University of South Alabama

Planning Assumptions of the Institutional Environment

1. Higher education's share of the state appropriations will not increase, and growing competition from other educational sectors will threaten higher education's current share.

2. Increasingly, the state will hold higher education accountable for efficient use of resources and will demand continuous review of faculty productivity with particular emphasis on teaching loads and degree productivity as dictated by legislation passed in 1996.

3. New initiatives and new programs will be possible only through reallocation of existing resources and should thus be carefully considered in the context of impact on activities that are central to the mission of the program, the college, and the university. Yet it must be understood that some activities are of a greater priority than others to the institution and/or the academic unit.

4. Review of proposals for new academic programs will become more stringent. To gain Alabama Commissioner on Higher Education approval, new academic programs must demonstrate benefits to Alabama's economy and workforce, conservative use of state funds, and a relation to institutional mission, role, and strengths.

5. Both in terms of student enrollment and institutional commitment, USA will continue primarily to be concerned with outstanding undergraduate education, with gradual and selective increases in the number and size of its master's and doctoral programs.

6. As a result of the articulation and general studies requirement and lower tuition costs, an increasing number of students will complete part or all of their first two years at community colleges. Thus, the lower division of the University may continue to experience declining enrollments with the expected consequences on students, on curriculum, on tuition revenue, and on programs.

7. Increases are expected in the proportion of students who are: 1) 23 years or older, 2) female, and 3) African-American.
8. Continuing changes in the workforce will result in the return to higher education of many college graduates seeking post-baccalaureate degrees, certifications, and other types of job-related educational needs.

9. While USA aspires to achieve national and even international standards of excellence in its instructional, research, and public service programs, it has a particular obligation to respond to the needs of the region, including those related to health, economic development, the solution of pressing social problems, and cultural enrichment of the citizenry.

10. Both publicly- and privately-funded research will continue to be highly competitive and will increasingly be oriented toward particular concerns related to health, to the environment, and to economic development.

11. Technology will have an increasing impact on teaching and learning and on the way the University operates. Incoming students will be more technology-literate and will expect more sophisticated applications of technology to deliver instruction and support the learning process. Effective application of technology will present a continuing challenge for members of the faculty and support staff because of the rapid pace of technological change.

12. Institutional technology will afford students unprecedented choices for fulfilling their educational needs. Students will place increasing emphasis on compatibility of program design, instructional methods, and course scheduling with their personal circumstances as they choose the institution at which they will enroll. These developments will present both the responsibility and the opportunity to extend access to the resources of the University through appropriately designed and scheduled regular instruction, continuing education, and professional service designed and scheduled regular instruction, continuing education, and professional service via a variety of alternative class schedules, i.e., evenings, weekends, online, compressed terms, and others.