Equity-Centered Strategic Plan
In the winter of 2023 Shoreline Community College (SCC) began the visioning and planning process of preparing a 5-year Equity-Centered Strategic Plan. The intention of a Strategic Plan is to define and layout the vision, mission, and values that will guide the College for the years to come.
Shoreline Community College's Equity-Centered Strategic Plan
This Strategic Plan specifically deals with challenges experienced by the College over the past few years. It highlights the opportunities and elevates the strengths of the College to ensure it remains an example of academic excellence while proactively addressing the many inequities in higher education for historically underrepresented communities and those who have communicative, cognitive, and accessibility needs who have been underserved. Its goal is to close the achievement gap and see students succeed whether they are continuing school, returning, or looking for a career change.
The Strategic Plan was developed over the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 academic school years and involved a robust community engagement process, soliciting feedback from students, employees, community members, partners, and stakeholders. Out of these engagement efforts and the larger strategic planning process, a clear vision, mission, and set of values has been developed to anchor and propel the College through the next five years and beyond.
Strategic Planning Process:
The Shoreline Community College Equity-Centered Strategic Planning process was designed to be inclusive of all voices that contribute to the College’s success and future. Throughout the process, a variety of activities have been conducted to ensure that all student, staff, and community voices are heard. The planning process included interviews with faculty, staff, and students, college and community focus groups, and a college-wide survey that elicited feedback from College students, faculty, classified, and administrative staff. Central to the process was an Equity Visioning and Strategic Planning Charrette, an intensive half day workshop, to further discuss and develop the Strategic Plan Framework. Finally, to ensure transparency and provide additional opportunities to comment on the draft Strategic Plan, a College-wide survey was distributed during January of 2024.
The entire process was guided by a Strategic Plan Task Force with representation from faculty, classified and administrative staff, and students.
The planning process consisted of three phases:
PHASE 1: UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT (4 MONTHS)
Phase 1 involved an analysis of current trends, future opportunities, existing and past barriers to educational success, and community partnerships. This was completed through a quantitative analysis of demographics, enrollment trends, success outcomes, and other relevant information.
PHASE 2: SHAPING THE VISION FOR THE FUTURE (4 MONTHS)
During Phase 2 all the information collected from Phase 1 was compiled into an Environmental Scan report. This report provided input to the College-wide Equity Visioning and Strategic Planning Charrette, resulting in a set of provisional goals and objectives. Following further analysis and discussion of results from the Charrette, the Strategic Plan Task Force was organized into a set of working groups to further develop the goals and objectives that would become the body of the Strategic Plan.
PHASE 3: DEVELOPING THE STRATEGIC PLAN (4 MONTHS)
The Strategic Plan Task Force and Working Groups continued to refine the goals and objectives that emerged from Phase 2. In addition, one of the working groups and the executive team developed the equity, mission, and vision statements, and a set of value statements to form the overarching structure of the Strategic Plan.
The draft Strategic Plan was then presented to the Board of Trustees for their initial comments and feedback. After further revisions to the draft Plan by the Task Force, a College-wide survey requesting feedback on the draft Strategic Plan was launched. Based on feedback from the survey, another round of changes and refinements were made to the draft Plan, which was then sent to the Board of Trustees for final review and adoption at their meeting in February 2024.
Strategic Plan Progress Report
The intention of that Strategic Plan is to define and layout the vision, mission, and values that will guide the College for the years to come. Shoreline’s Equity-Centered Strategic Plan is organized into five overarching categories with several corresponding goals organized by the year in which they will be completed.
Goal A: Student Success and Academic Excellence: Create the condition for success for all students through high-quality, innovative, student-centered transfer and professional technical programs.
Goal B: Student Support Services: Provide comprehensive student support services.
Goal C: Organizational Development, Systems, and Processes: Strengthen Shoreline’s organization culture and create an inclusive and equitable work environment.
Goal D: Facilities and Technology: Provide a welcoming environment with campus-wide accessibility for all students and employees.
Goal E: Community Connections, Partnerships, and Collaboration: Build and sustain community and business partnerships.
Goal F: Enrollment Management and Fiscal Stability: Foster the conditions for long-term financial stability and resilience through forecasting, effective enrollment management, revenue-enhancement, and revenue diversification opportunities.
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Goal A: Student Success and Academic Excellence |
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Goal |
Responsible |
Year |
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A1: Identify success gaps by focusing on performance measures and developing a systematic method to collect, track, and evaluate student performance over time; disaggregate data by race, ethnicity, age, gender, socioeconomic status, and whether a student is first-generation or has special needs; incorporate guided pathways, counseling, and other navigation services accordingly. |
Associate Vice President - Planning, Institutional Effectiveness, and Project Management |
1 & 2 |
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A2: Assess institutional-level and program-level student learning outcomes on an annual basis using internal, up-to-date, disaggregated data to revise or modify existing programs and/or leverage current demographic and economic data to assess the viability of introducing new programs |
Associate Vice President - Planning, Institutional Effectiveness, and Project Management |
2 |
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A3: Formulate comprehensive guidance to expand opportunities for Shoreline graduates to transfer to in-state and out-of-state colleges and universities. Establish new partnership agreements (e.g., TAG agreements, university visits, transfer fairs, and international 2+2 university transfer programs). |
Vice President of Instruction |
3 |
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A4: Create new and strengthen existing opportunities for students to acquire college credit for prior learning, community-based service learning, contemporaneous industry learning, and training |
Vice President of Instruction |
2 |
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A5: Support strategies to achieve robust international student enrollment based on best practices for successful International Enrollment Management at a community college. |
Associate Vice President of International Education and Global Engagement |
On-Going |
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A6: Assess enrollment and retention patterns in all degree programs and identify those programs that merit additional investment and potential expansion based on economic and enrollment trends. |
Vice President of Instruction |
Years 3-5 |
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A7: Evaluate opportunities to increase College offerings in the high-demand disciplines (e.g., Biotech, STEM, Auto-tech, Nursing, etc.), to boost overall College enrollment and employment prospects for Shoreline graduates with a particular focus on historically underrepresented communities; explore possibilities for establishing baccalaureate degree programs in these areas. |
Vice President of Instruction
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Year 2 |
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A8: Establish a dynamic class schedule model, based on student needs, and adopt an overarching approach that implements a systematic mechanism for timely collection of valuable feedback from individuals involved in student support roles (e.g., academic advisors), allowing for a comprehensive assessment rather than program-specific evaluation. |
Vice President of Instruction
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Year 3 |
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A9: Ensure that academic programs and services are provided through a Guided Pathways lens at times and in all modalities that meet the needs of the growing adult population by evaluating career technical program offerings and student support services annually and developing new or adjusting existing modalities and services (evening/part-time, etc.) to support adult learners as they pursue and complete training in high-demand programs in the region. |
Vice President of Instruction
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Years 1-2 |
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A10: Develop and implement a data-informed Academic Plan outlining current and potential future program offerings. |
Vice President of Instruction |
Years 1-2 |
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Goal B: Student Support Services |
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B1: Assess student needs on an ongoing basis so all students receive an equitable and consistent level of support, attention, and guidance (e.g., financial aid, advising, counseling, childcare, mentorship, transportation, bookstore, etc.) throughout their time at Shoreline. |
Associate Vice President - International Education & Global Engagement |
Years 1-2
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B2: Define the ideal level of student support and evaluate, on an annual basis, student support services and programs using data on student demand (e.g., food insecurity, transportation, childcare, etc.) to identify opportunities for improvement, implement necessary changes, and clearly communicate the process and procedures for students to seek and obtain the support they need. |
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility |
Years 1-2
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B3: Prioritize student support services programs for First Generation, Historically Underrepresented Groups, and Students with Disabilities (e.g., develop a tiered model of advising and navigation services to achieve an equitable distribution of College resources). |
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility |
Year 1 |
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B4: Expand opportunities for student-run network events and social gatherings, including culturally appropriate student outreach programs to strengthen a sense of belonging, and peer-to-peer mentoring and support among all students to mentor and assist each other in navigating the educational system, with a focus on historically underrepresented groups (e.g. communities of color, students with disabilities, and low-income communities). |
Director of Guided Pathways. |
Year 1
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Goal C: Organizational Development, Systems, and Processes |
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C1: Evaluate, clarify, and restructure Shoreline’s operational infrastructure where necessary (e.g., hiring, onboarding, job descriptions, ctcLink, employee and faculty evaluations, interdepartmental knowledge, collaboration inter-departmentally/departmentally/unions, employee & faculty accountability, etc.) and ensure that new processes are well-documented. |
Executive Director of Human Resources |
Year 2 |
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C2: Implement the new 360-degree administrative performance review system with clearly written and published criteria for all positions; ensure that all faculty, staff, and administrators are evaluated regularly and are held accountable for making changes to their processes, procedures, or pedagogy, where necessary. |
Executive Director of Human Resources |
Year 1
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C3: Implement a participatory governance system that includes ongoing training, coaching, and support that centers on collaborative decision-making and transformative leadership to engage the executive team, faculty, staff, administrators, unions, and students in decision-making processes; ensure that the results of these decision-making processes are |
President |
Years 1-2
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C4: Align the Strategic Plan goals and objectives and College mission statement with State directives and best practices. |
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility |
Year 1
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C5: Instill a culture and practice of cultural humility, inclusion and equity through continuous growth and improvement at the individual and department level through ongoing professional development (e.g., DEI/anti-racism training) for faculty, staff, the Board of Trustees, and students related to and aligned with one’s role at the College. |
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility |
Year 2-3
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C6: Create inclusive physical, emotional, and mental spaces including but not limited to annual listening and feedback sessions to build trust among all affinity groups including faculty, administrators, classified staff, and students and conduct a College-wide DEIA climate assessment every five years. |
Vice President of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility |
Year 3 |
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C7: Implement a set of guiding principles for budgeting and resource allocation that reflect faculty, staff, administrator, and student feedback in an open and transparent manner. |
Vice President of Business and Administrative Services |
Year 1 |
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C8: Implement a College-wide communication strategy that uses the most current data and demonstrates the College’s commitment to transparency and participatory decision-making. |
President, Executive Director of Strategic Communications |
Year 1 |
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C9: Identify opportunities for the Board of Trustees and College leadership to advocate for increased compensation within our State system. |
Executive Director of Human Resources, Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Ongoing |
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C10: Track and evaluate progress on Strategic Plan implementation in a publicly accessible format, identifying how all College-wide projects related to the Strategic Plan. |
Associate Vice President of International Education |
Year 1 |
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Goal D: Facilities and Technology |
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D1: Ensure that all students and employees have adequate access to the technology they need, at home and on-campus, consistent with accessibility standards for all students to participate and succeed in online instruction based on student needs data (see Accessible Information Technology Policy 3811). |
Vice President of Instruction, ice President of Student Services |
Years 2-3 |
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D2: Implement an ADA Access Plan based on a comprehensive accessibility audit of all physical structures and facilities, including but not limited to: ramps, push buttons, and sidewalks. |
Vice President of Student Services |
Years 2-3 |
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D3: Assess all aspects of the campus environment and update the College’s Capital Facilities and Maintenance Plan to ensure that current and projected academic program facility needs are met and that all physical and digital facilities are ADA-compliant, well-maintained, secure, replaced or upgraded, and provide a welcoming, inclusive, and sustainable environment for all. |
Vice President of Business and Administrative Services |
Years 2-3 |
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D4: Create meaningful opportunities for learning that tie into Shoreline’s new capital projects, while connecting the leadership from tribal communities to the history of the City and College of Shoreline. |
Vice President of Instruction |
Year 5 |
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D5: Create and launch an intranet platform for internal communications and resource sharing (e.g., SharePoint) |
Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Years 1-3 |
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D6: Ensure that all information technology and electronic content provide comparable functionality, experience, and information access to students, employees, and community members with disabilities, including those who use assistive technology; update educational technology to current industry standards. |
Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Years 1-2 |
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Goal E: Community Connections, Partnerships, and Collaboration |
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E1: Collaborate with Shoreline and neighboring cities, King and Snohomish Counties, and Washington State to maintain the most up-to-date socio-economic demographic data that is also based on the most recent available census numbers for Shoreline Community College’s service area to ensure that academic and support programs are reflective of current trends and needs |
Associate Vice President - Planning, Institutional Effectiveness, and Project Management |
Years 1-2 |
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E2: Strengthen ongoing relationships with external local, regional, national, and global partners including, but not limited to, business, community-based organizations, intuitions of higher education, and career placement agencies in order to increase enrollment and expand opportunities for students. |
President, Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Years 1-2 |
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E3: Strengthen Shoreline Community College’s identity and brand and cultivate Shoreline as a hub for global learning and experiences through traditional written and multi-media methods. |
Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing. |
Years 1-2
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E4: Expand Shoreline’s promotions and marketing of all educational programs through targeted advertising campaigns and promotions (e.g., the International Education, Transitional Studies, post-baccalaureate programs, transfer and technical education programs, continuing education services, facilities, and other beneficial community programs offered by the College). |
Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Years 1-2
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E5: Promote the value of a community college education as a viable path to further higher education and professional careers by celebrating the educational accomplishments of our students with prospective students and their families through traditional written and multi-media platforms. |
Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Marketing |
Ongoing |
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E6: Strengthen connections with the two local high schools and establish new connections with surrounding area high schools, middle schools, and community-based organizations; make it easier for students to enroll at Shoreline Community College (“on-the-spot”). |
Vice President of Student Services. |
Years 1-2
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E7: Maintain a strong presence at local community events, host more community-facing events on campus, and provide more opportunities for local community organizations and nonprofits to rent campus facilities. |
President |
Ongoing |
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E8: Strengthen and leverage the College’s alumni network |
Foundation Executive Director |
Year 1 |
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Goal F: Enrollment Management and Fiscal Stability |
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F1: Design and implement user-friendly reporting tools, training programs, and a regular calendar for sharing budget and financial data with the College Community to ensure transparency and accountability. |
Vice President of Business and Administrative Services |
Years 1-2
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F2: Develop and implement Strategic Enrollment Management Plans to increase student enrollment using the latest demographic, economic, and student mobility data |
Vice President of Instruction |
Years 1-2
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F3: Identify potential cost reduction opportunities and implement a plan for streamlining processes and procedures and eliminating redundancies. |
Vice President of Business and Administrative Services. |
Ongoing |
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F4: Create and implement a grant funding opportunities plan based on the College’s strategic priorities with set annual funding targets. |
Associate Vice President - Planning, Institutional Effectiveness, and Project Management Support: Grants Coordinator |
Ongoing |
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F5: Create and implement a plan for expanding contract education programs and partnership opportunities with local, regional, and global area businesses. |
Vice President of Instruction |
Years 2-4 |