The second phase of the College's long-range planning process is underway with the publication of a report summarizing the results of the focus groups which met in October and November.
The report will direct the major themes that will be addressed when formulating a long-term strategy for the College. Student members of the advisory committee have planned an open forum this Saturday for students to discuss the report and to gather additional input from students. Students will have the opportunity to talk about issues that were not mentioned in the report .
"At every step there will be all-campus involvement," said Joel Whitaker, senior and student assistant to President Nancy Dye.
The focus groups drew 443 members of the Oberlin community - approximately 139 faculty members, 123 staff, 147 students, 20 trustees, and 14 alumni. Discussion participants were given five questions to consider, and the meetings were facilitated by Elaine Kuttner and Ralph Fuccillo, both of Ampersand Associates, a Cambridge, MA consulting firm.
According to the report, the purpose of the discussion groups was not to develop a final plan, but to create a campus-wide dialogue and common language regarding Oberlin's future.
After the major themes of the report are extracted through discussions with many different campus constituencies, about 12 to 14 "planning teams" will be formed. The planning teams will meet from January through March to investigate a given theme and then decide, through campus discussion, where the College's strategies should lie for the 21st century.
Committee members said that the purpose of long-range planning is to figure out what the College needs to do in order to remain competitive in the next century, not necessarily to solve any immediate problems.
"This process is not about solving problems, it's about building the College," said Dye, who is also a member of the advisory committee.
The purpose of the Advisory Committee is to ensure that everyone is included in the planning process, and members also stress that this is a high-involvement process. Before and after each phase, input from all sectors of the College community is sought. Faculty, staff and students are invited to forums, and students are eligible to receive Winter Term credit for being on a planning team.
"We really need student input," said Whitaker.
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