University of Virginia President Scott Beardsley on Friday gave Board of Visitors members an update on his work engaging and listening to the University community and presented his initial thoughts on developing a long-term, strategic vision for UVA. That vision includes what he called an integrated set of actions across both the academic and health enterprises that will lay a foundation for the future.
Beardsley, the University’s 10th president, who took office in January, said he would assemble a Strategic Planning Committee to assist him in building on his initial observations and charting the path forward for the commonwealth’s flagship university.
He said the committee will include “a broad cross-section of the community” and “begin the deeper dives that will inform our next integrated strategic plan.”
His ideas, he said, are based on his series of stakeholder conversations across Grounds and the state.
“My observations are inspired by a tapestry of voices: our leadership team, board members, my own decade as a dean on these Grounds, and the hundreds of stakeholders who have shared their views during my ‘Grounds for Conversation’ listening tour,” Beardsley said.
Earlier this year, the president embarked on a “listening and learning tour,” meeting with faculty, staff, alumni, parents and students, as well as stakeholders in Charlottesville and Richmond, to hear what is working and aspirations for the future.
Beardsley said those conversations, along with his decades of experience running a global strategy practice and a leading business school, have helped him outline an early strategy.
“Strategy is not a collection or checklist of independent projects,” he said. “Strategy is the integrated set of choices and actions, with resource plans, to fulfill our mission and vision.”
He said the University has two main engines – the academic entities and the health system, a combined $7.1 billion enterprise – both influenced by three “drivers.” He listed those drivers as “world-class asset management,” UVA’s global brand and reputation, and the UVA community.
Speaking of asset management, Beardsley noted the University has built a $15.5 billion endowment, holds a AAA credit rating and has earned a stellar reputation as a top-flight academic institution that has graduated generations of citizen leaders.
UVA President Scott Beardsley speaks with faculty members at the School of Data Science, as part of his Grounds for Conversation listening and learning tour. Many of the ideas he heard in his meetings will shape his strategy for the University’s path forward. (Photo by Matt Riley, University Communications)
Beardsley, who has spent considerable time abroad, also said the committee will focus on enhancing the University’s global standing. “We will explore how we can strengthen our global brand and reputation, so that UVA is recognized and trusted across the world,” Beardsley said.
The final driver for the committee to consider, Beardsley said, is the community and the public service it provides.
“We are an economic anchor, an engine of opportunity and public trust, a convener of democratic dialogue and a flagship for all of higher education,” he said. “What can we do to live up to that promise and the public we serve?”
As a new strategic planning process gets underway, the University will continue advancing the initiatives of the “2030 Plan,” created by UVA President Emeritus Jim Ryan. As Beardsley noted, much has changed since that plan was conceived, including the rapid integration of artificial intelligence, economic volatility, increasing skepticism of higher education and a sea change in collegiate sports. That shifting landscape will require the University to expand its focus on key issues like AI, athletics and others.
“The reality is that we are operating in a completely different world than we did in 2018 when our current 2030 strategic plan was written,” Beardsley told the board.
“AI is redrawing the landscape,” Beardsley continued, “and this area is an incredible opportunity for UVA to lead.”
The president also told the board that the University has a responsibility to its nearly 800 student-athletes, not only to help them excel in the classroom, but to ensure their teams remain competitive.
“Let me be clear: UVA is committed to winning, and I mean winning the right way,” Beardsley said. “Athletics is a magnifier of our brand and culture, but the shifting national landscape presents a shock. While the Virginia Athletics Foundation has been very successful, the amount of funding required today to subsidize athletics is challenging. We must create a forward-looking model that preserves our values while balancing the fiscal health of the greater University.”
The president further noted that UVA Health, a $4.4 billion premier health system treating nearly 1.5 million patients annually, must continue growing to meet increasing demand. Observations include:
- Maintaining UVA Health’s best-in-class patient care
- Optimizing and integrating UVA Health’s footprint across the commonwealth
- Addressing the need for more capacity at the UVA Health University Medical Center
Beardsley said another of the committee’s charges will be to enhance collaboration between UVA’s schools, an observation he heard often on the Grounds for Conversation tour.
“The mandate now is to connect our physical Grounds in Charlottesville, our virtual Grounds and our human community,” Beardsley said. “Our stakeholders are asking us to ‘open up the University.’ That means building an ecosystem that allows for cross-disciplinary research and partnerships. I am calling this initiative ‘Connected Grounds.’”
Once committee members are selected later this summer, Beardsley said the work would begin in earnest in the new academic year.
He concluded: “By focusing on our fundamentals – our engines and the drivers that keep them running at peak performance – we ensure that everything we do supports our noble mission.”
Beardsley said he would soon assemble the committee, aiming to have a strategic plan for the board’s review in place by summer 2027.
Beardsley concluded his presentation by asking board members for their thoughts on key areas the University should prioritize going forward. Members identified multiple priorities, including the role of artificial intelligence in education and daily life, the future of collegiate athletics, expanding research and access to business curriculum, maintaining affordability in the long-term, and preparing graduates to succeed in a changing world, as areas of opportunity as the strategic planning process moves forward.
