In December 2015, President Stoicheff formed a committee composed of members from across our community, on campus and off, to help with the development of the new vision, mission and values statement for the university. The visioning committee first met in January 2016, and focused on consulting with internal and external communities, and synthesizing and reviewing consultation inputs. As consultations continued, the committee developed a first draft of a mission, vision and values statement based on this input.

The Project

Prepared by President Peter Stoicheff, December 2015

Goal

To provide the University of Saskatchewan with a proposed new vision, mission and values document, building on the history of institutional dialogue and planning that has shaped the university’s aspirations over the past twenty-two years

Background

In May 1993, the Board of Governors authorized a University of Saskatchewan Mission Statement that articulated the university’s vision, mission, heritage, values and goals. Although it has served the university well and contains much that is arguably still appropriate to our aspirations, it is now twenty-two years old. During that time, the university has changed on many fronts.

Our total student population has increased significantly in diversity and size. Graduate student numbers have gone up by almost 70%. Several colleges have changed missions and names, three graduate schools have been added and distributed learning has become an important part of what we do. Many academic programs have been introduced, many others terminated. We have developed national-level facilities such as the Canadian Light Source synchrotron and VIDO-InterVac. The 2002 Renewing the Dream strategic directions document, updated in 2010, pointed us toward international standards, academic excellence and sense of place. We now have six signature areas of pre-eminence in research, scholarly and artistic work, have doubled our research revenues and are a member of Canada’s U15 group of research-intensive universities. Over three-quarters of our current faculty members have been hired since we developed our 1993 document.

Rationale for a vision, mission, and values document

In response to this evolution in our size, scope and identity, it is time collectively to express what our mission and values now are, and a vision for our future. As our university makes decisions in response to the opportunities that lie ahead for the post-secondary sector in Canada and beyond, we require consensus on who we are and what we want to achieve. To continue attracting and retaining outstanding faculty, students and staff, we must offer a coherent and compelling vision for our, and thus their, futures. To ensure our continued autonomy and sense of purpose, we must be clear to governments, media, donors and partners about our mission and our goals. To continue to deserve and receive the support of our almost 150,000 alumni, and our many stakeholders both local and world-wide, we owe them an aspirational expression of our values and our commitments to future excellence. I, and the university community to whom I am responsible, must be certain I am representing us accurately at local, national and international levels, and I require consensus on these matters as I begin my term as president.

Rationale for a president’s committee

A recent attempt to produce a new vision, mission and values for the university sparked considerable constructive debate, but failed to culminate in a new document. The president’s committee is intended to revisit and complete the task in an efficient and consultative manner. A small, dedicated group, co-chaired by two faculty members, that gathers and is informed by the university’s planning efforts since 1993, will avoid a cumbersome and otherwise potentially repetitive process and is most likely to achieve the goal in a timely manner. As president, I will be a resource in this exercise, but will not be a member of the committee.

Committee membership

  1. Two co-chairs drawn from the permanent academic staff: Brent Cotter (Law) and Liz Harrison (Physical Therapy)
  2. A senior member of the university’s administrative staff: Tom Crosson (Risk Management)
  3. An Aboriginal member of the university’s administrative staff or faculty: Liz Duret (HR Inclusion and Diversity)
  4. A student leader: Scott Adams (3rd year Medicine)
  5. An Elder: Harry Lafond (Office of the Treaty Commissioner)
  6. A member of the Board of Governors: Lee Ahenakew
  7. A member of University Council: Wendy Roy (Dept. of English)
  8. A member of Senate: Karen Prisciak (ASK LLP)

Process and timeline

The committee will begin its work in January 2016 by gathering and distilling the main features of previous university documents including the 1993 mission statement, the 2002/2010 Renewing the Dream strategic directions document, the university’s and colleges’ three integrated plans, and any other relevant background material. Consultation internally and externally will take place next, as determined by the committee. On the basis of that background and consultation work, the committee will draft new vision, mission and values language and bring that back to the university community for further consultation.

Once the committee has agreed upon a draft statement, ideally by April 2016, it will be shared with me and, assuming I believe the committee’s work has met the high standard expected, I will share the draft with University Council, the Senate and the Board of Governors. After fulsome discussion and feedback, all three bodies will be invited to endorse the new statement in late spring and fall 2016 as determined by their meeting schedules and agenda.

President Stoicheff has formed a committee composed of members from across our community, on campus and off, to help with the development of a new vision, mission and values statement for the university.

Visioning committee membership

  • Two co-chairs drawn from the permanent academic staff: Brent Cotter (Law) and Liz Harrison (Physical Therapy)
  • A senior member of the university’s administrative staff: Tom Crosson (Risk Management)
  • An Aboriginal member of the university’s administrative staff or faculty: Liz Duret (HR Inclusion and Diversity)
  • A student leader: Scott Adams (3rd year Medicine)
  • An Elder: Harry Lafond (Office of the Treaty Commissioner)
  • A member of the Board of Governors: Lee Ahenakew
  • A member of Council: Wendy Roy (Dept. of English)
  • A member of Senate: Karen Prisciak (ASK LLP)

Project support staff: Jennifer Robertson

  • January 2016: development of committee processes and timelines, and early discussion on consultation strategy
  • February and March 2016: initial consultation through meetings and an online survey, and the development of a framework for analysis of consultation
  • Early April: concepts and themes released for feedback
  • April and May 2016: consultation on concepts and themes through meetings, email feedback and online survey
  • June 2016: draft document released for feedback
  • September 2016: revisions to document based on feedback
  • October 2016: document presented to University Senate, University Council and the Board of Governors for approval

Vision, mission and values are often thought of as the foundations for an organization. It is helpful to have a good understanding of what is meant by each. The following are suggestions for a definition or description of vision, mission and values. As well, it is helpful to distinguish between these three foundational concepts, and goals and plans that are more operational in nature and are developed in alignment with the foundational concepts.

Mission

Our mission is the reason for the existence of the University of Saskatchewan, the purpose it serves in society and the boundaries within which it operates.

Vision

Vision defines what the University of Saskatchewan wants to be or become. This often involves a time horizon into the future.

Values

Values relate to the beliefs and attitudes that guide behavior at the University of Saskatchewan. They are in some respects the commitments the institution makes to its people, and the commitments its people make to the institution and to one another.

Consultation

To provide the university’s internal community and external partners with the opportunity to have a voice in what they see for the future of our university, the following consultation methods were used:

  • Visioning committee consultation meetings
  • Online surveys
  • Email feedback
  • President’s meetings and activities

In May 1993, the Board of Governors authorized a University of Saskatchewan Mission Statement that articulated the university’s vision, mission, heritage, values and goals. Although it has served the university well and contains much that is arguably still appropriate to our aspirations, it is now twenty-three years old. During that time, the university has changed on many fronts.

In response to an evolution in our size, scope and identity, it is time collectively to express what our mission and values now are, and a vision for our future. As our university makes decisions in response to the opportunities that lie ahead for the post-secondary sector in Canada and beyond, we require consensus on who we are and what we want to achieve.

To continue attracting and retaining outstanding faculty, students and staff, we must offer a coherent and compelling vision for our, and thus their, futures. To ensure our continued autonomy and sense of purpose we must be clear to governments, media, donors and partners about our mission and our goals. To continue to deserve and receive the support of our almost 150,000 alumni, and our many stakeholders both local and world-wide, we owe them an aspirational expression of our values and our commitments to future excellence. I, and the university community to whom I am responsible, must be certain I am representing us accurately at local, national and international levels.

I have asked a committee composed of members from across our community, on campus and off, to develop a new vision, mission and values document for the university. I encourage you to take the opportunity to be involved in the committee’s work on this important project for our university and to lend your voice to the conversation.

-Peter Stoicheff
President, University of Saskatchewan

Visioning committee update – April 4, 2016

To our university colleagues and friends,

The visioning committee would like to begin this update by thanking all those who have taken time to complete the visioning survey, met with us in person and/or sent us an email to provide your thoughts on what you see for the future of the University of Saskatchewan. We have been inspired by the support and input we have received as we work towards developing a new vision, mission and values statement for the university.

Over the past three months, the visioning committee has made significant progress in its work. Work to date has focused primarily on process, strategy development, consultations with several audiences and analysis of consultation inputs.

To provide the university’s internal community and external partners with the opportunity to have a voice in what they see for the future of our university, the committee has consulted in the following ways:

  1. Presidential transition activities: Planned transition activities have been leveraged to connect with internal and external audiences. To date, these activities have included dinners with faculty and donors, and meetings with colleges, schools and student leadership.
  2. Online survey: An online survey was launched on February 4 and resulted in 2,699 responses in three weeks. Thank you to all who participated! 
  3. Visioning committee consultation meetings: To date, consultation meetings have been held with a variety of groups, including the planning and priorities committee of University Council, Board of Governors, senior leaders of the university, provincial government officials, and the Alumni Association Board and Centennial Committee. Upcoming consultations focus on the Aboriginal community and community partners from various sectors.
  4. Email feedback: We have encouraged input and feedback by email to ourvision@usask.ca, and invite you to continue to send your thoughts to us.

In addition, we have reviewed several institutional documents and reports, including past vision and mission related work, and vision, mission and values statements from colleges, schools and units across campus.

We are currently in the process of analyzing the feedback and information we have collected to date, and are identifying common themes and concepts in what we are hearing and reading. We will continue to work with our internal and external community over the next two months to ensure the statement that goes to our governing bodies for approval—Board of Governors and University Council in June and University Senate in October—is an accurate and inspirational representation of the university today and in the future.

To this end, the committee will launch a second survey in mid-April requesting feedback on concepts and themes identified in early consultation activities to ensure what we include in the vision, mission and values statement is reflective of our university and its aspirations.

Should you have any questions or wish to provide thoughts to the committee, please don’t hesitate to get in touch via our committee email at ourvision@usask.ca or by reaching out to one of us directly.

Thank you again for your continued support and involvement in this work—we sincerely appreciate it!

Warm regards,

Brent Cotter, co-chair
Liz Harrison, co-chair
Scott Adams
Lee Ahenakew
Tom Crosson
Liz Duret
Harry Lafond
Karen Prisciak
Wendy Roy

As requested by President Peter Stoicheff, the visioning committee will gather and distill previous university documents to inform its work.

As the University of Saskatchewan’s visioning committee works to develop a new vision, mission and values document for the university, all members of the campus community were asked to provide feedback on what they see for the future of the U of S to help shape the vision of our university.

For a three week period from February 4-25, 2016, members of the university community, including students, alumni, staff, faculty, donors, University Senate and the Board of Governors, were invited to complete an online survey.

A total of 2,699 survey responses were received representing the following groups:

  • 40% students (with approximately 80% indicating undergraduate and 20% graduate)
  • 30% staff
  • 16% faculty
  • 5% alumna/alumnus
  • 4% other
  • 2% senior administrator
  • 2% Board of Governors and Senate members
  • 1% donor

The following highlights are displayed using word clouds. Word clouds highlight the most frequently occurring words among survey responses and reveal concepts worth exploring. The larger the word, the more frequently it occurred throughout the data. Some other frequently occurring words (e.g. the, and) were omitted from the list that generated these figures due to their lack of relevancy and meaningfulness in relation to the underlying themes.

Thinking about the University of Saskatchewan today, what words or phrases immediately come to mind to describe our university?

Thinking about the University of Saskatchewan ten years from now, operating at its highest potential, what words or phrases immediately come to mind to describe our university?

What distinguishes the University of Saskatchewan from other universities?

What makes you proud to be connected to the University of Saskatchewan?

What words or phrases best describe or fit our mission?

The words “excellence” and “knowledge” have been removed from the word cloud due to increased probability of being selected as they were attached to multiple provided options (e.g. knowledge application, knowledge creation, academic excellence, research excellence, etc.)

What words or phrases best describe or fit our vision?

The words “excellence” and “knowledge” have been removed from the word cloud due to increased probability of being selected as they were attached to multiple provided options (e.g. knowledge application, knowledge creation, academic excellence, research excellence, etc.)

What words or phrases best describe or fit our vision?

Based on consultation activities from January to May 2016, including two online surveys, in-person meetings, emails and a review of institutional documents, the U of S visioning committee has prepared a draft for input by the university community. Based on this feedback, a revised version will be presented to governing bodies in October for adoption.

Preamble

The University of Saskatchewan, situated on a beautiful campus in the vibrant city of Saskatoon on Treaty Six territory and the traditional homeland of the Métis, is grounded in the history and values of a dynamic, resilient, forward-looking province. It has a well-deserved reputation for imagination, collaboration and achievement. The University of Saskatchewan has a wide range of academic and professional programs delivered throughout the province, a research infrastructure unparalleled in Canada, and an innovative, energetic faculty, staff, student and alumni community.

The university cultivates a remarkable “can-do” attitude, drawn from its prairie roots and from the outstanding contributions of members of the university community from around the world. This work and learning environment has transformed the lives of all who have experienced the unique spirit of the university.

Mission

The university supports the aspirations of the people of Saskatchewan through innovative, interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to the discovery, dissemination, integration, preservation and application of knowledge, including the development and study of artistic and creative work to build a rich cultural community.

Through a supportive teaching and learning environment, the university prepares its students for enriching careers and fulfilling lives as engaged global citizens.

It serves the wider community through a range of collaborative engagements that build upon its discovery, teaching and outreach goals.

Vision

The University of Saskatchewan will be nationally and internationally recognized as a distinguished university dedicated to research excellence.

It will be among the best in the world in areas of special and emerging strength, and in areas of particular relevance to the needs and aspirations of the people of the region. It will be a welcoming place for students, educators and researchers from around the world. As a leading Canadian university, it will become an outstanding institution of research, learning, knowledge-keeping, reconciliation and inclusion with, for and by Indigenous people and communities.

The university’s achievements will inform exceptional teaching, learning and engagement in a digital world, and will help solve local and global challenges.

Statement of principles and values

The University of Saskatchewan and its people, in all our diversity, aspire to be part of something great. This aspiration is best achieved through a belief in principles that are vital to our institution, and through uncompromising commitment to values—ways of conducting ourselves—in our work.

The University of Saskatchewan and its people believe in the following principles:

  • Excellence
  • Innovation, curiosity and creativity
  • Openness, transparency and accountability
  • Embracing different ways of knowing, learning and being
  • Academic freedom
  • Collegiality
  • Collaboration
  • Community focus
  • Reconciliation
  • Diversity, equality and human dignity
  • A healthy work and learning environment
  • Financial and environmental sustainability

The University of Saskatchewan and its people are committed to acting in accordance with the following values:

  • Respect and inclusiveness
  • Integrity, honesty and ethical behavior
  • Fairness and equitable treatment

Stepping closer to a university-wide vision

On Campus News, May 27, 2016

"We've been hard at work since February, meeting with close to 1,500 people internal and external to the university, and reviewing over 4,000 responses to two separate surveys," said visioning committee co-chair, Liz Harrison. "Based on the information collected through consultation, and reviewing several institutional documents, the committee has started to put pen to paper to attempt to capture the essence of what we are hearing and reading."

Observing the vision

On Campus News, March 4, 2016

To help define the vision, mission and values of the University of Saskatchewan, President Peter Stoicheff appointed a cross-campus committee to lead the work.

The committee, with representation from faculty, staff, students, the Board of Governors, University Senate and University Council, is consulting with members of the campus community with the aim of preparing a draft document by June.

HenryTye Glazebrook sat down with committee co-chairs Brent Cotter, professor in the College of Law, and Liz Harrison, associate dean of physical therapy and rehabilitation sciences in the College of Medicine, to find out what the project entails and what it means for the campus as a whole.

A vision for the future

On Campus News, January 15, 2016

The University of Saskatchewan (U of S) has not approved and adopted a new vision, mission and values document since 1993—the new president is going to change that.

There are many reasons why this is an institutional priority, said U of S President Peter Stoicheff, not least of which are the numerous changes that have happened at the university over the past 22 years.

Downloads and Tools

PowerPoint slide

Use the mission, vision and values PowerPoint slide at the beginning or end of presentations that you're giving on or off campus. It makes an excellent placeholder as your audience comes into the room, or during a question and answer period, and gives your audience a brief overview of what is important to the University of Saskatchewan.

Full MVV document

The full mission, vision and values statement is the result of a collaborative process that engaged stakeholders from on and off campus to capture the spirit and ambition of the Unviersity of Saskatchewan.

To print on your office printer, please use the first option. If you are sending to a professional printer, please use the version with crop marks.

Desktop and device backgrounds

Get your daily dose of inspiration and remind yourself regularly why the U of S is such an amazing place. Choose the screen size that's right for you and use as your background image on your desktop computer or iPad.

1024x768—option one

1024x768—option two

2560x1440—option one (27" iMac)

2560x1440—option two (27" iMac)

1024x1024—iPad option

Final Statement

President's Message

The mission, vision and values project was born out of a need to better both reflect on and steer the evolution of our university. Our previous mission statement was approved in 1993, and our university has changed on many fronts since that time.

Our mission, vision and values do much to clarify who we are as a post-secondary institution. As we make decisions and set our path for the future, this consensus on who we are and what we are trying to achieve is essential to making good decisions, and forging a significant path.

With the support of our alumni, partners, donors, supporters and community, we have untold potential. The work done in creating the mission, vision and values project will help us continue to focus our considerable expertise and talents, and will guide our university's continued evolution.

-Peter Stoicheff
President and vice-chancellor