Testing
To create a university of curricular, co-curricular, and experiential excellence with a faculty of distinction, diverse student population, strong financial base, and a culture of high performance and quality.
Updated October 2024
2023-24 Update Status
We will offer relevant and engaging curriculum for the global learning community of tomorrow.
Substantial progress —Several hundred students were able to engage in the new experiential learning practicum (PRAC 1001, 1002, 1003, 1004) for credit; this included a variety of experiences including campus-based work, work in the community, services on university athletic teams, service in local church/nonprofits, and service to local businesses among other experiential learnings experiences. The CBE prospectus for the MAML program has been submitted to SACSCOC. Once approved, SEU will be able to develop and launch CBE programs across all disciplines. The petition to ATS for CBE programming is slated for submission in the 24-25 academic year.
Initiated — With the launch of the SEU Trades program, the program administration worked with Interplay (the SEU Trades educational content provider/partner) to prepare to launch DOL approved apprenticeship programs in Florida, Texas, and Ohio. These states were selected because of SEU Networks significant presence in those states and the large demand for new workers in trades-oriented fields. The SEU Trades programs were officially approved by SACSCOC in January 2024. The Master of Science in Professional Counseling program launched during the 2023-24 academic year; there was immediately a large student demand for this program and full cohorts. As a result, multiple new full-time faculty have been onboarded to support this program that continues to grow as its capacity scales.
Initiated — The Office of the Provost and the Instructional Design & Technology Department partnered to begin revamping the course development process, increasing the budget for design and development of online courseware to incentivize greater engagement with the process, and planning a pilot of a Faculty Instructional Design Fellows program which will draw on faculty expertise among SEU’s colleges, training professors as instructional designers and pairing them with subject matter experts in their discipline to develop courses.
Substantial progress — The Foundational Core Committee successfully created and implemented a robust assessment plan to track student learning tied to the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) established in the 2022-2023 academic year. Each course in the Foundational Core contains a specific learning artifact directly connected to the PLO, ensuring that assessment is consistently integrated across the curriculum. In May 2024, the committee collected assessment data across courses and worked diligently to analyze and interpret the results. This effort culminated in the completion of the assessment report in August 2024, providing valuable insights into student learning and curricular effectiveness.
Initiated — The Hoskins School of Mission Doctor of Missiology degree program (developed in partnership between SEU and OneHope) continues to develop its online courseware by working with missional leadership experts who work in global contexts and lead complex organizations. The Doctor of Missiology’s development is almost entirely the product of expertise from the network of relationships that SEU has access to through its ongoing partnership with OneHope.
Initiated — SEU is continuing to explore the creation of a library partnership model where external institutions can access SEU library resources (digital and physical resources) via the Steelman Library website. Furthermore, the university is exploring the possibility of partnering with existing external institutions–who share a similar mission to SEU–in order to enable them to continue offering accredited degree programs in partnership with SEU. SEU also continues to work closely with classical Christian educational partners to provide transformative Christian education (e.g., via dual-enrollment, partner-specific degree programs) as an alternative to public higher education.
Initiated — SEU anticipates reducing instructional costs through the transition to a competency-based education (CBE) modality in various degree programs. The CBE modality will allow for alternative models of instructional delivery that help to reduce overall cost of instruction.
We will provide a co-curricular experience to allow students to develop academically, socially, and spiritually.
Initiated – Within the 2023-24 academic year, a cross-departmental team evaluated a collection of co-curricular programming and identified key gaps to address and areas for cross-departmental collaboration. The findings were presented to the corresponding departments with recommendations. In the upcoming year, a follow-up engagement will be conducted on strategic planning to strengthen the co-curricular experience through bridging delivery gaps and collaboration.
Initiated – SEU took intentional steps to ensure the framework of the QEP was set up for success by refining the non-traditional delivery content resources; and updating and realigning existing rubrics to the original rubric. Additionally, collaborative efforts were made to promote the Becoming badges available to students to make them more accessible by creating and embedding an informational video, designing a Becoming Badges module (in each CORE 1111/1112 course), and implementing an intelligent agent to notify students once they have earned a badge.
Evidence toward the QEP goal is noted by the following: SEU had over 2,000 unique badge earners and 97% of students who enrolled in CORE 1111 and CORE 1112 earned a Becoming badge. Additionally of the traditional students enrolled in the freshmen seminar courses, 87% submitted the CORE 1111 badge-associated assignments and 86% submitted the CORE 1111 badge associated assignments.
Initiated – The number of beds available on campus is 1818. With 1567 beds currently occupied by undergraduate and graduate students, our current occupancy rate is 86.19%. This year, we implemented a 4-year residency policy, as well as created premium housing options, with a goal of increased revenue. We will continue working towards increased occupancy rates, in addition to the 4-year residency requirement and the premium housing options.
Additionally, Campus Life updated student programs (i.e. events, training/workshops, networking opportunities, etc.) and spaces within the residence halls to help create more community among students, which are vital aspects of the overall student experience and engagement. These efforts should result in increased occupancy and retention.
Substantial progress – In 2023-24, the university implemented a virtual orientation for each undergraduate delivery at SEU: online, partner sites, and traditional, and a graduate virtual orientation. The one-stop shop consists of key student onboarding information. Collaboration and discussions took place to expand the content to information needed after fully unboarded.
Substantial progress – We have added new teams to Student Leadership to further meet the needs of students, while also creating internship opportunities for students to get involved on a team beyond scholarship opportunities. We have intentionally formalized our Student Leadership Week training to be cohesively branded and recognizable amongst all students. It has drastically improved our student leaders’ experience and takeaways from the program.
Substantial progress – Renovated/upgraded the office to offer students an area that looks professional and inviting. Created a professional headshot area. We have updated the office branding and marketing materials to represent our office and SEU to the standard of business and colleges in our community and increase office traffic.
We have created and continue to develop a career journey model for our students from Career Awareness to Career Placement with the appropriate resources. Expanded our collaboration with professors to offer class presentations that yield an estimated 400 student interactions per school year. We focused on marketing and education of students using the Handshake platform by providing 1:1 training and sharing specific features during class presentations. Enhanced our Career Exploration framework by testing resources like “What can I do with this Major?” to determine effectiveness. We are in the beginning stages of creating a centralized employer partnership system that aims for open access and connections between students and employers.
Substantial progress – The Center for Student Success functions in a coordinated care network to foster student success by continuing the Behavior Intervention Team (BIT) established in 2022-23 for students at risk of self or other harm. Constituents from SOS, Campus Safety and Security, Athletics, Health and Wellness, Provost, Campus Life, and Community Standards work together on the BIT to support student well-being, resourcing, and intervention. Additionally, the Student Success Council is continuing in its second year of existence in an effort to promote student success and retention across the university. Staff from multiple departments, faculty, and a student representative serve on the Council. Finally, the Department of Intercultural Student Affairs was developed at the end of the 2023-24 academic year, and combines the International Office and Multicultural Affairs to support students from minoritized backgrounds.
We will attract and retain high-performance faculty committed to students and classroom excellence. Our faculty are lifelong learners, called to equip the next generation of leaders and thinkers.
Initiated – SEU brought in a new cohort of over 10 new faculty during the 2023-24 academic year that represented a range of academic background, vocational experience, gender, age, and location (due to the growth of the professional counseling program, several faculty are remote).
Completed – With the appointment of a new chair for the Center for Teaching & Learning (CTL), the strategic plan for the center went through a substantial revisioning process. Previously, the CTL was primarily focused on equipping faculty members to improve their teaching practice. While this continues to be a focus of the CTL, the revised strategic plan placed an emphasis on holistic care for and development of faculty.
Initiated – Several faculty members presented their research during academic guild meetings related to their disciplinary areas (e.g., some BCMT faculty members presented at the annual Society for Pentecostal Studies meeting), provided professional development in the community (e.g., the COE led several educator development seminars in other countries and continued to partner with Crystal Lake Elementary School through the university’s partnership).
Initiated – The Center for Teaching & Learning faculty fellows program was staffed by 3 faculty fellows. They supported the Center for Teaching & Learning through leading best practices sessions, assisting with the new faculty cohort, and partnering with faculty colleagues to help them further develop their practice of teaching. SEU is also planning a pilot of a Faculty Instructional Design Fellows program which will draw on faculty expertise among SEU’s colleges, training professors as instructional designers and pairing them with subject matter experts in their discipline to develop courses.
Initiated – During the 2023-24 academic year, conversations were held in the deans committee about some of the challenges with the PDP/PDR process and the need to consider the creation of an annual faculty evaluation tool. One proposal was to use an evaluation process that evaluates faculty member contribution to university mission and college master plan of advance.
Initiated – During the 2023-24 academic year, the Online Student Experience Task Force academic subcommittee identified the need for a required teaching module in the adjunct survival guide that will set clear expectations for instructor work in SEU online courses; thai will aid in creating an excellent student experience.
Initiated – At this time, substantial progress has not been made on this objective beyond the update provided for the 22-23 academic year.
Initiated – The Center for Teaching & Learning (CTL) provided multiple best practices, faculty development workshops, and social events for SEU faculty during the 2023-24 academic year. The deans committee also had regular conversations about the need to retain faculty who truly contribute to SEU’s mission and culture.
We will recruit, retain, serve, and learn from a diverse and expanding global student population.
Substantial progress – SEU continues to advance efforts to support and learn from its diverse student body. Progress toward achieving Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) designation is ongoing, with Dr. Ben Gomez offering strategic guidance. Currently, approximately 24% of our students identify as Hispanic, and updated census data is forthcoming. We are expanding outreach to the Hispanic community through initiatives such as translating key materials into Spanish, exploring scholarship opportunities, and collaborating with Enrollment to deepen connections with local Hispanic populations.
Initiated – More communication and marketing around opportunities for dual enrollment scholarships has been implemented. We began messaging to all dual students about classes they are taking and how they can proceed to full academic programs at SEU. Dual enrollment counselors teamed with Dual Enrollment to visit high schools and develop lead gen opportunities. Began crafting a direct admissions strategy for early SEU students, with plans to implement in fall 2025.
Substantial progress – This year saw the launch of a new data management team, including student leaders dedicated to performing preliminary credit audits and processing transfer transcripts. Our goal is to achieve a 24-hour turnaround time for all transfer credit evaluations. There has been an 8% increase in transfer student enrollment, with significant improvements in processing times. The admissions process was simplified by removing redundant steps and implementing a 24-hour turnaround goal for credit evaluations, helping to create a more transfer-friendly experience. Though the initial response is positive, more focus is needed on building relationships with community colleges, further simplifying the application process, increasing financial aid for transfer students, and securing more articulation agreements.
Substantial progress – The Student Financial Services department has continued to collaborate closely with both Enrollment and Finance over the last year in a thorough aid budget analysis and budget preparation. SEU partnered with EAB for a new student aid model, which we worked with them to prepare and implement for the fall 2024 recruitment cycle. This new student aid model had a goal of continued enrollment growth, reduced discount, and increased net tuition revenue as the major KPI’s. As of the fall 2024 census, we exceeded the new student goal by +45 students, we kept the discount rate for the new incoming class flat, and we achieved an increase in NTR of $1.5M over last fall. This is a significant improvement over fall 2023, and planning is already in process to finalize the fall 2025 aid model in hopes to continue to improve and grow in each of these areas.
Initiated – The Multicultural Affairs office was part of the Student Success Council and hosted several multicultural related events throughout the year. Hispanic Heritage Celebration took place in September. Black History month events and Chinese New Year were also part of the diverse celebrations. The Center for Black Excellence was initiated under the direction of Dr. Blackmon-Roberts. First Generation Day was celebrated in conjunction with the office of Student Success and Retention. 18 SEU departments took part in the event and we provided students with information about all of our supports available to them to help them succeed in their college journey.
Substantial progress – During the 2023-24 year, significant improvements were made to the partner onboarding process to streamline the site experience and move prospective partners through the funnel more efficiently. The process was moved entirely into Salesforce for cleaner tracking of status and greater automation of communication workflows, maximizing connection points with incoming sites. This improvement created a stickier experience to increase retention of sites from inquiry to onboarding. Additional efforts were made to accommodate new partner types, including businesses and other higher education institutions. Although the university is still addressing compliance matters for these types of entities, the onboarding process is ready for them. Altogether, these improvements resulted in 18 new partners and 138 new students from those partnerships. Trainings were redeveloped for partners that wanted to revisit the SEU partnership. Training three covers the partner’s vision, mission statements, and strategies for successful growth of the site. This training is being uploaded into the partner’s account in Salesforce.
Substantial progress
We will recruit, retain, serve, and learn from a diverse and expanding global student population.
Completed – In the 2023-2024 audited financials, SEU achieved a 2.4 (estimate) CFI score. While challenges still exist; ongoing improvements in the budget process, spending reductions, and overall rightsizing of the university’s operations will provide continued efforts to achieve a 2.0 minimum CFI score.
Substantial progress – SEU received a $5.6 million dollar endowment gift. Portfolio gains were primarily from market performance. FY24-25 has a number of endowed gifts made and pending.
Substantial progress – SEU has received at least $1,000,000 in grants in the first 2 of 5 years of the strategic plan. SEU also received a $5,000,000 special grant in the 2024 calendar year.
Initiated – Monthly financial reporting and available data in proper form that can be relied on improved. Budget and operational decisions have been made using some of the advanced reports.
Substantial progress – Continued to improve the process and get more people involved. Training is occurring and expanding. This will be an ongoing process and development.
Initiated – Capital campaign research, development, and feasibility studies are currently underway. The “go live” of SEU’s first capital campaign will be the fall of 2026. A private phase will launch that spring.
Initiated – Advancement is expanding donor engagement and donor acquisition to meet goals to not only triple SEU’s donor base but also triple the annual operational revenue within three years by the spring of 2027. Expansion of giving opportunities through traditional giving, stock option transfers, and a new DAF will be influential in these goals.
We will commit to our calling by creating a culture of high performance and quality in service to all university stakeholders.
Initiated – HR will evaluate new HRIS systems for implementation, with a desire to improve the existing recruiting and onboarding system. The recruiting and onboarding process will be evaluated and re-designed consistent with best practices and the new system implementation. Hiring managers will be required to follow new practices and receive training on the new system and recruiting practices. HR will develop a recruiting strategy, budget and targeted job boards for identification and selection of top candidates nationally. HR will continue to foster and build a culture and work environment consistent with SEU’s mission, vision and values, increasing employee engagement, and supporting work/life balance. HR plans to conduct a market analysis of compensation for review and develop employee satisfaction and engagement surveys to improve employee retention.
Initiated – Sales training from Echo Delta for enrollment counselors focusing on customer service and student engagement. Functional areas (student recruitment, data management, and campus visits and events – nearly 80 student leaders) in enrollment to support the student experience for new and prospective students. Moved non-traditional enrollment teams downtown with other forward-facing areas to improve collaboration on the student experience, to mitigate gaps in the student journey and optimize the student journey from inquiry through matriculation.
Initiated – A collaborative assessment project with the Center for Student Success has been initiated with plans to conduct a comprehensive self-assessment in the Office of the Registrar.
Initiated – SEU plans to evaluate and select a new HRIS system to replace UKG. The new system is desired to be all-inclusive and encompass the employee full-life cycle, to include recruiting, onboarding, benefits, payroll, compliance, engagement, learning/training, and performance. HR will work with Creative to update SFNet to capture all important information as a resource for employees related to HR policies and procedures, forms, benefit information, perks, etc. and will maintain current information going forward.
Initiated – A new Data on Demand self-service product was published in JICS for academic leaders and advisors. Significant enhancements made to the Enrollment Reports app in Power BI. Comprehensive data analysis and report provided to the Online Student Experience Task Force.
Substantial progress – Implemented Jenzabar chatbot across all web-facing mediums for SEU. Continued development of our Enrollment Salesforce org. Considerable developments regarding collaboration with Creative for lead management. Fully operational with Jenzabar Communications Manager. Build out several FromFlow solutions to assist with various business unit’s workflow and processes. Completed implementation of a new wireless network solution across campus. Added an Integration Specialist and Cybersecurity Analyst to the IT team.
We will provide students with practical real-world experiences that help shape them into the workforce of tomorrow.
Substantial progress – The new SEU Trades program consulted with multiple local trades businesses and associations during the Spring 2024 launch of its academic programming. The result has been the development of academic programming that provides students with the opportunity to get hands-on experience in the trades they are learning in their degree program that could lead to apprenticeship opportunities and gainful employment.
Substantial progress – After a year of meeting with internal stakeholders (Deans, Chairs, Faculty) regarding CBE the SEU BOT passed a resolution at the spring 2024 meeting to move forward with a CBE subscription-based model. Dr. Mike Cuckler, Dr. Cody Lloyd, Justin Rose, and Dr. Michael Steiner attended a two-day workshop in Wisconsin with Dr. Greg Henson, President of Sioux Falls Seminary & Kairos University, to understand all the operational items of a successful CBE program. Dr. Henson and team were the first ATS approved seminaries in the country to adopt a full CBE model for all of their approved degree programs. The SACSCOC substantive change prospectus for SEU’s first CBE delivered program was filed by the Jul 1, 2024 deadline. The prospectus has been reviewed by SACSCOC and a response to three questions of clarification has been submitted in the first week of October, 2024. SEU anticipates approval in December based on the easily navigated nature of the reviewer questions. Given the first program seeking approval is the Master of Arts Ministerial Leadership housed in the School of Divinity, a petition has also been completed for the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). This petition was written by Dr. Mike Cuckler and team and is under final review by internal stakeholders at SEU and filed by Nov 1, 2024.
Initiated – Kingdom 320 Real Estate Investment collaborative access partnership proposal submitted to Jeff Rutkowski, President of Kingdom 320. Awaiting response.
Initiated – SEU has continued to expand the SEU Network through collaborative access via partnerships with EDiGlobal, Christian Halls Brasil, Great Hearts of America charter school network, Edvance, and Acadeum.
Substantial progress – In the first year of the launch we had over 1,500 students enroll in the PRAC courses. We offered them over the summer in both the 16 week and 8 week sections. We continue to adjust the content of the courses as needed. We worked with ID&T to build a job board for MyFire for opportunities available to students locally or on campus.
Initiated – We are in the beginning stages of creating a centralized employer partnership system that aims for open access and connections between students and employers. (See also 2.6)