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Message from the President, September 2006

I am delighted to welcome you back for the fall term. The year promises to be a rich and exciting one, with a wonderful set of lectures, panels, exhibitions and performances already planned. The Class of 2010 is now arriving; we will all have occasions to meet and welcome them.

The most important work we will undertake this year is the completion of the strategic plan that will guide the college over the next decade. I am sure that you recall that we ended last year with the identification of eight strategic directions. I encourage you to read the report of the Committee of Mission and Priorities that identifies and describes them.

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This year we will develop focused initiatives to address each of these objectives. Faculty and staff may submit concept papers of no more than two pages for initiatives to the Committee on Mission and Priorities by October 16, 2006. I will be sending an e-mail to the campus about this process very soon.

To begin our campus discussion of each of these directions, I have scheduled a set of round tables for faculty and staff listed below. (Similar events for students will be scheduled later in the term.) I imagine these occasions as lively, focused conversations about how best to move forward in each of these areas in the most strategic way for the college. I will be leading each discussion, together with senior staff. In our conversations, we will explore each direction in greater detail, define the goals we have in pursuing it, and identify promising ideas and strategies.

I have chosen to compress the round tables in a fairly narrow time frame in order to stimulate our thinking and to identify those who might wish to serve as members of working groups, where such groups may be appropriate to develop ideas or proposals. I encourage you to attend the discussions of areas that are of particular interest to you. Lunch will be provided at round tables scheduled at the noon hour.

Round Tables for Faculty and Staff

Friday, September 8
	noon-1 p.m.		Strengthening Essential Student Capacities Part I: Intellectual Skills (Campus Center 204)
	4:30-5:30 p.m.		Promoting a Culture of Research, Inquiry and Discovery (Campus Center 204)
Monday, September 11
	4:30-5:30 p.m.		Preparing Women for Lives in a Rapidly Changing World (Campus Center 204)
Tuesday, September 12
	noon-1 p.m.		Extending Smith’s Impact on the World (Campus Center 204)
	4:30-5:30 p.m.		Encouraging Purposeful Engagement with Society’s Challenges Part I: Community Service (College Club Main Dining Room)
Wednesday, September 13
	noon-1 p.m.		Encouraging Purposeful Engagement with Society’s Challenges Part II: Promoting Civil Discourse (Campus Center 204)
Thursday, September 14
	noon-1 p.m.		Deepening Students’ Awareness and Appreciation of Other Cultures and Global Issues (College Club Lower Level; in conjunction with Liberal Arts Lunch)
	4:30-5:30 p.m.		Strengthening Essential Student Capacities Part II: Mapping the Curriculum (College Club Main Dining Room)
Friday, September 15
	noon-1 p.m.		Supporting and Promoting Environmental Sustainability (College Club Lower Level)
Monday, October 16
	4:30-5:30 p.m.		Opening Doors to Women of Promise (Campus Center 205)

Sincerely,

Carol T. Christ

Essential Information

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Organization &
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Process & Timeline

Assumptions About
the Planning Process

Planning Updates

Update: September
2006

Update: September
2006

Update: May 2006

Update: December
2005

NEASC
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