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Strategic Plan
Strategic plan
2025-2030
Introduction to the strategic plan
At Blue Ridge Community College, we view strategic planning as a vital tool for keeping our mission, vision, and values aligned with the evolving needs of our students, employees, and community. Rising Together: The 2025–2030 Strategic Plan continues this commitment by offering a clear, data-informed roadmap for the next five years, with implementation taking place during the Hurricane Helene recovery period. The process began in September 2024 and led to the announcement of our new pillars and goals in August 2025. This plan reflects both continuity and innovation, building on our strengths while preparing us for the opportunities and challenges ahead.
The development of the plan was guided by five phases: leadership alignment, input gathering and analysis, plan development, implementation planning, and ultimately, execution and tracking. At each step, we have worked to balance our internal expertise with external perspectives so the plan not only reaffirms who we are, but also charts a clear path forward. This approach helps us remain accountable, foster continuous improvement, and meet the expectations of our community and accrediting partners.
A Plan Built on Four Pillars
Student Success
Employee
Success
Community
Success
Institutional
Success
Voices that shaped the plan
Engagement was central to shaping Rising Together. We held 20 focus groups with nearly 150 participants—including faculty, staff, students, trustees, and community partners—across all three campuses. Four working groups made up of about 35 President’s Council members met 18 times to analyze data and provide recommendations. In addition, 378 students, employees, and parents shared input through surveys. We also drew on labor market trends, demographic data, educational attainment statistics, and institutional performance results. This wealth of insight gave us a strong foundation for decision-making.
20
Focus group sessions
150
Focus group participants
378
Input survey respondents
Our strategic pillars
The result of this collaborative process is a plan built on four pillars: Student Success, Employee Success, Community Success, and Institutional Success. Each pillar includes goals that will guide our efforts to serve stakeholders, strengthen workforce partnerships, and advance our mission of providing high-quality education and training. Rising Together reflects our shared aspirations and calls us to collective action, ensuring Blue Ridge Community College continues to stay ahead of the curve in creating opportunity, resilience, and excellence for all.
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Student success
Empowering Learners for Lifelong Success
Goal 1: Provide a cohesive, student-centered educational experience with seamless and personalized guidance that supports strong pathways to individual goals for all students.
Goal 2: Cultivate an adaptive, innovative teaching and learning environment that leverages research-based methods and technologies, fostering creativity, collaboration, and engagement to support student success and personalized learning.
Goal 3: Foster consistency, clarity, and connection throughout the student experience with cohesive, student-centered engagement, clear communication, robust student life opportunities, and holistic support services.
Goal 4: Empower students with the skills needed to become productive members of the community and succeed in a competitive workforce by equipping them with professional and life skills, fostering adaptability to a rapidly changing world, and encouraging lifelong learning.
Employee Success
Empowering People through Purpose, Possibility, and Passion
Goal 1: Cultivate a trusting, aligned, connected culture that fosters a spirit of One College and strong interdepartmental relationships through open, multi-directional communications, access to essential information, and timely updates from leadership to empower employees with the information they need to excel and represent the college effectively.
Goal 2: Develop a rewarding and flexible workplace that maintains a competitive employment standing and fosters a positive work-life experience, educates employees on benefits, aligns workloads with individual strengths and needs, adjusts to changing workforce expectations, and instills pride in the workplace.
Goal 3: Promote intentional growth through tailored onboarding, orientation, and ongoing professional development aligned with individual short- and long-term career aspirations to ensure continuity and cultivate future leaders.
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Community Success
Empowering Communities through Authentic Relationships & Partner Alignment
Goal 1: Steward authentic relationships that foster mutual engagement, trust, support, and understanding to deepen our partnerships, strengthen the workforce, and enrich our communities.
Goal 2: Align college resources with partner priorities by listening proactively, leveraging credible data, and promoting mutual commitment and investment to serve the evolving needs of our communities.
Institutional success
Empowering Generations to Come
Goal 1: Ensure the institution’s longevity and service to future generations by aligning financial stewardship with validated needs, leveraging varied income sources, engaging in proactive, collaborative budget processes, and adapting to changing funding landscapes.
Goal 2: Optimize our facilities by ensuring they are modern, functional, and appealing, reflecting our commitment to collaborative and innovative education, maximizing utilization, leveraging industry investments, and proactively addressing improvements that ensure long-term use and lasting impact.
Goal 3: Streamline operations by empowering employees to excel in their roles, fostering ownership with human-centered design, and achieving efficiency with optimized processes and technology.
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