Our Areas of Distinction

In our 146-year history, this campus has established an identity and personality that is unique to Illinois and provides the foundation that differentiates us from our peers and that leads us to work and explore in uniquely productive ways. These areas of distinction will provide the fundamental building blocks for our strategic goals.

  • Our iconic, inspirational and adaptable campus
  • Our accessible, engaged and open scholarly community
  • Our track record of innovation and creativity
  • Our technology-rich environment
  • Our comprehensiveness and land-grant tradition
  • Our effective, collegial and nationally recognized system of shared governance
  • Our global impact
  • Our campuswide commitment to diversity

Our Guiding Principles

We will be both agile and accountable. This is a three-year plan of practice guiding us through the end of 2016. While the mechanics and implementation strategies of a plan may change over time to reflect the operating environment, we always will be guided by a set of open and transparent guiding principles. We may change what we plan to do, but we will not change how we arrive at those decisions.

  • We will continue to make strategic investments in institutional excellence.
  • We will be mindful of and responsive to the changing financial landscape for higher education.
  • We will be agile as we pursue the current sets of priorities in our plan.
  • We will embrace a culture of institutional improvement and assessment.
  • We will collaborate and engage with faculty, staff, students, alumni and other stakeholders in our planning and implementation.
  • We will celebrate our achievements visibly and proudly and empower all members of our community to speak up and out.
  • We will ensure that an Illinois education is both valuable and financially accessible.
  • We will be leaders in addressing the world?s most complex and critical challenges.
  • We will be a laboratory of innovation and a global leader in higher education across its varied dimensions.
  • We will prepare students to be global citizens and leaders in the 21st century.
  • We will build and nurture transformative, lifelong relationships with all members of our community.
  • We will strive to create and maintain a built environment that is beautiful, functional and state of the art.
  • We will promote the pre-eminence of Illinois to our many stakeholders in a coordinated manner and celebrate milestones, achievements and accomplishments that tangibly demonstrate our pre-eminence.
  • We will focus and broaden our fundraising efforts to inspire donors and funders to support our highest institutional priorities.