaces.
• Update the campus housing master plan to align with current and anticipated student demographics, operational needs and programmatic opportunities.