Strategic Plan
During the 2003-04 academic year Oberlin initiated a strategic planning process focused on developing a plan that would ensure academic, artistic, and musical excellence as well as financial sustainability in the years ahead. On March 5, 2005, the Oberlin College Board of Trustees unanimously adopted the Strategic Plan, which had been approved by a General Faculty vote of 170-33, with two abstentions, the previous day.
This is a very significant accomplishment for Oberlin College. The twin actions by the faculty and the board bring to fruition some 18 months of work on the Strategic Plan. The plan charts a course that will strengthen Oberlin’s future. One of the key components of the strategic plan is a commitment to move towards environmental sustainability.
Move toward Environmental Sustainability
Rationale: Oberlin is in a favorable position to be a national leader in promoting sustainability on and off campus. The College has already committed itself to pursuing the goal of sustainability, as expressed in the “environmental policy statement of Oberlin College," adopted by the Board of Trustees in March 2004. It should abide by this commitment by continuing to work toward developing an environmentally sustainable campus. Justifications include the unprecedented environmental challenges our students will face in the future; the great importance attached by current and prospective students to efforts to achieve sustainability; the learning experiences afforded to students as a result of these efforts; and the continuing example Oberlin can set for other institutions, academic and otherwise.
Strategies
•Seek to reduce the rate at which the College contributes to the depletion and degradation of natural resources, to increase the use of renewable resources, and to consider other measures that can enhance the physical environment in which we live.
• To the extent practicable, develop and implement state-of-the-art standards for building design, construction, and performance, and for land use, consistent with the above goals of energy efficiency and prudent resource use.
• Work toward environmentally sound as well as aesthetically pleasing means of maintaining the physical plant, the landscape, and their surroundings.
• Enhance and develop further opportunities for students and faculty to participate in the continuing “greening" of the campus and the wider community through promoting course work in various curricular areas, independent research projects, and community service.
