Serve
Service is at the center of what we do.
We prepare students for lives of service — lives shaped by a sense of calling, equipped for thoughtful reflection, engaged in the larger world and responsive to its deepest challenges. As Beacons, we live out our service-mindedness in our daily commitment to inclusion, justice, diversity, and equity on our campus and in the community.
Serve Initiatives
- Many Ways to Be Valpo — Affirm our commitment to being a student-centered campus by maintaining the Valpo “high touch” in all our educational arenas — transforming our processes, curriculum, and space to meet the needs of today and tomorrow for residential, commuter, historically underserved, and online students.
- Transfer-Friendly Transformation — Become a transfer-friendly institution by removing barriers historically encountered when trying to transfer to Valpo from another institution — again, expanding the reach and widening the opportunity for those seeking a Valpo education.
- Valpo Success Initiative — Make access to college a reality for those who believe it to be out of reach. Valpo will create a two-year associate’s degree (“Access College”) directed toward students who are first generation, low income, and/or underrepresented groups.
- Valpo Summer Bloom Program — Provide support to traditionally at-risk incoming students to prepare them for the academic rigors and the social transition into college, ensuring all admitted students are given the greatest opportunity to succeed.
- Sustainability — Change the culture and practices on campus to move toward more environmentally-friendly operations through investments in renewable energy sources, sustainable uses of plastics, and overall minimizing our impact on the Earth and its limited resources.
Serve Initiative Overview
Year 1 Progress
In Progress
Student Centered Campus
Maintaining the Valpo “high touch” in all our educational arenas. Transforming our processes, curriculum, and space to meet the needs of today and tomorrow for residential, commuter, historically underserved, and online students.
Year One:
Unit level audits of spaces, communications, and processes, keeping the diverse needs of our students at the core
Success (3–5 years)
Shifting our processes and spaces and actually ensuring that commuter students, historically underrepresented students, graduate and international students have a welcoming and embracing Valpo experience on campus.
Executive Sponsor: Steve Janowiak
Owner: Dave Sierkowski and Tamara Gingrich
Year 1 Progress
In Progress
Transfer Friendliness
Substantially lowering the barrier of coming to Valpo from another institution
Year One:
Begin to align transfer processes with best practices, including accepting state common core
Success (3–5 years)
Increased transfer student enrollment; smoother processes for staff and faculty who process transfers
Executive Sponsor: Bagel Johnson
Owner: Jennifer Smolnicky and Jennifer Holt
Year 1 Progress
In Progress
Valpo Success Initiative
Making access to college a reality for those who believe it to be out of reach by creating a two-year associate’s degree (“Access College”) directed toward students who are first generation, low income and/or from underrepresented groups
Year One:
Monitor the pilot program in 2022- 23, make adjustments, increase enrollments for 2023-24
Success (3–5 years)
Bring in approximately 100 students per cohort and help them matriculate to four-year programs for those who desire and attain sufficient academic standing.
Executive Sponsor: Office of the Provost, Angela Vidal- Rodriguez
Owner: Amanda Brobst-Renaud
In Progress
Summer Bridge (Bloom) Program
Providing support to incoming students to prepare them for the academic rigors and the social transition into college
Year One:
Monitor the pilot program in 2022-23, make adjustments, increase enrollments for 2023-24
Success (3–5 years)
Expand the Bloom Summer Program from pilot to sustainable experience; increase retention
Executive Sponsor: Office of the Provost
Owner: Richard Severe
Year 1 Progress
In Progress
Sustainability
Changing the culture and practices on campus to move toward more environmentally-friendly operations
Year One:
Develop and begin implementation on long-term environmental sustainability goals for the institution
Success (3–5 years)
Measurable outcomes in terms of energy efficiency and waste reduction
Executive Sponsor: Doug Tougaw
Owner: Julie Peller and Julie Whitaker