STRATEGIC PLAN
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Adopted May 2007

Preamble - The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Washington State University adopts herein a set of strategic goals to guide its actions and decisions. These goals address issues that are essential to the future success of the Department in carrying out its mission and achieving its vision.

The plan assumes a "living process" of strategic planning. Continuous refinement and improvement of the Department's strategic plan will complement similar ongoing refinement of the University’s and the College’s plans as well. To facilitate ongoing planning, the Department will yearly review progress towards the stated goals and revise this strategic plan as needed to foster achievement of our vision.

Vision –  To be among the top tier civil engineering and environmental engineering programs at a land-grant university.

Mission Statement – To provide a premier undergraduate education in civil engineering that prepares our graduates to contribute effectively to the profession and society, for advanced study, and for life-long learning; to conduct world-class disciplinary and interdisciplinary research that is integrated with both graduate and undergraduate education in selected areas of excellence; and to serve a diverse constituency through technology transfer, public service, and outreach.

GOAL:  Offer the Best Undergraduate Experience in a Research University

Sub Goal 1:  Attract, recruit, and retain a diverse high-quality student body

Actions:

1. Participate in university and college outreach, recruitment and retention efforts to enhance the quality and diversity of our student body.
1. Performance target = 20% women students
2. Performance target = 15% underrepresented students

2. Engage faculty and staff with key community colleges and selected high schools to attract high-quality students.
3. Promote and strengthen scholarship opportunities to recruit and retain high achieving students.
4. Create a culture and program structure that aims to retain qualified students to graduation:
1. Performance target = 60% retention rate
2. Engage the department’s best teachers in undergraduate courses, including those in the freshman and sophomore years.
3. Undergraduate courses will be taught by faculty, well-qualified instructors, or carefully-mentored doctoral students.
5. Actively recruit Honors Program students by offering courses and programs tailored to these students.

Sub Goal 2:  Create an academic culture that promotes and rewards one-on-one faculty-to-student and student-to-student interactions

Actions:

1. Increase the number of undergraduates engaging in research with our faculty.
1. Performance target = 35%
2. Faculty with NSF grants will obtain supplemental REU funding.
3. Obtain funding for one or more NSF REU sites.
4. Participate in and promote WSU Undergraduate Research Council activities.
2. Provide strong departmental and faculty support for ASCE student chapter activities.
1. Recognize and reward faculty support for ASCE activities
2. Increase participation of freshman and sophomore students in ASCE student chapter and other student club activities.
3. Recognize and reward faculty for exemplary teaching, mentoring and advising.

Sub Goal 3:  Continually improve the quality of our program offerings and their delivery

Actions:

1. Implement continual improvements that build upon and enhance our long-standing reputation for producing high-quality BS graduates who are ready to go to work and are equipped to be successful in engineering practice.
1.  Maintain a process of assessment and improvements that meets and exceeds requirements for ABET accreditation.
2. Conduct exit interviews with graduates and alumni surveys for feedback and ways to further improve our program.
2. Establish enrollment targets that support a high-quality undergraduate experience.
1. Cap the number of students admitted at 100 per year, assuming current staffing levels.
2. Cap enrollment in civil engineering courses at 60 students.
3. Seek additional resources and creative ways to lower enrollments in senior design courses to not exceed 40 students.

3. Strengthen education of our undergraduates in computer skills, numerical methods, written and oral communication, and modern business practices.
1. Require that entering students have laptop computers, beginning Fall 2007.

4. Require experiential-learning experiences for all of our undergraduates through meaningful engineering internships, research experiences, extracurricular activities, or international study.
5. Engage external organizations to sponsor and evaluate projects for the senior-level capstone course.

6. Encourage and fund curricular innovations and retention activities that improve the quality of our undergraduate program.
7. Incorporate elective options in the civil engineering curriculum to take courses in emerging and broader areas such as composites, bioremediation, global climate change, smart structures, intelligent highways, construction management, engineering management, business and contract law.
8. In partnership with the School of Architecture and Construction Management, develop a new undergraduate program in Architectural Engineering.

Sub Goal 4:  Provide student advising and mentoring that empowers students to complete their programs of study, improves retention, increases student satisfaction, and bolsters academic achievement

Actions:

1. Provide two-step advising process, engaging staff and faculty advising for each undergraduate student.
2. Recognize exemplary advising through annual faculty advising award.

GOAL:  Nurture a World-Class Environment for Research, Graduate Education, and Engagement

Sub Goal 1:  Recruit, develop, and retain outstanding faculty researchers

Actions:

1. Provide effective mentoring for all untenured faculty, by a committee consisting of at least three senior faculty members.
2. Recognize exemplary research accomplishments through annual faculty research award and through nominations to college, university and external research awards.
3. Establish and communicate high standards for annual review, promotion and tenure.
4. Provide competitive start-up packages through creative partnerships with the college, the university and external constituencies.
5. Secure funding for endowed professorships.
1. Environmental engineering professorship.
2. Structural/materials engineering professorship.
3. Design professorship.

Sub Goal 2:  Strategically develop areas of excellence in collaborative research
                                  
Actions:

1. Foster and reward interdisciplinary research and graduate education.
1. Engage with the new WSU CEREO Center for collaborative environmental research and educational opportunities.
2. Engage with the State of Washington Water Research Center for collaborative water research and educational opportunities.
3. Strengthen research and education activities within the multidisciplinary CMER Center.
4. Participate in the emerging WSU Institute for Sustainable Design, an initial collaboration between Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the School of Architecture and Construction Management, and the Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory.

2. Recognize and reward collaborative research in the annual review, promotion and tenure processes.
3. Work with the university to remove institutional barriers to interdisciplinary work and replace them with positive incentives, especially with regard to appropriate credit for research expenditures and graduate students. 

Sub Goal 3:  Develop targeted strategies to attract extramural funding

Actions:

1. Grow external funding per faculty to match that at our peer institutions.

1. Performance target = $260K/FTE annual research expenditures

2. New faculty will submit proposals to the WSU Seed Grant Program.
3. Foster development of successful NSF CAREER proposals by junior faculty.
4. Promote development of large-scale collaborative grants involving department faculty.
5. Seek matching funds for research and equipment grants through creative partnerships within the university and with external constituencies.

Sub Goal 4:  Strengthen the infrastructure that supports research

Actions:

1. Replacement or complete remodel of environmental laboratories in Dana Hall and Sloan Hall.
2. Relocation of the Wood Materials and Engineering Laboratory back to the main campus in a suitable, high-quality, visible space.
3. Investment of Facilities and Administrative fees returned to department to strengthen research activities.

1. $25K per year re-investment in research.

Sub Goal 5:  Recruit a diverse high-quality graduate student body and provide a supportive environment

Actions:

1. Grow the number of graduate students advised by department faculty.

1. Performance target = 5 students per faculty member.
2. Assign teaching loads based in part on number of graduate students supported and advised as criterion.
3. Target our best undergraduates for recruitment into our graduate programs.
4. Obtain funding for one or more NSF REU sites and participate in WSU Undergraduate Research Council activities.
5. Engage faculty in recruiting at selected domestic and international institutions.
6. Obtain external funding for graduate fellowships to augment current stipends.
7. Obtain funding for doctoral training grants.

2. Target an equal number of PhD and MS students in our graduate programs.
3. Provide mentored teaching experience for select doctoral students.

1. Provide additional stipend to teaching fellow.
2. Recognize mentoring responsibilities as part of faculty work load.

4. Create a culture and program structure that aims to support and retain qualified students to graduation:

1. Strengthen graduate student mentoring and review process.
2. Increased emphasis on advising and supporting graduate students as part of the annual review process for faculty.

Sub Goal 6:  Establish a culture of engagement with problems and issues of interest to external constituencies

Actions:

1. Establish and promote a professional-track M.S. degree that aligns with ASCE’s recommendations for licensure and professional practice of civil engineering.
2. Partner with WSU Extension to engage department faculty with external constituencies on problems of mutual interest.

1. WMEL outreach on materials.
2. LAR outreach on air quality.
3. CMER and SWWRC outreach on water quantify and quality.

3. Recognize and reward outreach and extension in annual review, promotion and tenure. 

GOAL:  Create an environment of trust and respect in all we do

Actions:

1. Ensure just, equitable, and transparent decision-making processes through open communication that fosters understanding.
2. Utilize the department’s Executive Committee for input on department issues, budget decisions and strategic directions.
3. Promote a positive workplace in which faculty, staff and students are valued and professional growth encouraged.

GOAL:  Develop a culture of shared commitment to excellence in all of our activities

Actions:

1. Develop strategies that adopt and extend best practices for continuous improvement of all department activities.
2. Promote a culture that supports efficient and effective collaboration.
3. Utilize technologies that enhance the effectiveness and quality of teaching, research and outreach activities.