During the past seven years Catawba Valley Community College (CVCC) has witnessed major improvements in the planning process. In the fall of 2006 under the leadership of the new president, Dr. Garrett Hinshaw, the College community embarked on a new five-year strategic planning process. The process has involved every department and every employee at the College in helping determine the College's strategic directions for the next five years.

The impetus for all planning at the College resides with the Advisory Committee for the Office of Accountability, Efficiency, and Effectiveness (ACOAEE) which meets each month to address all issues involving College planning efforts. The ACOAEE is also responsible for establishing Standards of Excellence for all Strategic Plan Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives. These key indicators will measure the annual progress of the Five-Year Strategic Plan.

The ACOAEE will convene in May of the fourth year of the planning cycle to begin work on developing new Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives.  First, the ACOAEE will develop a series of strategic planning priorities from which to derive a set of planning questions.  Next, the president will present these questions and planning priorities to all full-time employees through a series of mandatory meetings. Various work groups will be formed to derive strategic planning implications from the planning priorities and questions.  Pertinent internal/external data will be made available for review as needed by the work groups. The North Carolina Community College System Goals are included among the data sources to ensure that the College Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives proximate system goals.  Once the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives are determined, the Administrative Council will review these statements. After the Administrative Council reviews the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives they are distributed to the CVCC faculty and staff for review.  Feedback from faculty and staff is analyzed and, if necessary, requested changes in the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives are returned to the ACOAEE for further review before being forwarded to the Administrative Council for their final approval. Once approved by the Administrative Council, the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives are then submitted to the Board of Trustees for consideration and final approval. After approval by the Board of Trustees, the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives are presented to various external constituencies for their review and endorsement.  Immediate supervisors will inform their direct reports to begin preparing Annual Objectives to address the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives. 

Each year the ACOAEE will review the Standards of Excellence for all of the Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives. Various institutional surveys are administered throughout the year to constituent groups to evaluate College programs and services to determine how well major college programs and services are meeting the Standards of Excellence.  Reports on key surveys are made available to all CVCC personnel.  All major institutional surveys are reviewed each summer by the ACOAEE. Each spring the ACOAEE reviews the results of institutional surveys and other methods of evaluation to determine if the Standards of Excellence have been met. If evaluation results indicate that the standards are not met, appropriate supervisors are notified to prepare Improvement Plans designed to meet the standard(s). 

Additional documentation of institutional effectiveness is evidenced in The Annual Report on the Standards of Excellence, which summarizes the evaluation results of major College functions in meeting established institutional standards. The Annual Assessment Report provides a description of all objectives met, results, and use of results of each objective. The Strategic Planning Progress Report is presented annually by the President of the College.

Legislative mandates also require a diversity plan and a technology plan as part of the institutional effectiveness requirements. Diversity and technology are included in the College’s Strategic Directions, Initiatives, and Objectives and are, therefore, addressed by all areas of the College by specific Annual Objectives.

The Institutional Effectiveness Officer maintains a web site featuring an extensive listing of current College data profiles. There is also a link to the Strategic Plan and the ACOAEE meeting minutes.

Rev. 04/3/09