Eller College National Board of Advisors members Bob Elliott (left) and Don Diamond at the joint Boards dinner on October 25, 2002

Last month, the Eller College National Board of Advisors convened for its fall Board meeting in Tucson. Chairman, Martha Taylor Thomas said, "this meeting was as important as any meeting since the Board was established twenty years ago." The agenda was focused on the immediate and foreseeable future of the College. Dean, Mark Zupan and Vice Dean, Stephen Gilliland discussed a draft strategic plan with the Board that describes the mission, vision, and strategies that will define the focus and direction of the College over the next five years.

According to Vice Dean Gilliland, "this exercise will serve many purposes beyond providing the College with a clearly defined roadmap. Having a strategic plan that has been endorsed by the Eller College community and the greater University community is also likely to play a role in our AACSB (American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business) accreditation process." Over the next several weeks the Eller College will be reviewed for accreditation by the AACSB. This periodic review process is designed to determine whether the College is in compliance with accepted standards and practices for premier business school programs.

While the Eller College continues to rank among the top undergraduate and graduate business schools, Dean Mark Zupan suggests that, "accreditation is not guaranteed based on your position in the rankings. The quality of our programs and research productivity is remarkable relative to the resources available to deliver these programs. Funding our enterprise is our most critical issue. Sustaining our current level of excellence will not be possible without a shift in our approach to revenue." Low tuition, fierce competition for top scholars, and incredible demand has resulted in fewer faculty members teaching more Eller students. "The AACSB will look closely at our faculty size. Our strategic plan must address our ability to recruit and retain faculty," said Vice Dean Gilliland.

Strategic Plan 2002-2007 VISION We will become one of the top 5 public schools of business and public administration. We will attain this threshold of excellence through building on our proud history of identifying emerging areas of importance and developing them into points of excellence. As we have been first-movers and are leaders in entrepreneurship and information and technology management, we will lead through the integration of business, public administration and social responsibility. MISSION The Eller College's vision will be manifest through an integrative approach permeating our core endeavors. These endeavors are to: DISCOVER: conduct research that advances the understanding of organizations and markets while improving business practice and government policies. EDUCATE: teach foundational and functional knowledge while striving to instill integrity, creativity, entrepreneurial spirit, leadership, interpersonal skills, and social responsibility. SERVE: undertake activities that improve the society within which we operate. INSPIRE: accord primacy to our people, their ideas, and their integrity. GOALS To fulfill our mission, we have the following five-year goals: Move our academic programs to the highest level of excellence among public schools by improving input and output quality while heightening the long-run satisfaction of all stakeholders. Become the leading public school in the promotion of home-state benefits from the ideas generated on campus, especially by enhancing technology transfer. Raise our recognition in business and research communities so that it is consistent with a top 5 public school. Strengthen our intellectual base through increased retention and adding 20 distinguished faculty who will advance our College vision and mission. Dramatically improve our resource base so that our annual operating budget grows by $10 million.

Tightening budgets and limited resources has forced the Eller College and The University of Arizona to explore making radical changes to the way higher education is funded in the State of Arizona. The Eller College National Board of Advisors met in a joint session with the College of Engineering and Mines Industry Advisory Council to discuss solutions that might make sense for both Colleges. One of the concepts introduced was a differential pricing strategy for business and engineering students. "Business and engineering students are investing in academic programs that have the potential to yield significant returns. Paying a higher price for a business degree is reasonable," said Martha Taylor Thomas. She continued, "resident tuition could double at Arizona and we would still be in the bottom quarter of our peer schools in terms of price."

It is clear that the Eller College is at a crossroads and this meeting served as a call to action. Board members were asked to carry the Eller torch as volunteers and donors. Dean Zupan invited the Board to provide feedback and to think of the College and its students when placing new employees/interns, or when making business or personal philanthropic decisions.

For a closer look at the Eller College Strategic Plan visit:

EllerStrat.pdf. The College would welcome your input on the plan and you are welcome to direct this input to either Dean Mark Zupan, mzupan@eller.arizona.edu or Vice Dean Stephen Gilliland, sgill@eller.arizona.edu.