The 2001 Action Plan Narrative and Status Report are derived from the 2000 Strategic Plan and should be understood as its annual iteration. A progress report on the priorities in the 2000 Action Plan is given, followed by a section that provides a status report on progress towards the various goals of the 2000 Strategic Plan under six major groupings:

• Recruitment & Retention of Students
• Undergraduate Experience
• Graduate Experience and Research
• Academic Programs & Faculty
• Connection to the Greater Community
• Infrastructure/ Support Improvement

Next, a context for the 2001 Action Plan is given, followed by a section that identifies those areas that will receive priority attention in 2001. Advancement in these areas is meant to assist the University in achieving the broad overarching strategic goal of becoming one of the nation’s premiere research universities located in an urban setting. Progress will be made in an incremental way by directing the work program of the University and, where necessary, the allocation of its fiscal resources.

In order to accomplish the University’s visions, goals and priorities, the faculty must remain mindful that being a responsible community member extends beyond disciplinary interests to the (unranked) interconnected aims of:

• liberal arts education in all undergraduate programs;
• provision of a learning-centered environment;
• scholarly activity for all faculty;
• advanced research programs;
• accomplished professional programs;
• intercultural and international perspectives;
• connections across disciplines and content areas;
• connections among graduate, professional, and undergraduate studies;
• opportunities for collaborative research and scholarly interaction among faculty and between faculty and students;

• exploration and use of new learning methods and technologies, when appropriate;
• assessment of courses, programs and services for the purpose of their continuous improvement;
• information literacy and lifelong learning;
• collaboration across institutions and between the campus and the community;
• use of our location in an urban area, a center of international commerce and a center of governance, to offer a distinctive education to our students;
• participation in partnerships that have a positive impact on community