Headwinds & Opportunities
Societal trends and the state of higher education continue to shift due to forces beyond COVID-19. As we prepare to navigate an ever-changing landscape, we need to keep key opportunities and challenges top of mind.
2025 Strategic Plan
St. Thomas 2025 is an ambitious yet focused five-year effort designed to propel the university toward a new level of impact. It is a guide to help us reach higher in serving our students, our community and the world.
The next five years present an unparalleled opportunity to promote our strengths and leverage key opportunities.
Not only will this five-year plan help us strengthen what we do best; it will encourage us to leverage new opportunities, gain stature and continue to thrive in an increasingly challenging and competitive landscape for higher education.
You can view updates on progress we've made towards key success metrics defined for each strategic priority of the 2025 Strategic Plan.
Expanding our Impact
St. Thomas is at a distinct point in our history – and we are poised to expand our reach across the country and to build a national reputation. Its position as the largest private university in Minnesota, nimble yet comprehensive, gives St. Thomas a unique advantage. With keen focus on strategic opportunities, we will not just survive the headwinds, but thrive and grow.
Our 10-year Aspiration
The University of St. Thomas will advance to the level of excellence, impact and reputation that distinguishes the top 10 national Catholic universities.
Our Mission
Inspired by Catholic intellectual tradition, the University of St. Thomas educates students to be morally responsible leaders who think critically, act wisely and work skillfully to advance the common good.
Our Convictions
- Pursuit of Truth
- Academic Excellence
- Faith and Reason
- Dignity
- Diversity
- Personal Attention
- Gratitude
Guiding Themes
As our community came together through the strategic planning process to develop goals for the next five years, the following themes emerged. These will guide our work, helping us remain true to what makes St. Thomas unique while empowering us to focus on key ongoing and emerging priorities that will help us thrive.
Ever Press Forward through Innovation
We will innovate, grow and excel in ways that align with our educational mission and vision to provide relevant and continuous learning for Tommie leaders of today and tomorrow.
Build Belonging and Promote Equity
We will become a university characterized by radical hospitality and a shared sense of belonging where all are welcomed as we work to achieve social justice and dismantle inequities of all forms.
Ensure Access, Achievement, and Outcomes for All
We will broaden access to a St. Thomas education, ensure all students have equal opportunities to take advantage of the full St. Thomas experience and the academic excellence we provide, and connect all students to career opportunities that leverage our powerful Tommie Network.
More about the theme Ensure Access, Achievement, and Outcomes for All
Lean In to Our Catholic Mission
We will bring the visions of our founder and namesake, our unique charism, and Catholic social teaching fully to life as we encounter the grand challenges of the day, develop principled leaders and contribute to a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable world.
Widen the Circle of Impact
We will make our mark and widen our impact locally, regionally, nationally and globally by becoming a partner of choice and extending an invitation to students, faculty, and staff from near and far to become part of our vision and our work.
Strengthen Culture As We Embrace Change
As we respond to uncertainty and change in the societal and higher education landscapes, we will strengthen our university culture by expressing the values of respect, honesty and transparency, by engaging in open dialogue, and by committing to continued personal and professional growth.
More about the theme Strengthen Culture As We Embrace Change
Strategic Priorities
Through these strategic priorities, St. Thomas will build upon its strengths, invest where we have unprecedented opportunity and make bold progress. We will expand our impact with new and emerging priorities and continue to accentuate our differentiating strengths through priorities that are ongoing.
Updates on Our Progress
We share updates on the progress we make on the key success metrics defined for each strategic priority.
Factors That Shaped the 2025 Strategic Plan
Community Input
The faculty and staff of St. Thomas shared their thoughts, contributed ideas, and engaged in community conversations around the successes and obstacles of initial draft themes. In addition, feedback was gathered from students and other members of the broader community.
Success of the 2020 Strategic Plan
St. Thomas 2020 guided the work of the university since 2015 and led to many important accomplishments; many initiatives that began in the 2020 plan will continue into St. Thomas 2025.
Introducing the 2025 Strategic Plan
Building on the vision of our founder to "never stop improving," the 2025 strategic plan is a five-year guide to help St. Thomas make a bolder impact. Listen to this high-level overview with President Sullivan's call to the community to create and embrace a thriving future for the university.
2025 Strategic Plan News
April 22, 2024
In the News: Star Tribune Features Interdisciplinary Course Taking Place at Schoenecker Center
Liz Navratil, higher education reporter at the Star Tribune, recently visited the University of St. Thomas’ Musical Acoustics class – taught at the Schoenecker Center by music professor Doug Orzolek and physics professor Jeff Jalkio – to learn more about the interdisciplinary learning take place in the university’s new academic facility. From the story: Music… The post In the News: Star Tribune Features Interdisciplinary Course Taking Place at Schoenecker Center appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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April 22, 2024
Earth, Environment and Society Professor Is a 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Scholar
Dr. Thomas Hickson, a professor in the Department of Earth, Environment and Society in the College of Arts and Sciences, has received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program award in geology to Spain for the 2024-25 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. Hickson will be working at the… The post Earth, Environment and Society Professor Is a 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Scholar appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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April 15, 2024
College of Health Receives Grant to Support School Social Worker Pipeline
The School of Social Work at the Morrison Family College of Health just received a $622,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Education to help attract and prepare students for a career in K-12 school social work. Facing a shortage of support services staff in schools across Minnesota and the nation, the funds will allow… The post College of Health Receives Grant to Support School Social Worker Pipeline appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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April 15, 2024
School of Engineering Student-Faculty Research
Ryan Kappes (Civil Engineering ’25) With Dr. Ali Ling Characterizing How PFAS Move Through Aquatic Food Webs in the Mississippi River RESEARCH ROLE: my role is to analyze data from research done on PFAS concentrations and find links between the compound size and accumulation in the food web to better characterize how much PFAS impacts… The post School of Engineering Student-Faculty Research appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.
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April 8, 2024
The Future of Persistent ‘Forever’ Chemicals
Imagine a group of chemicals so useful they’re in everything from your phone to your clothes, but they never break down and could be harming your health for generations. These chemicals do exist and there is not enough money in the world to remove them from the environment as fast as they are being added. Per-… The post The Future of Persistent ‘Forever’ Chemicals appeared first on Newsroom | University of St. Thomas.