Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) Strategic Plan

KU’s mission is to “educate leaders, build healthy communities, and make discoveries that change the world,” a mission that is approved and supported by the Kansas Board of Regents, KU’s governing authority. As one of six Regents universities in Kansas, KU is held to a particular set of standards in the way it achieves that institutional mission.

KBOR’s strategic plan, Building a Future, was adopted in June 2020. The priorities outlined in the plan seek to help the Regents system better serve Kansas families, Kansas businesses, and the state’s economic prosperity. Those priorities overlap with objectives included in Jayhawks Rising. 

The metrics contained in Building a Future are more focused than in previous KBOR strategic plans and include system- and sector-level initiatives to help drive improvement. These “promising practices” are designed to emphasize societal benefits along with ensuring educational quality, student access, job preparedness, and innovative research.

The specific metrics in Building a Future are these:

Helping Kansas Families: Affordability

1.1 -- On-Time Graduation

1.2 -- Student Loan Default Rate

1.3 -- Students Taking 30 Credit Hours per Year

1.4 -- Retention Rates

Helping Kansas Families: Access

2.1 -- Enrollment Gaps for Underserved Students

2.2 -- College-Going Rate

Helping Kansas Families: Success

3.1 -- Percentage of Graduates in Jobs with Sustaining Wages

3.2 -- Degrees and Certificates Awarded

Supporting Kansas Businesses: Talent Pipeline

4.1 -- Enrollment and Graduates in Programs Leading to High-Demand, Sustaining-Wage Jobs

4.2 -- Special Initiatives

        Supporting Kansas Businesses: Innovation

5.1 -- Research Funding and Industry-Sponsored Research

Advancing Economic Prosperity

• Intentional Economic development engagement to bring new jobs and capital investments to the state
• KBOR is in the process of developing five – and ten – year goals linked to their areas of expertise and built upon successful models for creating economic growth in the state.

Capital Renewal

• KBOR is in the process of developing metrics to monitor the state of campus facilities and deferred maintenance on each state university campus

Integrating KBOR’s strategic plan metrics into unit-level plans where appropriate contributes to moving the needle in the designated areas of focus, which are important to KU’s overall success. For example, designing degree and certificate programs that will meet the needs of employers in Kansas and the region improves career prospects for our students, contributes to the regional economy, and strengthens the academic portfolio of the university.

Wherever possible, units should consider the applicability of the KBOR metrics and consider strategies to contribute to their improvement. In this way, the unit is better aligned both with Building a Future and Jayhawks Rising.

Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) Strategic Plan: Building a Future.