THE FACULTY OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Strategic Plan

The Faculty of Health and Social Development decided to undertake strategic planning to further advance our Faculty and continue to make strategic investments in our campus, community, and beyond. The process highlighted the quality and strengths of our teaching and learning programs, the extraordinary achievements and reputations of our scholars and practitioners, and our commitment to UBC and ASPIRE. Guided by the Strategic Planning Advisory Committee and Steering Committee, the resulting plan comprises input from faculty, students, staff, partners, and community.

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VISION

Transcend disciplines to solve the critical health and social challenges of our day.

MISSION

Bring our combined expertise to promote wellbeing across the life span.

Values

We value excellence.
The Faculty strives to achieve the highest standards in research, education, and service.

We value diversity, inclusivity, and equity.
The Faculty values and respects all members of its communities, each of whom makes an important contribution to enriching our Faculty.

We value innovation.
From the creation of ideas to the implementation of practice, the Faculty values and supports creativity and alternative perspectives.

We value respect.
As the foundation for all aspects of our teaching, learning, research and partnerships, respect underpins the Faculty leadership’s promise to act with integrity.

We value accountability.
The Faculty embodies the highest standards of service and stewardship of resources.

Principles

Research and Education to improve lives

Research Excellence
Advance knowledge and understanding to improve lives through discovery, dissemination, and application.

Knowledge Exchange
Facilitate real-world impact through co-creation of knowledge by researchers and knowledge users.

Achieve international recognition as a dynamic interdisciplinary Faculty that contributes to the discovery, dissemination and implementation of health and wellbeing knowledge and understanding

  • Support existing and emerging clusters of research strengths
  • Maintain and enhance excellence through continued attention and investment in recruitment and retention of faculty and graduate students in established and emerging research strengths

Support and enhance Faculty researchers’ grant funding participation and success rates

  • Enhance support during application and post-award infrastructure for tri-council and non tri-council research funding
  • Collaborate with schools and campus partners to measure research outputs and impacts, and streamline systems to support an increase in research funding

Enhance Faculty research infrastructure to support leading edge research

  • Develop a 5-year operations plan to identify current and emerging infrastructure needs
  • Optimize current space allocation to promote research culture

Collaborate with campus and community partners to support innovation and increase impact of outreach

  • Facilitate knowledge mobilization capacity and effectiveness through enhanced support for knowledge translation and knowledge mobilization programs
  • Develop a system to identify current and emerging opportunities to support innovation in knowledge exchange.

Recruit and retain top-class graduate students and postdoctoral fellows

  • Enhance recruitment of graduate students through competitive packages and inspiring programs of research
  • Strengthen international reputation of Faculty as a driver for health and wellbeing research
  • Intensify the relationship between research and teaching at the undergraduate level

Promote wellbeing for all members of society

Leaders in Wellbeing.
Promote wellbeing through faculty, staff, and student leadership.

Experiential Teaching & Learning
Educate world-ready graduates through innovative experiential education.

Fortify existing programs and investigate innovative options to best meet the needs of the health and wellbeing disciplines

  • Increase collaboration between faculty, staff and programs to develop and deliver responsive curriculum
  • Strengthen innovative culture of experiential learning within the Faculty

Expand experiential teaching and learning opportunities, including research, to provide all levels of students with opportunities to enrich experience

  • Improve career development and service provision to build requisite competencies for future careers
  • Invigorate network of experiential placement partners through mutually beneficial collaboration opportunities
  • Explore shared planning and integrated delivery across Faculty programs
  • Expand experiential education internationally through strategic partnerships

Enhance initiatives that support student engagement and success

  • Strengthen feedback mechanisms for students to engage with the Faculty and Schools with the aim to enhance teaching and learning
  • Support and streamline Faculty infrastructure to enhance faculty and student health and wellbeing initiatives to expand academic and community support

Establish Faculty as a campus leader in health and wellbeing initiatives

  • Assume leadership role within UBC Okanagan in strengthening support for current campus health and wellbeing priorities and initiatives
  • Build and support accessible cross-campus courses, informed by leading edge health and wellbeing research
  • Promote and recognize initiatives that enhance the current health and wellbeing services available to members of the campus and community
  • Collaborate with campus and community partners to enhance the quality and impact of health and wellbeing leadership activities of faculty, staff, and students

Service and engagement of communities

Global Engagement
Enhance opportunities to collaborate locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.

Indigenous Engagement
Engage in mutually supportive and equal relationships with indigenous peoples, while integrating and enhancing support for indigenous culture.

Develop and implement a comprehensive community engagement strategy

  • Increase dialogue between Schools and enhance cross-School coordination to promote strategic engagement
  • Expand collaboration with community partners to create opportunities for students, staff, and faculty to collaborate in proactive and sustainable partnerships

Build an environment of support for excellence in indigenous engagement

  • Strengthen programs supporting the entry, academic success, social support and wellbeing of indigenous students
  • Develop community partnerships centred on high value and priority for indigenous communities
  • Further develop support for community-based and indigenous research in collaboration with campus and community partners

Increase capacity to globally engage

  • Increase international opportunities to strengthen the Faculty’s role in international development
  • Streamline support infrastructure within Faculty to support projects with international partnerships

Develop a strategy in collaboration with development

  • Establish fund development strategies based on the Faculty’s current and emerging strengths

Exceptional People and place

Outstanding Environment
Cultivate a fulfilling environment, which reflects our commitment to wellbeing.

Exceptional Experiences
Commit to a positive culture that supports professional and personal growth.

Expand health and wellbeing initiatives in the Faculty

  • Collaborate to implement and champion health and wellbeing initiatives within the Faculty

Facilitate participatory governance

  • Enhance communications across the Schools to expand opportunities for collaboration
  • Demonstrate commitment to accountable and transparent governance through continued optimization of Faculty’s processes and committee structures
  • Strengthen feedback mechanisms for faculty and staff
  • Ensure long-term sustainability of operations through prudent economic management

Foster an environment that demonstrates the Faculty’s commitment to its values

  • Provide a working and learning environment that promotes and sustains a positive culture to work and study
  • Maintain an environment committed to inclusivity, equity and diversity
  • Engage in reflection and action to build a strong sense of community within the Faculty, and across the schools.