Strategic Plan (2021‑26)

1. Exceptional student experience

Our students are the foremost reason for Dalhousie’s existence and purpose


Our students are the very essence of why we are here; their success is our highest obligation. Dalhousie’s diverse pan-Canadian and international students continue to be attracted to our outstanding learning environment, which reflects diverse populations, stimulating research, rich extracurricular opportunities, a strong student experience, and our East Coast cultures. We are committed to placing Dalhousie among the very best universities in the country for exceptional and equitable student experience and success.

We will track our success through independent national measures of educational quality, degree completion, employment, and student engagement.

Actions:

1. Make Dalhousie a leader in curriculum development and program innovation by providing excellent in-person, online, and hybrid/blended program delivery models through continued strategic investments in infrastructure, facilities, and faculty supports and training.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Draft Institutional eLearning Framework finalized and ready for consultation
  • Launch of Dalhousie Leading in Teaching Excellence (DLITE), a university-wide community for teaching leadership and learning
  • Continued context-appropriate, university-wide and Faculty/department-focused programming including workshops, retreats, certificates, studio courses, and teaching dossier preparation
  • Video production support beyond lecture capture for the creation of activities and content for online and hybrid courses, increasing access to people, places, exercises, and equipment that students may not otherwise interact with
  • Additional Educational Developers joined CLT with specialization in the areas of: Internationalization and Intercultural Competence, Indigenous Knowledges and Ways of Knowing, and eLearning
  • Launch of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Program by CLT
  • Received approval to undertake a holistic review of our approach to cyclical academic quality assurance (AQA)

Upcoming Priorities

  • Undertaking a holistic review of our approach to cyclical academic quality assurance
  • Developing a quality framework for online teaching (partnership with MPHEC)
  • Adding an Educational Developer (Curriculum) to support quality course and program design
  • Finalizing e-Learning framework
  • Continuing supports for online courses and captioning, such as Student Course Builders and Video Production support
  • eLearning faculty and student survey analysis
2. Reward excellence in teaching, curricular development, and pedagogical innovation in our undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs at par with other core elements of Dalhousie’s academic and research missions.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Continued supports offered through the Centre for Teaching & Learning including various teaching and learning grants, including Open Educational Resources (OER) grants, video production, and on-going educational development support
  • Supports offered through Academic Technology Services (ATS) for course builds, captioning and additional Brightspace support
  • Received national Desire2Learn (D2L) Innovation Award in Teaching and Learning for “Bringing First-Year Chemistry Online with Students as Partners through Universal Design” project
  • Creating resources and providing supports for Holistic Evaluation of Teaching

Upcoming Priorities

  • Developing a new university-wide award for Excellence in Online Teaching
  • Continued engagement with the Centre for Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning Network (CIRTL), a network of over 40 North American Institutions, by graduate students, faculty, and staff – development of CIRTL Program levels for Dalhousie to be launched Fall 2022
  • Increasing support for SLEQ and the Holistic Evaluation of Teaching
  • Established Student Learning Experience Questionnaire (SLEQ) Task Force to review the current teaching evaluation instrument
3.   Strengthen Dalhousie’s commitment to professional development and the preparation of students for employment and success through innovations in academic programing, skills-based learning, experiential and work-integrated learning, entrepreneurship training, and community- engaged teaching, research, and service. At least one form of genuine experiential learning opportunity will be available as an option in each Dalhousie degree by 2026.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Engaging as provincial lead for the Experiential Learning Institutional Metrics Project
  • Launch of Entrepreneurship & Innovation Minor
  • Moving all graduate, post-doctoral, and TA teaching development programming from CLT into an online format
  • Creating Dalhousie’s CIRTL Program, to be formally launched in September, 2022

Upcoming Priorities

  • Cataloguing course-based experiential learning opportunities and developing a shared language for course-based experiential learning across universities
  • Development of digital literacy training
  • Continuing key supports for graduate and post-doctoral students to develop their teaching skills
  • Exploring ways in which to extend TA development programming to undergraduate TAs
4.   Create a single, seamless, and digital system for supporting our undergraduate and graduate student journey from the point of first contact during recruitment throughto admission and registration, retention, student services and advising, academic success in upper years, graduation, career supports, and alumni relations.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Full implementation of Banner 9 registration through Dal Online for all students, both returning and new from high school
  • Launched improved Declare a Major/Minor, Block Registration, View Grades, Student Profile, and Student Biographical pages through Dal Online
  • Created a bridge between Destiny One (Faculty of Open Learning & Career Development) and Banner student information systems

Upcoming Priorities

  • Launching new CRM (customer relationship management) tool to improve and enhance the application experience and improve data, communications, and marketing processes
  • Actively working on elements of students’ digital journey, including forming a student advisory group to advise on digital projects that impact students
  • Joining MyCreds.ca Network, allowing learners to use and share their academic data through a secure digital network with global connections
  • Finalizing Banner 9 student project that will improve all aspects of self-service through Dal Online
  • Finalizing Cognos project that will reduce the volume of reporting requests and provide accurate and timely operational data to all users via self-service
  • Streamlining experience for students, faculty, and administrators through Destiny One and Banner student information system integration
5. Deliver excellent student support programs and services that increase student retention by reflecting evolving student needs and identities, including integrating diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility into systems, policies, and practices across all Dalhousie campuses.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Active promotion of and engagement with the National Standard for Mental Health and Wellbeing for Post-Secondary Students
  • Expanded grading options to include a Credit/No Credit option, supporting students who are experiencing extenuating circumstances that are impacting their academic success
  • Completed Year 2 review and assessment of Dal Mobile
  • Launch of Together@Dal to support new students as they transition into Dalhousie
  • Created new Student Experience unit within Student Affairs to help advocate for and create inclusive opportunities for all students

Upcoming Priorities

  • Expanding academic offerings on the Agricultural Campus to increase access for students from local rural, African Nova Scotian, and Indigenous communities
  • Implementing new Student/Community Engagement Plan
  • Developing a plan to integrate student wellness with faculty and staff wellness to encourage an institutional approach to health and wellness
  • Using findings from Dal Mobile assessment to align with Digital Strategy
  • Established Breaks and Statutory Holidays Task Force to examine the development of a regulation that outlines what academic activities can take place during breaks and statutory holidays
  • Established Withdrawal Dates Task Force to review the current course withdrawal period with consideration for a modified timeline
6. Expand Dalhousie’s global reach by identifying global partnerships, developing clear priorities for targeted, diversified, and expanded recruitment, retention, and academic success of international students, while also expanding international academic opportunities for all our students.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Workshops held with Government & Global Relations to inform internationalization and student support at Dalhousie with campus stakeholders
  • International student recruitment initiatives developed in partnership with Government & Global Relations
  • Introduced hyflex learning options in English Language Studies
  • Completed audit of international student services

Upcoming Priorities

  • International Tuition Working Group to provide recommendations on a new fee model for international students
  • Engaging with Dal Global to set direction for international student enrolment and support
  • Religious and Cultural Observances Task Force established by SLTC to examine the development of a calendar and guidelines for considering religious and cultural observances when scheduling university events and activities
  • Creating a pathway year program for international students
  • Prioritizing increased access to international learning experience
7. Deploy strategies that will strengthen Dalhousie’s capacity to reach, attract, and retain students who both historically and currently face barriers to participating in our community, with special emphasis on African Nova Scotian and Mi’kmaw students.

Key Achievements to Date

  • New financial awards for students who traditionally experience barriers to accessing higher education (ie. Sankofa Scholarships, tuition waiver for youth in care)
  • Renewed academic date principles approved, which led to a number of task forces being created to ensure that academic dates are set with due consideration given to all members of our community
  • 2SLGBTQIA+ student advisor position approved for strategic initiative funding in partnership with Human Rights & Equity Services
  • New pathway and cohort programs created in many Faculties to attract and support Indigenous and African Nova Scotian students
  • Launch of DalOpen – online access to credit courses (open to the public)
  • Launch of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) through the Faculty of Open Learning & Career Development to assess certified and experiential learning for adult learners, giving access to formal study and advanced standing

Upcoming Priorities

  • Finalizing draft of Equity Admissions Framework, a tool to update admissions processes and regulations to support the goal of yielding higher numbers of enrolled students from historically and currently under-represented and under-served groups
  • Launch of Student Affairs EDIA Plan
  • New Educational Developer (Indigenous Knowledges and Ways of Knowing) being hired by CLT specialized in decolonization and Indigenization
  • New Educational Developer (Internationalization and Intercultural Competency) being hired by CLT
  • Proposals underway for new Black & African Diaspora Studies and Indigenous Studies programs
  • Education Standard for Accessibility/Digital Strategy initiative – ie. UDL, education for faculty re: accessibility
8. Position Dalhousie as a committed lifelong career partner for our graduates, offering continual career up-skilling and re-skilling to all alumni by discounting post-first-degree enrolment in micro-credentials.

Key Achievements to Date

  • Launch of first micro-credential courses and learning experiences

Upcoming Priorities

  • Developing micro-credentials policy for Dalhousie
  • Expanding the use of Destiny One student management system for lifelong learning experiences that encompasses student, course catalogue, and financial management capabilities
  • Developing new ways to access and validate learning through DalOpen
(L-R): Student with protective glasses, instructor speaking, student smiling, staff member wearing a Dalhousie mask

Our shared plan

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2. Inclusive excellence

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