Augusta University
Russell T. Keen, EdD
Hello, everyone. We hope you enjoyed the inaugural edition of The Bridge, that we emailed to you in March 2022.
Produced by the Office of External Relations, this newsletter provides a quarterly recap of what our External Relations teams are doing to build bridges for Augusta University. This issue will summarize successes during the last quarter of FY2022 (April – June).
As fiscal year 2022 closes, we have much to celebrate as a university. Perhaps one of the most significant institutional achievements for this year was the April launch of our strategic plan, Creating A Legacy Like No Other. This plan will serve as a roadmap over the next five years as we continue to construct bold new pathways into the strategic priorities of Learning, Discovery, Student Success, Community and Stewardship, with interwoven priorities of Innovation, Engagement and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
I had the pleasure of serving on the Project Leadership Team as the project co-sponsor, working alongside our provost, Dr. Neil J. MacKinnon. In addition, three of our leaders in External Relations served as co-champions in priority areas – Suzanne Tatum (Community), Eileen Brandon (Stewardship) and Tina Baggott (Engagement).
I am grateful to President Brooks A. Keel, our executive project sponsor, Mickey Williford, our project leader from Institutional Effectiveness, as well as everyone else involved in the strategic planning process. We have set three major goals:
- Reach an enrollment of 16,000 students by 2030.
- Be ranked in the Top 60 universities for National Institutes of Health funding.
- Achieve Carnegie Community Engagement Classification by 2026.
These are bold goals, but with the support of the entire university community, including each of you, we can do this. I am so grateful to our External Relations teams for all the support you attract to Augusta University and our strategic priorities. Much of your advocacy happens behind the scenes, yet it positions our university to achieve great things. The bridges you are building in fundraising, engagement and the like help keep us connected to our priorities, and we cannot move forward without you.
I enjoyed working side-by-side with our team leaders in External Relations this month as we began exploring a strategic plan for this office that will help bolster our institutional plan. I was reminded of how productive and creative we can be when we work together toward a common purpose.
I value each and every one of you in External Relations. What you do matters, and I am blessed to be your leader and advocate.
Thanks for all you do to help create our legacy.
Sincerely,
Russell T. Keen, EdDEVP for Administration and External Relations & Chief of Staff to the President Read Newsletter
