Venango Heading ‘True North’ With Plans to Strengthen Campus

| April 21, 2019

OIL CITY, Pa. (EYT) – Venango Campus is headed “True North,” as it tackles six areas for improvement and it takes steps to take back its backyard in recruiting students.

The True North Initiative is a planning process that identified six priorities that are obtainable for Clarion University over the next three years, including Venango Campus.

The True North Initiative document spells out recommendations to strengthen Venango Campus.

“True North is our map, what we need to do. It is our core value,” said President Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson in an interview with exploreClarion.com.

Item number six recommends the following:

The Clarion University Venango Campus must develop a Business Plan encompassing all relevant aspects of building/rebuilding Venango as a viable academic and economic venture for the University and for the region. This plan will provide an analysis of necessary personnel, physical, financial, and academic resources for that unit of Clarion University to thrive. Fundamental to this recommendation is that our Venango Campus have an administrative structure (e.g. Director) whose sole responsibility is leadership of the campus and programs.

The recommendations and actionable items suggested in the report are based upon the foundational premise that Clarion University desires to keep Venango Campus open as a branch campus in fulfillment of the University’s mission as an access institution, to serve a broader community and population, and to bring a new meaning to being a regional, comprehensive University. The working group, though sufficiently aware of the financial challenges facing Clarion University, made the recommendations as a way to give University leadership a path for moving forward successfully.

“We will keep our core programs, but we will also deliver what people need in workforce development,” said President Pehrsson. “It’s very exciting when you are at a university that is just a little bit different from the other PASSHE schools in that we have everything from certificate programs to doctoral programs. We can deliver that range for regional needs. We want to become better at so I’m looking forward to new leadership. We have been very lucky having a Deb Sobina and Hope Lineman, but we want somebody permanent at Venango who can really build those programs.”

Actionable items recommended:

  • Install a “Director” to lead the administrative team whose sole purpose is to focus on the success of the Venango Campus;
  • Review the policies, processes, and programming at Venango Campus to objectively determine a viable path forward;
  • Develop a business plan encompassing all relevant aspects of Venango Campus operations;
  • Build unique Academic Programming reflecting a new model of a 2-year degree, non- degree, certificate, continuing education, and training programs which are stackable and flexible. Programming should be based on regional, workforce needs and serve untapped and non-traditional populations; and
  • Provide proper support services.

RELATED:

Clarion Taking Off for ‘True North,’ Taking Back Their Own Backyard


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