Summary of Criterion One
Relating to Criterion One, Mission and Integrity, St. Cloud State University believes that it strongly engages in planning, focuses on being a learning-oriented institution, engages in shared governance and collaboration to be a connected organization, and distinguishes itself as a large, public institution in the State through planning, benchmarking, and self-reflection.
St. Cloud State University is a future-oriented organization with clear mission documents that provide a framework for the future planning of the institution. The institution is preparing for change. It realizes that its students and employees will be best served by developing an understanding and ability to work within a global and diverse society, but also recognizes that much of that diversity will appear within its own student body and community and that it must change accordingly in order to address the needs of its students now and in the future.
St. Cloud State University's mission documents show that it is a learning-focused organization, placing learning and scholarship at the forefront. The mission documents and planning processes are contributing to a renewed commitment to general education and assessment and are strengthening St. Cloud State University's capacity to advance learning and scholarship. Planning, data collection, and reporting efforts are being designed to support these critical components of the university.
As a connected organization, St. Cloud State University is guided by mission documents which clearly articulate a commitment to serving students and external stakeholders through fostering a culture of service within the campus community and strong university relationships with the external community.
Finally, St. Cloud State University is a distinctive organization, whose mission documents and planning processes articulate a commitment to its constituents and its position as the largest state university in the State of Minnesota. The mission documents encourage self-reflection and accountability. At the heart of the revised planning process is the clear statement of goals, measurement against those goals, the use of the resulting data to inform continuous improvement, and the public dissemination of the results.
