Summary
What began more than a year ago as an effort to involve the “many voices” of the IIT community in a strategic planning process has concluded with a resounding declaration: We are Many Voices, One University! Achievement of the goals set forth in this plan will transform IIT and place it among the elite private universities that focus on technology and the professions.
To help shape the plan, three groups representing the IIT community submitted reports: the University Steering Committee, the academic deans, and students. The Board of Trustees, alumni, all academic units, student government, and staff of the university provided feedback on various drafts of the strategic plan.
Illinois Institute of Technology traces its legacy back to a nationally preeminent stature in engineering, science, and technology, and to the spirit of innovation the Bauhaus brought to Chicago and IIT in the 1930s by László Moholy-Nagy and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. In this spirit, our goal is to produce graduates who have discipline-specific expertise and who are also known for their values and their ability to create, innovate, initiate, and lead. Our vision and mission call for:
- Renewed commitment to innovation and the nurturing of excellence
- Vigorous partnership with the great city of Chicago
- Relevant education of our students, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds
- International collaborations
- Cross-disciplinary research and education that build on our strengths in the professions and technology
We challenge ourselves to reduce the boundaries between our academic units in order to bring greater recognition to IIT through collaboration, an emphasis on excellence, a commitment to diversity, and a respectful work environment.
Five university-wide priorities have been identified:
- Distinctively define the IIT graduate
- Increase the impact of IIT’s research by focusing on interdisciplinary themes
- Promote innovation and excellence throughout the university
- Elevate engineering’s reputation to international stature
- Improve the financial strength of the university
Each of these priorities is linked to specific goals with measurable five-year milestones. While ambitious, these goals are achievable and essential for IIT to achieve its vision.
Read John Anderson's paper Innovation in a Technology-Oriented University: IIT as an Innovative Studio -- published at the beginning of the strategic planning process.