The Flagship Initiatives

We believe these "flagship initiatives" will help CU-Boulder become a university that others emulate, delivering a world-class learning experience as a global leader in education and scholarship. Our success in transforming the university to train the innovators, scholars, artists, and leaders of the future will be our most enduring legacy.

Investing in the Vision

Keeping CU-Boulder competitive in the short term is critical, but we have even higher aspirations for the next quarter-century. To that end, we have developed 10 "flagship initiatives" that go beyond traditional thinking and have the potential to truly transform the university. We intend for these strategies to lay the foundation for CU-Boulder's transformation.

1. RESIDENTIAL COLLEGES. We will offer a multi-year residential academic experience for every entering student.
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For many students at CU-Boulder, residential academic experiences have been a significant and positive aspect of university life over several years. We already know that residential colleges engage students as active participants in living and learning environments that foster diversity, community, and intellectual and personal growth. Now we want to offer that experience to every student—and we want to extend it beyond a single year.

CU-Boulder currently offers 11 one-year Residential Academic Programs (RAPs), ranging in topic areas from natural sciences, liberal arts, and the American West to international interests, fine arts, business, and global leadership. Many of the programs' seminars are taught right in the residence halls by some of our best faculty. In addition, students may participate in program-sponsored activities outside the classroom, such as informal discussions with faculty members, speaker series, social activities, and outdoor adventures. As part of the program, students have the opportunity to meet with representatives from government, private industry, nonprofit organizations, and community groups.

We believe CU-Boulder is well positioned to expand the residential college experience. By 2020, the university will complete a major renovation of all residence halls, adding additional capacity and creating environments more conducive to the focused and intensive residential academic experience. By implementing this initiative, CU-Boulder will become one of the few U.S. public flagship universities to offer the lifelong benefits of a multi-year residential college experience for all undergraduate students.

2. CUSTOMIZED LEARNING. We will establish the Colorado Undergraduate Academy as a new education model featuring mentored, self-directed, and customized learning tracks.
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We believe the academy has potential for broader application to CU-Boulder's undergraduate population. As the program progresses, we will seek opportunities to expand the academy as appropriate.

CU-Boulder will build a nucleus for customized learning through a new program called the Colorado Undergraduate Academy. Aimed initially at the most academically accomplished undergraduates, this four-year academic program will help students acquire the abilities and attributes necessary for leadership through an approach customized for each participant. In the coming years, we anticipate the academy will serve as an ongoing incubator for innovation in curriculum, teaching, use of technology, and the personalization of education for the entire student body.

Rather than taking a prescribed set of core courses, each student will work with an advisor to construct a unified set of curricular and extracurricular activities, such as civic engagement and international experiences, that will offer a more personalized learning experience. We also will consider more customized scheduling for each student. Currently, we operate under a calendar-based rather than an outcome-based schedule. As a result, students are "finished" with a class when the semester is over, rather than when they have learned the material.

In the Colorado Undergraduate Academy, students will continue to receive the lifelong benefits of a solid liberal arts education, only more tailored to their interests. For example, a student might develop a curriculum around a societal topic and take humanities, social sciences, and science courses that address that topic from an interdisciplinary perspective. Advisors also will be available to help students prepare for potential careers within their major fields.

3. EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING. We will incorporate experiential learning opportunities more broadly into every student's education.
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Perhaps most importantly, experiential learning will provide our graduates with problem-solving skills, multicultural interactions, and a sense of responsibility that will serve them well in the world of tomorrow.

Because the world will be different in 2030, we can expect that graduating students will need new skill sets to succeed in their personal and professional lives. They will require more than a college degree and a command of traditional knowledge; they will need to cultivate core personal attributes and a level of global understanding not currently emphasized in most university catalogs.

By 2030, CU-Boulder proposes establishing a broad array of learning experiences to help students prepare for success in their chosen fields and in their personal lives. We will require at least two semester-long experiences tailored to complement academic coursework and cocurricular activities. Examples might include a research or creative project teamed with a professor or an entrepreneurial experience such as starting a small business. Students might undertake a study abroad experience, an honors thesis or senior project, or a portfolio of creative work. Other possibilities include full-time engagement in a community service project, an internship with a commercial or nonprofit enterprise, or clinical experiences in the University of Colorado Law School.

We believe these experiential opportunities will help our graduates stand out among their peers in the workplace and excel as ongoing contributors to their communities and society. These opportunities will not only enhance the undergraduate experience of our students, but will benefit external partners in the experiences, including small and large businesses, area schools, local communities, and nonprofit organizations.

4. COLORADO'S RESEARCH DIAMOND. We will initiate a "research diamond" enterprise, in collaboration with other regional universities, businesses, government, and federal laboratories, helping to advance the university's research mission as well as the state's economic future.
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Specifically, we propose to collaborate with key partners on a "research diamond" in Colorado, which would create a new synergy among the state's research universities, businesses, government, and federal laboratories. Collaborators in this enterprise would address important state and national needs, drawing upon advances in such areas as neuroscience, atmospheric science, biotechnology, space science, energy, geosciences, and computational science, among many others.

Colorado currently is home to many businesses and industries that sharpen the state's competitive edge in the growing global economy. Other states and regions, however, are offering attractive economic packages that could lure away tomorrow's knowledge enterprises and their highly trained, well-compensated workforces. We believe the time is ripe for an aggressive effort to form statewide research partnerships that will create and keep future industries at home in Colorado.

The research diamond would build upon existing strengths and research specialties at CU-Boulder and neighboring research universities such as Colorado State University in Fort Collins, the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, and the University of Colorado Denver. It would engage leaders of business and industry, government, and federal laboratories in entrepreneurial collaborations in the development and transfer of technologies, patents, and intellectual properties to real-world applications. We believe it would serve as a magnet to attract the brightest graduate students from Colorado, the nation, and around the world.

The simultaneous build-out of the University of Colorado Research Park in Boulder would add a powerful facet to Colorado's research diamond, further strengthening CU-Boulder's contribution to the partnership. By supporting and enhancing our university's stature in graduate research, we will be better able to advance the collaborative enterprise.

State and federal support will be needed to launch Colorado's research diamond, but the return on investment could be significant. We believe this initiative will help ensure a bright future for Colorado's economy and promote an entrepreneurial spirit of discovery statewide. We will immediately begin strategic conversations with the potential partners and stakeholders in this venture, aiming for the joint development of a strategic plan within the next three years.

5. TRANSCENDING TRADITIONAL ACADEMIC BOUNDARIES. We will build high-level advocacy and incentives for promoting interdisciplinary teaching, learning, research, creative work, and scholarship.
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Over the past 50 years, CU-Boulder has established a worldwide reputation for multi- and interdisciplinary approaches to biotechnology, space, atmospheric science, the American West, nanoscale materials, computational science, and most recently, globalization in the humanities and social sciences, among many others. A broad array of interdisciplinary institutes, centers, and laboratories in the sciences, social sciences, humanities and the arts, and engineering address state and global issues, often with federal and industrial partners.

We believe the most successful universities in 2030 will be those that excel at spanning academic boundaries to address the complex and difficult issues facing society. CU-Boulder already has a strong tradition of interdisciplinary work—and we will build on that tradition.

At CU-Boulder, we continue to forge new interdisciplinary initiatives that focus on resolving human issues both in America and around the world, such as the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Initiative launched in 2006. The energy initiative brings a wide range of academic expertise—history, political science, engineering, biology, economics, chemistry, public policy, business, law, sociology, and physics—to bear on the growing worldwide energy crisis, including the effects of climate change. Our other initiatives include interdisciplinary programs in environmental studies, technology, and entrepreneurship. Our acclaimed environmental studies program, for example, draws from nearly 20 departments and other units, including the earth and natural sciences as well as the social sciences and humanities. Through such initiatives, many of our faculty and students become engaged in helping solve the problems of our world, crafting practical solutions that make a tangible difference.

In the coming decades, we will build on our solid foundation of "interdisciplinarity" to advance the Flagship 2030 goals and bring new focus to finding solutions to human problems. To that end, we will create a new framework for promoting interdisciplinary degree programs and rewarding faculty success in interdisciplinary teaching, research, and creative work. Strengthened advocacy and administrative support will help keep CU-Boulder at the forefront of interdisciplinary achievements for the next quarter-century.

As an initial step, we propose designating an officer-level academic administrative position to provide leadership for interdisciplinary teaching, learning, and scholarship. We also plan to extend our existing strengths in multi- and interdisciplinary engagement more fully into curriculum and degree offerings. Additionally, we will provide professional and financial incentives to recognize and reward interdisciplinary excellence and innovation.

6. BUILDING A GLOBAL CROSSROADS. We will bring the world to CU and CU to the world—through a new center for global studies and an expansion of student and faculty exchanges around the world.
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The center will attract the world's best thinkers to visit, work, and study at CU-Boulder, forming collaborative teams to address the critical problems of our society. These "Colorado Fellows" will include world-class researchers, scholars, and academics, as well as policymakers, public officials, and entrepreneurs. They will be selected competitively, based on proposals that address global issues facing government, business, industry, communities, the state, and society.

Colorado has the potential to become a global crossroads for business, science, and higher education—and CU-Boulder can play a central role. With a well-educated workforce, worldwide businesses, and world-class university research, Colorado already is competitive in the global knowledge economy, but more can be done. CU-Boulder has the capacity to become a truly "international" university, but we need to focus our efforts and expand our vision to reach this goal. Therefore, we propose establishing a new center to be called the Colorado Center for Global Education, Research, and Advanced Studies.

We believe the center will provide the critical infrastructure for a greater CU-Boulder international presence, as well as offer our students extraordinary opportunities to interact with the world's leading thinkers. The center also will help bring a global dimension to graduate education at CU-Boulder, providing a platform for the Graduate School to expand its international partnerships.

With Flagship 2030, we will launch the process of further "internationalizing" CU-Boulder. A senior-level administrator will be designated to coordinate and advocate for expanded international studies, study abroad, student and faculty exchange programs, international sabbatical programs, and opportunities for visiting faculty. With strengthened leadership, we will be able to focus our international efforts in new and creative ways. For example, we will consider creating "CU-Boulder satellites" with program offerings at other U.S. and international sites, including collaborations with higher education institutions around the world. We believe such initiatives will foster the intellectual exchanges, interconnections, and relationships that will drive the world by 2030.

7. CREATING UNIVERSITY VILLAGES. We will develop a new concept for the build-out of university properties, emphasizing an education-related, mixed-use approach.
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Under this new model, CU-Boulder will work with the Boulder community and the state of Colorado to create development alternatives that meet university, community, and state needs based on mixed-use concepts. Micro-master plans for "university village" properties will address such issues as affordable "green" housing, health care, recreation, diversity, and transportation, among others.

Just as barriers are falling between academic disciplines, so are the physical barriers that separate university campuses from their communities. Once cloistered behind walls, both literally and figuratively, universities now are more active partners in the life and well-being of their communities. Just as importantly, communities are playing key roles in the success of their universities.

We expect these interrelationships to become even more critical in the coming decades, and that our physical boundaries will be less and less distinct. By 2030, we anticipate the need for a new approach to the build-out of university properties, and we propose to start by collaborating with community leaders on a new concept called "university villages."

The "university villages" concept will feature a village square surrounded by spaces integrating student, faculty, and staff housing, along with educational, retail, and service facilities. In particular, the villages will be designed to embrace and create diverse, welcoming, and successful communities. All facilities will be constructed with materials and methods emphasizing sustainability and environmental awareness, consistent with the university's longtime commitment to the environment. The villages could include charter schools developed in partnership with the Boulder Valley School District, or even a Colorado community college satellite location. Health care facilities could serve the greater Boulder area as well as the university community. Arts and humanities spaces could offer cultural opportunities for campus and community enrichment.

Relationships between university campuses and their communities can be tense at times, and we are no exception in Boulder. Our shared history, however, underscores our need to work together for the common good. We believe the "university villages" model will foster a richer relationship between the university and the community, one that is based on mutual respect and active collaboration.

8. ALTERNATIVE DEGREE TRACKS. We will provide a range of options for earning CU-Boulder degrees, with greater emphasis on the master's degree as the primary degree track within 10 years.
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At CU-Boulder, we will provide a more personalized education for our students, and that includes broadening the choices for earning degrees. By 2030, a degree beyond the bachelor's may well be the entry-level degree for the kinds of jobs we want our graduates to command in the global workforce. Also, we are seeing a growing trend of freshmen arriving at CU-Boulder with significant college credits already in hand.

In recent years, CU-Boulder has launched a number of joint degree programs in which students begin graduate work while completing their undergraduate requirements. In these programs, students are able to receive both bachelor's and master's degrees at the same time, often gaining a competitive edge in the job market. Over the next quarter-century, we propose a significant expansion of these optional tracks so our students will have more choices for achieving the master's degree.

We will begin developing alternative and creative degree tracks that will respond to our graduates' needs in a global workforce, while ensuring the quality of the degrees our students earn. For example, we will:

Promote and expand our concurrent bachelor's/master's degree programs as formal tracks for students interested in a joint degree.
Initiate an "advanced studies" program to facilitate academic planning for students enrolling with significant advanced placement credits.
Add master's degree programs in law and enhance our existing joint degree programs in law.
Develop concurrent bachelor's/doctoral degree programs for interested students in appropriate disciplines.

9. YEAR-ROUND LEARNING. We will examine the creation of a year-round campus with an academic calendar of three semesters.
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We believe a third semester would expand learning and research opportunities for both students and faculty. The new calendar would allow greater opportunities for students to take the classes they need and want, participate in co-curricular programs, engage in music and other arts activities, and conduct research. They would be able to participate in study abroad, internships, and service learning year-round, if they desire. Additionally, they would have greater choices for completing graduation requirements.

Over the next quarter-century, Colorado expects to see a 30 percent increase in the number of high school graduates. Such growth will place pressure on access and excellence in the state's system of higher education. We know that more of our current degree-seeking students want to continue their education through the summer months. New experiential learning opportunities offered in Flagship 2030 will create even greater pressure to broaden our thinking about what constitutes an academic year.

We will consider making a fundamental change in the university's traditional calendar, both to address projected demographic pressure and to make more efficient use of facilities and human resources. We will work with the university community to examine the feasibility of establishing a year-round operation with three full semesters each academic year, thus permitting modest growth while preserving the quality of the academic enterprise.

Faculty would be able to pursue professional development opportunities, fellowships, research abroad, and concentrated scholarly and creative work in any of the three semesters—while retaining full-time appointments. We believe this new academic calendar would offer greater flexibility and professional options for our faculty.

In addition, we expect the year-round academic calendar would result in better use of campus space. By making full use of existing classroom, laboratory, residential, and support space, the university would be better prepared to handle any modest increases in enrollment.

Converting to a year-round schedule would not be easy—or without the need for investment. For example, we would need to address the issue of maintaining current buildings that will see greater wear throughout the year. New schedules may be needed for maintenance projects that are currently conducted in the less-busy summer months. A change in the academic calendar would require careful planning for renovations, moves, equipment upgrades, and other projects. In addition, we would need to assess personnel needs, such as how many additional faculty and staff would be needed to support a year-round schedule.

Such a profound change in our culture would have substantial impacts on the Boulder community. There likely would be increased pressure on traffic, housing, and transportation—issues that will need to be examined in collaboration with community leaders. Overall, however, we believe a year-round academic calendar would have a positive economic impact on the community.

10. MAKING ENTERPRISE WORK. We will seek greater operating flexibility and expanded resources for meeting CU-Boulder's role and mission.
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This new entrepreneurial spirit will be applied to our internal operations as well. We will explore internal financial models that create greater incentives and accountability for fiscal health and excellence at the school and college level. We will examine a "responsibility center-based" budget management model, which places greater budgetary authority and accountability at the appropriate unit level, consistent with the overall mission of the university.

CU-Boulder's vision for serving Colorado as a global leader in education and discovery requires significant resources and operating flexibility. Given our current limits on funding sources we must develop a more entrepreneurial relationship with the state of Colorado—one that emphasizes our public mission and accountability under a more self-reliant and market-driven financial model. In addition, we are committed to enhancing our private fundraising record, working in conjunction with the CU Foundation and the CU System to make a compelling case for private investment in CU-Boulder's future.

We believe the state's designation of CU-Boulder as an "enterprise" offers an opportunity to establish this new relationship. Such a change may require legislation to delegate fiscal authority—either a relationship similar to the Public Authority status granted the University of Colorado Hospital two decades ago, or a new model for defining government–university relations and responsibilities. Enterprise status, when fully defined, could offer the flexibility and scope of support needed to achieve for us to achieve our Flagship 2030 vision and meet our state role and mission.

Regardless of the model used, we will solidify our public compact with the state of Colorado—to provide an affordable education for state residents and to apply university resources to help address the changing needs of the state. For example, we plan to institute a financial aid access program aimed at minimizing or eliminating student loan debt for Coloradans. We will focus attention on providing an outstanding education to students from all segments of the state's population, including middle-class families. Also, we will continue to involve faculty and students in problem-solving partnerships to address such state issues as water management, economic development, energy, and a host of others.

We will begin by appointing an advisory board or "board of visitors," made up of business and community leaders, to advise us on developing new operating and financial models. These external advisors will be asked to help guide the university and advocate for our success. We also will foster stronger partnerships with the CU Foundation, the CU System, state government, nonprofit organizations, donors, parents, alumni, and other stakeholders. Our Flagship 2030 strategic plan will provide direction for CU-Boulder's next capital campaign and other private giving initiatives.

Clearly, our new relationship with the state must provide accountability and reflect CU-Boulder's public mission as the state's flagship university. At the same time, tomorrow's increasingly competitive environment will require greater management flexibility in order for the university to operate efficiently. Our new approach to enterprise status must strike the right balance between the two imperatives.