BAY MILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Strategic Plan 2005-2010

Table of Contents

1. Executive Summary
2. Introduction
   1. History of BMCC
   2. Mission statement
   3. Statement of vision for 2010
   4. Description of planning process
3. Strategic Priorities
   1. Quality Academic Programs
   2. Community Service Programs
   3. Student Services
   4. Native Cultural Programs
   5. Facilities/Operations
   6. Research Programs
   7. Enrollment Management
4. Appendices
   1. Resolution from Board of Regents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Bay Mills Community College (BMCC) representatives have engaged in a planning process to guide the development, programming and operations of the College. In May 2005, a team of BMCC representatives completed a working plan to serve as the guiding document for the next five years. This strategic planning document details the priority planning areas set forth by the BMCC strategic planning committee. The priority planning areas, called "strategic priorities", include:

1. Quality Academic Programs
2. Community Service Programs
3. Achieving Financial Sustainability
4. Student Services
5. Native Cultural Programs
6. Facilities/Operations
7. Research Programs

For each of the strategic priorities, a single goal and multiple objectives are identified. Action steps are identified for each objective, as well as a timeline and delegated responsibilities.

It is important to reiterate that this is a working document. Changes will be made, as necessary, in order to achieve the goals of the college and to best serve the Bay Mills and surrounding communities. The planning team hopes that this plan will be used by College and Community representatives to guide future programs and operations as well as to help raise awareness of the Bay Mills Indian Community’s vision for the College over the next five years.

INTRODUCTION

Overview of BMCC
Bay Mills Community College (BMCC) is situated on the southeastern shore of Lake Superior, on the Bay Mills Indian Reservation, which is located in Michigan’s Eastern Upper Peninsula. The Bay Mills Indian Community (BMIC) is five miles northwest of Brimley, Michigan and twenty miles west of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

The college began as a vocational program in response to the economic development needs of seven Native American communities which were initially served by the program funded in 1981 by the Department of Education. In 1984 the college was chartered by the Bay Mills Indian Community under the Tribally Controlled Community Colleges Act. Since its establishment in 1981 with an enrollment of eleven students, the college has grown to currently serve over five hundred students on campus and through its virtual campus.

BMCC is Michigan's only fully accredited (www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org) Tribal College, and was designated as a Land Grant Institution by the Equity in Educational Land Grant Status Act of 1994. BMCC is chartered by the Bay Mills Indian Community as a nonprofit educational corporation and has been declared 501(c)(3) tax-exempt by the Internal Revenue Service. Control is vested in a Board of Regents, which selects the president and establishes overall institutional policy. BMCC is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium.

As the state’s only fully accredited tribal college, BMCC serves the now twelve federally recognized tribes of the state. In addition to the Bay Mills Indian Community, BMCC has been working with all of the federally recognized tribes of the state with the goal of setting up academic programs. Although the college specializes in programs for American Indians, who represent approximately 60% of the annual student enrollment, its doors are open to all people who want to benefit from the educational process. BMCC is dedicated to providing academic and personal enrichment programs to Native Americans and residents of their neighboring communities.

In recent years, BMCC has developed an impressive, cutting edge technological infrastructure; which has allowed BMCC to reach beyond the borders of Michigan and offer on-line instruction throughout North America.

BMCC Mission
As a tribally controlled community college, the mission of the Bay Mills Community College is to nurture minds, advance knowledge, provide research opportunities, and demystify the college experience in an accessible, community-based, and culturally diverse environment.

BMCC Vision
With learning as its central mission, BMCC will prepare students to become productive and responsible members of an increasingly diverse workforce by providing them with academic, technical, work and life skills, as well as the self-confidence needed for successful transfer into baccalaureate programs or directly into the workforce. By establishing itself as an effective partner, alongside other academic institutions, private and public sector employers, and neighboring communities, BMCC will ensure its long-term viability and positive impact on the Upper Great Lakes region. BMCC will work to ensure the viability and sustainability of the language, culture and way of life of the Anishnaabe people while promoting and emphasizing life-long learning for all students.

Overview of Planning Process
In April of 2003, BMCC stakeholders (students, faculty, staff, administrators, community members, etc.) convened to discuss community needs and the role that Bay Mills Community College may play in addressing these needs. This community process resulted in a planning document that provided a prioritized list of future academic programs, listed possible sources of funding for faculty and explored the meaning of BMCC’s 1994 Land Grant designation. The process was facilitated by faculty and staff from Michigan State University, BMCC’s sister Land Grant institution.

In December of 2004, a team of BMCC administrators gathered to develop a strategic action plan for achieving the goals of the College. The April 2003 document provided an important community assessment and was factored into the December 2004 planning activities. The December 2004 planning session, participants focused on drafting the College’s planning priorities, and within these priority areas, crafting specific action plans to foster success.

Between December 2004 and May 2005, the BMCC strategic planning team continued developing the details of the 2005-2010 strategic plan through group planning activities. The team submitted the resulting strategic plan to the BMCC Board of Regents for approval. The Board of Regents approved the plan on July 22, 2005.

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES
The operation of a tribal college requires many interrelated and often interdependent activities.BMCC’s strategic planning activities helped determine that the following institutional functions are critical in order for the College to successfully fulfill its mission:

1. Quality Academic Programs
2. Community Service Programs
3. Student Services
4. Native Cultural Programs
5. Facilities/Operations
6. Research Programs

These functions will therefore be the focus of the 2005-2010 BMCC strategic planning activities and are referred to as "Strategic Priorities".  The following section of this report will present a goal statement and specific objectives for each Strategic Priority area as well as action steps, personnel assignments, timelines and projected outcomes for each objective.

Strategic Planning Priority: Native Cultural Programs

BMCC currently provides several cultural programs to the Bay Mills and other Native American communities throughout the Great Lakes Region. The College has also partnered with Anishnaabe communities outside of the EUP region for cultural program delivery. The College has contributed significantly to Anishnaabe cultural preservation through language instruction, language instructor training and by integrating cultural traditions into the overall BMCC environment.

Goal:  Expand our role as a prominent Anishnaabe language and cultural development/educational institution in the Great Lakes region.

Objectives: 

1. Maintain and expand our unique cultural programs on and off campus.

2. Develop and share new language and cultural programming with Tribal communities.

3. Train enough Instructors to export immersion language programs to other Anishnaabe native communities.

Strategic Planning Priority: Academic Department

BMCC has always been committed to providing the best possible academic programs designed to meet the needs of the Bay Mills Indian Community, other Michigan tribal communities, and surrounding region.  Successfully addressing this critical component of the College’s mission will require ongoing needs assessment, effective faculty, a high standard of academic rigor as well as other key factors.

Goal:  Selectively build and maintain quality academic programs to ensure student success, employability and transferability.

Objectives:

1. Identify employment needs as they relate to academic offerings that can be selectively implemented.

2. Increase the number of academic program articulation agreements with universities.

3.  Recruit and maintain a highly qualified and effective faculty.

4. Refine assessment of student learning process and ensure that it is institutionalized.

5. Create an effective alumni tracking system.

6.  Investigate and inform students of service learning opportunities.

7.  Provide effective support in the area of academic enrichment.

9.  Ensure that all academic programs meet a standard level of rigor.

Strategic Planning Priority: Facilities/Operations

BMCC has developed several new facilities in recent years for instruction, research and administration. Even with the development of these new facilities, BMCC staff and students need additional space for effective campus-based operations. Currently, the College needs additional meeting, storage, teaching, office, research, and community activities space. BMCC will need to create a plan to accommodate current and projected future operations.

Goal:  Develop and Implement a campus master plan that identifies and addresses college wide space needs.

Objectives:

1.  Determine best use of current and future BMCC Property and Facilities.

Strategic Planning Priority:  Student Support Services

It is critical that BMCC provide a network of support that adapts to the changing needs of a diverse student body.  Current BMCC leadership recognizes the critical importance of retaining and supporting students as they seek to achieve individual academic and career goals.

Goal: BMCC will continue to develop quality student support services to assist students in achieving their academic goals and personal/cultural development.

Objectives:

1. Provide tutoring services.

2. Establish Disability Services

3.  Provide cultural services.

Strategic Planning Priority: Community Service Programs

BMCC has a history of serving the local and regional communities through capacity building, workforce development, and through advocacy and preservation of Anishinaabek culture. BMCC will maintain and or expand existing community service roles and increasingly become a focal point of community and economic development.

Goal: BMCC will be the focal point for capacity building for all college constituencies.

Objectives:

1.  Expand opportunities that promote collaboration efforts and vision building within the BMIC, surrounding region, and other Tribal communities of the Great Lakes.

2.  Develop capacity to support community services within the BMIC, surrounding region, and other Tribal communities of the Great Lakes.

Strategic Planning Priority:  Research Programs

BMCC students and faculty have engaged in limited research activities including projects in association with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).  There are significant opportunities for expanding research opportunities for both students and staff at BMCC.  The BMCC Strategic Planning Leadership Team identified the expansion of such programs as an important way to support the academic and professional development of its students, faculty, and staff while also addressing critical issues in Indian Country.

Goal: Increase faculty, staff, and student opportunities campus-wide for participation in research projects that will assist in academic preparation work training, and benefit community development.

Objectives:

1. Develop institutional research capacity.

2.Develop more opportunities for students to understand the research process and its role in society.