Strategic Plan Extension Through 2031

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In 2017, WKU engaged the campus and broader community in a comprehensive strategic-planning process that resulted in Climbing to Greater Heights, a decade-long plan guiding the university from 2018-2028. It focuses on student success and ensuring that our campus environment attracts the highest quality faculty and staff, and it renews our commitment to being fully engaged in our region and the commonwealth while providing a global context to the WKU Experience.

 

"Guided by a unified vision and strengthened by tremendous campus-wide collaboration, WKU has achieved extraordinary accomplishments during the past seven years, including the highest first-to-second year retention rate and the highest graduation rate in university history."

 

Given the continuously evolving higher education landscape, it’s both prudent and necessary to pause, reassess and recalibrate our course. To that end, President Caboni has assembled a Strategic Planning Committee charged with conducting a thorough review of Climbing to Greater Heights to determine what should remain unchanged, what we should revise or remove and what new priorities we must consider to ensure a vibrant future for WKU.

 

The committee will work through the spring semester to focus on advancing WKU as a whole, elevating the WKU Experience for our students and positioning the university for continued effectiveness. The amended strategic plan will extend Climbing to Greater Heights by three years and conclude in 2031, coinciding with WKU’s 125th anniversary.

 

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In March 2026, subcommittees provided their preliminary recommendations to the Executive Steering Committee. The recommendations were outlined in a campus-wide Zoom webinar on March 11, 2026. 

Subcommittee reports are available using the links provided below.  The entire WKU Community is invited to review and provide feedback by March 24, 2026.