Staff Report

After a year of focus groups and multiple drafts, the Associated Students of the University of Nevada senate approved a new strategic plan for the association during its meeting on Wednesday. The plan, written by ASUN President Caden Fabbi, replaces the now-outdated Joint Vision 2017, much of which has been implemented already.

Titled “No Walls: 2025: A Student Vision for the University of Nevada,” the plan is aimed at breaking down the barriers that Fabbi sees as keeping the university and the student body from reaching their full potential. More than that though, Fabbi stressed in the plan’s conclusion that future student leaders shouldn’t shy away from roadblocks that may impede implementation of the plan.

“To reach this ideal campus with no walls, there may need to be some fee increases and there may need to be some changes in the way that we typically think about our college experience,” Fabbi wrote.

Fabbi had been working on the new plan since the start of his term a year ago. In the plan’s cover letter, Fabbi notes the importance of qualitative data, metrics, interviews and focus groups, as it all played a large part in focusing and developing the plan. For him, the document will provide a vision for ASUN officers and the students they serve.

“I think [the plan] allows [students] to see that ASUN can have a large and real impact on the student experience,” Fabbi said. “And it’s not even just students. This document is gonna be sent out to every faculty member on campus; it’s gonna be sent out to the chancellor, the regents, we want to give it to legislators. We want everyone possible to read this document.”

The plan is, however, fairly vague when it comes to recommendations. At the end of every section, there’s a bulleted list of goals for ASUN. These goals are worded such that there’s no specific action to be taken on any single item — and it’s for good reason, according to Fabbi.

“Things change over time, from year to year,” Fabbi said. “The way we would go about accomplishing some of these goals right now may not be the way that students might go about accomplishing them in 2022 or 2023.”

Fabbi added that the whole purpose is to provide a vision of the future “from the clouds,” and that it’s up to future officers to figure out specifics.

Even so, the plan is still fairly comprehensive. At 10,000 words and 40 pages, the five separate sections cover everything from the Campus to the City Initiative to the role of advising to the relationship between ASUN and entities like the UNR Cooperative Extension.

The first section, titled “A College Town,” covers the proposed Gateway District, the role of student spectators in university athletics, the relationship between ASUN and Reno’s cultural scene, as well as the expansion of Learning 365 via the creation of “The Experimental College.” That experimental college would utilize Learning 365 and the Cooperative Extension to provide non-credit classes to students and community members.

The next section tackles the nature of the university community, especially as it pertains to students. Specifically, this section does much to address diversity on campus, calling for a role in the recruitment of minority students, increased faculty diversity and more resources for gender equity, to name a few.

The third section expands the meaning of community to include the Reno community at large, noting specifically UNR’s role as a land grant institution. This section includes many of the general goals already addressed in some form by ASUN, namely civic engagement.

The fourth section focuses back on students, who, it should be noted, form the entirety of the ASUN constituency. Specifically, this section tackles the future of career opportunities on campus, student health, and the relationship between ASUN and alumni.

The fifth part, titled “A Holistic Learning Experience,” provides an outline for just that. It covers everything from faculty pay to teaching styles.

During last week’s meeting of the ASUN senate, Center for Student Engagement Director Sandra Rodriguez noted that the professional staff within ASUN has already begun implementing the plan, or at least referring to the plan when it comes to looking where ASUN should go.

The senate approved the new plan unanimously, thus it will immediately replace Joint Vision 2017.

The news desk can be reached at jsolis@sagebrush.unr.edu and on Twitter @TheSagebrush.