Comprehensive Standards: Institutional Mission, Governance, and Effectiveness 3.1.1 (clear, comprehensive mission statement)
The institution has a clear and comprehensive mission statement that guides it; is approved by the governing board; is periodically reviewed by the board; and is communicated to the institution’s constituencies.

Compliance
North Carolina State University is in compliance with this standard.

Explanation
NC State University’s mission statement addresses all three of the university’s primary functions—teaching, research, and extension and engagement—and it clearly identifies our unique role as North Carolina’s land-grant, research-extensive university.  The mission designates North Carolinians as the university’s primary clientele while supporting our objective of playing a leadership role nationally and internationally.

One of the major responsibilities and duties of the Board of Governors (BOG) of the University of North Carolina is setting the mission of each constituent institution.  Hence, the BOG reviews missions every two years while engaged in long-range planning.  Like other constituent institutions, NC State University may recommend changes to its mission statement at that time.  The university’s current mission statement was drafted by a campus strategic planning committee, approved by the NC State University administration and Board of Trustees (BOT), and approved by the BOG in 1996.  In 2001, as part of BOG review, the statement was amended slightly to reflect changes in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education and to update the language referring to NC State University’s public service mission to “extension and engagement.”

NC State University’s mission statement is posted on the university’s strategic planning  and Policies, Regulations and Rules websites.  Also, both the undergraduate and graduate catalogs link to the mission statement in their respective North Carolina State University sections.  The mission statement is printed in university policy manuals and catalogs.  The mission statement is featured prominently among agenda materials for every meeting of the BOT.

References

• The Board of Governors’ charge of setting the mission of each constituent institution within the consolidated University of North Carolina (http://www.northcarolina.edu/bog/code/code.cfm) [see Chapter II, Section 203.a, (1)-(3)]

• BOG long-range planning (http://www.northcarolina.edu/aa/planning/reports/longplan/LRP2002-07.pdf)

• Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education (http://carnegiefoundation.org/Classification/)

• NC State University’s current mission statement (/UPA/strategicplan/mission.htm)

• NC State University’s strategic planning website (/UPA/index.htmstrategicplan/index.htm)

• The Policies, Regulations and Rules site contains links to the mission statement (http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/governance_admin/gov_gen/POL01.25.1.php), as do the undergraduate (http://www2.ncsu.edu/reg_records/ug_catalog/front/index.htm) and graduate (http://www.fis.ncsu.edu/grad_catalog/cat-ncsu.htm) catalogs

• The University of North Carolina system website (http://www.northcarolina.edu/content.php/system/index.htm)

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Last Modified: Monday, 07-Jul-03 13:15:53