Appendix B

SWOT Analysis | April 8, 2010

Location in Atlanta, urban environment, connections to organizations, airport, etc.
Diversity, diverse student body, commitment to diversity
Faculty and staff who care about GSU, are strong teachers with real world experience, with a number of world class scholars
Some strong academic units
Value, affordability for students, reasonable tuition
Community relations/partnerships with metro Atlanta community, colleges, businesses, government agencies
New energetic leadership and joint governance
Commitment to increasing research productivity
International focus of many programs, international connections, international student body

Insufficient amount of federal research grants awarded to the university
Relatively few faculty who are nationally recognized as measured by the most prestigious indicators
Insufficient research support to attract and retain world class faculty and graduate students
Lack of distinctive focus and identity
Infrastructure issues, insufficient staff and systems to support faculty, low service culture, bureaucratic processes and procedures, technology issues, training for staff and administrators
Weak alumni connections, lack of donor and alumni support, size of endowment relative to aspirations
Perception as a commuter school,/night school/4th tier university, teaching university, “Best Kept Secret” mentality, old image, no brand, limited resources for marketing and PR
Facilities are outdated, under-maintained; lack of space, physical campus not inviting, old buildings, lack of cleanliness
Student retention
Lack of mechanisms and incentives to facilitate collaboration/coordination across academic departments and business units

(In Rank Order)

Increase grant funding for research/support for research/mechanisms and incentives for interdisciplinary research across departments and units
Re-imagine undergraduate education thinking creatively about the undergraduate experience
Internationalize the curriculum/expand University’s global reach and international partnerships
Determine what is and should be distinctive about GSU
Become a national model for development of solutions to important problems of urban environments

(In Rank Order)

Recruit and retain best faculty and staff while ensuring diversity and quality are top priority
Increase alumni relations, engagement, involvement, support
New marketing/PR efforts/raise profile/get rid of “Best Kept Secret” label
Be a leader in understanding and addressing issues facing major metro cities
Eliminate weak departments/programs
Expand/improve doctoral programs, increase resources
Improve systems to increase efficiency (financial systems, HR, student systems, support of research)/overhaul bureaucracy/new training initiatives for faculty, staff, administrators to support the mission
Improve student life on campus, culture, athletics, football
Increase national rankings

(Continued, In Rank Order)

Modernize facilities and expand the physical plant (classrooms, labs, office space)
Increase genuine partnerships with community organizations, CDC, Grady, NGO’s, GRA, government agencies, businesses, other universities
Become world class in technology/on-line or mobile class delivery opportunities/technical support for faculty and staff
More involvement in field of medicine, biosciences, health
Develop fine arts program
Leverage Science Center, Science Park/add buildings
Increase sustainability efforts/ecology of the urban university
Improve working relationships with 2 year schools
Use football as a research and teaching tool (e.g., sports medicine, marketing)

Budget constraints/insufficient funding/economy/state’s commitment to education/inadequate support from alumni
Lack of state-of-the-art management technology and training for teaching, research, and university operations
Physical facilities/space constraints/aging infrastructure
Loss of key research active faculty/faculty attrition/loss of most talented faculty
Competition from other universities in Atlanta
Perception of campus safety/crime/homelessness
Spiraling inflationary costs of maintaining library and information data bases