A Letter from the President
Texas Southern University has come to an exciting and pivotal moment in its history. As we approach the 100-year anniversary of the institution, we have an opportunity to strengthen our position as a preeminent comprehensive urban university—reimagining bigger, better, and bolder ways to grow our educational and research impact and serve diverse students and learners in Texas and beyond.
The University’s most recent strategic plan, Vision 2022, has sunset, it is now time to embark upon a new cycle of strategic planning, to articulate clear priority areas of focus for the University, and to guide our decision-making in support of shared goals. Because academic excellence is at the core of our University, it is essential our academic units play an integral part of any planning effort. I am pleased to announce the launch of an academic and strategic planning process; the preliminary phase began in November and will continue throughout much of 2025. Most of the work will occur during the Spring 2025 academic semester.
The first element of this work will be a data-informed assessment and discussion of TSU’s academic enterprise to explore opportunities that elevate our academic vision and programming, drive an innovative learning environment and tailored learning delivery, smart enrollment growth, expand our research impact, and align TSU with the State and regional market to be a leader in meeting both immediate and future workforce demands. This assessment will serve as a roadmap to strengthen TSU’s competitive position through academic excellence, research leadership, and institutional advancement.
Building on the insights gained from the academic assessment, the strategic planning phase will develop solutions to address existing vulnerabilities, capitalize and advance current strengths, and pursue the many opportunities available to the institution to move key institutional priorities forward. This strategic planning effort offers an intentional moment to honestly assess and reimagine the entire TSU higher education operation.
To support this collective and collaborative academic and strategic planning exercise TSU has partnered with higher education consultants from Huron Consulting Group. Huron will provide neutral third-party analysis and facilitation to promote dialogue across TSU constituencies and to support an intentional and efficient process. In addition to Huron the University will also engage other business and higher education experts to aid this endeavor.
The resulting strategic plan will articulate our shared vision implemented by a targeted set of planned outcomes to transform vision into reality.
Dr. Raijanel Crockem has been appointed as the TSU project manager to ensure we stay on a rational and achievable course. Provost Carl B. Goodman, Dr. Michelle Penn-Marshall, the head of Institutional Research, and a core team of senior leaders will charge and guide an Academic Planning Working Group and a Strategic Planning Committee.
This process will also invite broad participation from campus community members beyond the Working Group and Committee members. We will engage faculty, staff, administrators, undergraduate students, graduate students, Regents and Trustees, alumni, donors, employer and community partners to ensure the broadest perspectives are included in our thinking.
In the coming months, there will be multiple opportunities to share your thoughts and perspectives through focus groups, interviews, and surveys. We look forward to your participation as we work together to shape the future of TSU.
J.W. Crawford, III Vice Admiral, JAGC, U.S. Navy (Retired)
President
A Letter from the Provost
President Crawford will soon share a message with our full campus community announcing a forthcoming academic and strategic planning process. The University’s most recent strategic plan, Vision 2022, has sunset, and it’s time to embark upon a new cycle of strategic planning, to articulate clear priority areas of focus for the University, and to guide our decision-making in support of shared goals. Because our academic enterprise is at the core of our University, it is critical that our academic units be an integral part of this planning effort.
This work will begin in earnest in January, though pre-planning is already underway. We’ll start with an academic planning phase, encompassing a data-informed assessment and discussion of TSU’s portfolio of academic program offerings at all levels. The focus of this academic planning will be to position TSU’s academic portfolio for the future by identifying opportunities for investment, growth, and modifications to meet evolving student and market demands. Our academic planning will also consider the current structure of our Colleges and Schools and the programs and services they house.
To support the academic and strategic planning effort, TSU has partnered with higher education consultants from Huron Consulting Group. Huron will provide neutral third-party analysis and facilitation to promote dialogue across TSU constituencies and to promote a data-informed and efficient process.
One of the most important aspects of this type of exercise is ensuring that we have the right leadership voices at the table. The academic planning effort will be led by a Working Group, supported by Huron and co-chaired by myself, Dr. Michelle Penn-Marshall, and Dr. Raijanel Crockem.
We invite you to serve as a member of this important Academic Planning Working Group.
The Working Group will collaborate closely with our partners at Huron and internal community constituents to ensure our academic planning is grounded in TSU’s unique values and aligned with the University’s overall mission. This effort will ultimately provide valuable insights into growth opportunities for TSU, to help us continue to address evolving student demand, regional workforce needs, and competitive market conditions.
We anticipate the Working Group will meet four times for major milestone meetings between now and March, including a one-hour kickoff meeting to take place in early December. We will also plan to engage various other constituents to support this work, including representatives across our Colleges and Schools and those serving in other important academic leadership and student support roles.
Please let me know by November 22 if you are willing and able to serve. I welcome any questions you may have about this process or the Working Group. I value your insights and commitment to advancing academic excellence and institutional growth at Texas Southern University, and I hope you will choose to join us.
I would like to invite you to serve on the Strategic Planning Committee for Texas Southern University’s new strategic plan.
The Committee will be composed of a diverse group of creative thinkers drawing from TSU faculty, staff, administrators, alumni, community partners and, of course, our amazing students. Beginning with a kick-off meeting early in the Spring semester, Committee members will be asked to participate in 4-6 milestone meetings. Committee members will review market analyses and stakeholder input, participate in educational-community events, lead an extended group of stakeholders via subcommittees, and make recommendations on potential priorities and initiatives.
To help support this process, TSU has engaged higher education consultants from Huron as an external partner. Together, we have designed an inclusive and imaginative planning process that will also engage internal and external audiences in identifying a bold set of strategic priorities. Most of the work regarding this process will occur during the Spring 2025 semester. This work will continue on throughout summer 2025 as we finalize and begin the implementation of a new strategic plan.
A separate Working Group has already been assembled to guide the Academic Planning portion of work for this integrated effort, which will inform the strategic planning process.
Please let us know by December 18th if you are willing and able to serve by replying all to this correspondence. We look forward to following up in early January to schedule our kick-off meeting! If you have any specific questions about this process or the Committee, please provide them to the Project Manager, Dr. Raijanel Crockem at Raijanel.Crockem@tsu.edu
I value your insights and commitment to advancing institutional excellence at Texas Southern University, and I hope you will choose to join us.
Carl B. Goodman, Ph.D.
Provost
Strategic Plan Background, Planning Process, and Timeline
President James Crawford and the Board of Regents are spearheading a university-wide initiative to develop a new Strategic Plan to guide Texas Southern University’s priorities, investments, and strategic direction over the coming years. This collaborative effort engages students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community partners to build a shared and inclusive vision for TSU’s future.
TSU has partnered with Huron Consulting Group , a nationally recognized higher education advisory firm, serving as objective facilitators of the planning process. Together, we aim to design a bold, actionable strategy that aligns emerging goals with institutional strengths and future opportunities. The strategic planning process will answer five essential questions where are we now, what future are we working toward, how will we get there, how will we track progress, what resources will ensure our success and the work is organized into sequential phases starting with discovery and engagement, then moving into goal-setting, strategy development, and implementation planning. A detailed timeline will provide transparency and encourage ongoing participation across all stakeholder groups.
The plan centers on three strategic pillars:
- Renew our core commitments to academic excellence, student-centered support, and institutional values.
- Enhance programs, infrastructure, and partnerships by leveraging advanced technologies—including artificial intelligence—to increase efficiency, elevate teaching and learning, and strengthen data-informed decision-making.
- Expand TSU’s reach through innovation, investment, and opportunity, positioning the university as a national leader in access, equity, and impact.
These pillars provide the foundation for setting priorities, selecting initiatives, and making decisions to move TSU boldly and deliberately into the future.
Through this process, Texas Southern University reaffirms its unwavering commitment to excellence, accountability, student success, and community impact.
Phase 0
November - December 2024
Pre-Planning
Preparation and Data Collection
- Established project governance by assigning a TSU project manager and forming a cross-functional Working Group
- Initiated planning with Huron through pre- planning sessions, draft communications, and development of the project charter and plan
- Began baseline assessment by gathering internal data and identifying peer institutions for benchmarking
Phase 1
December 2024 - April 2025
Academic Planning
Diagnose Competitive landscape and Build a Shared Understanding of Future Alignment
- Internal data analysis
- Stakeholder Engagement for Academic Working Group, Strategic Working Group
- Engaged Student Focus Groups, Alumni Focus Groups and External Community Partners
- External environment analysis, benchmarking and SWOT
- Blueprint opportunities for new growth and impact
Phase 2
December 2024 - August 2025
Strategic Planning
Develop the Blueprint and socialize the plan
- Developing of set of emerging strategic options
- Identifying priority strategic initiative’s
- Draft strategic options with President and BOR input
- Present recommendation to BOR
- Develop draft Strategic Plan