Running Head: FINAL PROJECT

Final Project
Jessica Turpin
Post University

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Final Project:
Sunshine State University Strategic Plan

The issues identified in the Sunshine State University report are the lack of diversity in
the student body despite the universities objective in the strategic plan of ensuring students have
an enriching multicultural experiences that lead to enhanced cultural competency. The strategic
plan outlines what should be done to ensure experiences outside of the classroom and campus
environment are enriching but fails to consider how much can be learned at school if an effort
were made to be more inclusive of a diverse population. The following will discuss what can be
done in the implementation of an action plan to increase the diversity in the student population
and creating a more culturally competent student body at home without that added expense of
foreign travel and living expenses.
The first step in addressing the issue of increasing the diversity in the student population
would be to create specific goals by which to measure the success of the plan. The specific type
of goal that should be used is the SMART goal. Mark Murphy (2015) indicates that SMART
goals are not always a good idea because they encourage organizations to play it safe. While
this may be true in some circumstances, a SMART goal will be very beneficial in this scenario.
A SMART goal is a goal that is Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevent (or realistic), and
Time-based (Bestprogress.com, n.d.). The SMART Goal that will be put in place for the
Sunshine State University is as follows.
Specific: Sunshine state will increase the diversity of its student body by 10% over the next five
years.
Measurable: Will be measured on a yearly basis using the demographic information provided
by each student.

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Attainable: Possible and attainable by steps in action plan.

Relevant: Sunshine State University prides itself on cultural competence and should incorporate
that value at home as well as overseas. This is a means by which it can be accomplished.
Time-based: This goals should be reached in the course of five years of the implementation of
the action plan.
The next step is to construct the action plan. The action plan for completing this goal will
consist of reaching out to 20 schools not previously involved in the universities recruiting efforts
in culturally diverse regions surrounding the university to register for upcoming college fairs.
Outreach and recruiting efforts will also expand to cultural centers and churches with expos
being held at both. The university will also increase its attractiveness to students with diverse
backgrounds by incorporating clubs and a multicultural center on the grounds. To accomplish
these steps many people including both faculty, staff, students, and alumni will be asked to
participate.
The recruiting department at Sunshine State University will be responsible for booking
tables at the newly identified locations. The recruiting department will use a combination of
current students, alumni, faculty, and staff at such recruiting events to provide prospective
students with a vision of the university from multiple points of view. Outreach and recruiting at
churches and cultural centers will be done by current students and recent alumni in an effort to
be more relatable to the youth that are trying to be reached. Clubs formed on campus will be
overseen by one faculty member but alumni and students will be responsible for all other
procedures to ensure it is being constructed to comply with the cultural preferences of the
students it aims to serve.

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The success of this endeavor would be measure in two ways. The actual increase in
diversity will be measured on a yearly basis using the demographic information provided by the
students as previously stated. If no improvement has been seen after the first year of the new
recruitment efforts the plan will be re-evaluated. The second way in which this will be evaluated
is by administering student surveys to evaluate the students level of satisfaction with current
efforts and planned cultural activities for the future.
If the above strategic and action plan are implemented by the Sunshine State University
the school will enjoy the benefits of being able to provide the students with an experience that
will produce culturally competent students on campus by increasing the diversity of the student
body. The students will benefit from this as they will no longer have to travel abroad to
experience a variety of cultures and experiences. Clubs on campus will also help students to
experience various cultures. These changes and improvements will continue to make the school
more desirable to incoming students as there will be less cost incurred from travelling abroad and
increased diversity on campus.

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References:

Bestprogress.com (n.d.) Strategic planning tools Tactical S.M.A.R.T. objectives. Retrieved

from http://www.bestprogress.com/wp-content/uploads/SMART-Objectives.pdf
Murphy, M. (2015). SMART goals can sometimes be dumb. Forbes. Retrieved from
http://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2015/01/08/smart-goals-can-sometimes-bedumb/#5f6f73c1142c
Sunshine State University (2016) Sunshine State University Common Data Set 2015-2016.
Retrieved from https://post.blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-3296828-dt-content-rid26506239_1/courses/EDU515.901014086377/Rubrics%20%26%20Assignments/Sunshin
e%20State%20University%20Common%20Data%20Set%20for%20Strategic%20Plannin
g.pdf