 5 Questions With...
William E. "Brit" Kirwan
Chancellor, University System of Maryland
On December 3, 2010, the University System of Maryland (USM) Board of Regents approved a new strategic plan for the USM: Powering Maryland Forward - USM's 2020 Plan for More Degrees, a Stronger Innovation Economy, and a Higher Quality of Life. We spoke with USM Chancellor Brit Kirwan about the plan.
Tell me about the USM's new strategic plan.
About 18 months ago we began the process of crafting a new strategic plan for the University System of Maryland (USM). This was a time when the impact of our current fiscal crisis was just beginning to take shape. It was against this backdrop that we made a concerted effort with this new plan to focus on how the USM could align its activities with the state's needs and enable Maryland to emerge from the "Great Recession" as a leader, not just economically but also in the quality of life of our citizens.
What are the key elements of the new plan?
The plan has two key goals. The first one is helping the state advance its goal of having 55 percent of our young adult population holding an associate's or bachelor's degree. A 55 percent college completion rate meets the international standard for competitiveness. The second is enhancing Maryland's competitiveness in the innovation economy. This goal recognizes the imperative of research (basic and applied) and development, technology transfer, and commercialization to build Maryland's innovation economy.
Why is completion so important?
Thirty years ago, the U.S. led the world in the percent of adults with a two- or four-year degree. Today, the country ranks 12th and we are on a trend line to fall to last among industrialized nations in college completion by 2025. We cannot allow this to happen. Our ability to compete--let alone lead--in the innovation economy would be irreparably compromised.
What are the other goals of the plan?
The plan also calls upon the USM to enhance efforts to transform the academic model by redesigning courses to better engage students in their academic pursuits and improve "learning outcomes." It also calls for the USM to continue our exemplary stewardship of resources, including the enhancement of the system's Effectiveness and Efficiency Initiative that has generated more than $200 million in cost savings. Finally, and most importantly, it calls upon the USM to continue our core commitment to quality and national eminence.
Where do things stand with the strategic plan?
The good news is that our state leaders in Annapolis have embraced the goals of the plan. Of course, this support must lead to financial investment from the state if we are to be successful. Unfortunately, the essential flat funding for the USM included in Governor Martin O'Malley's proposed FY 2012 budget is not sufficient to do what we need to do this first year. We are hopeful that as the state's economy recovers, we will receive the additional state support--including the intended revenue from Maryland's Higher Education Investment Fund--needed to fund the plan and help the state meet its critical needs.
Maryland has the potential to lead both educationally and economically, but we are at a crossroads. We can either lay claim to leadership in the innovation economy by investing in higher education and innovation today. Or, we can accept middle-of-the-pack status for the foreseeable future.
I hope the members of the Towson University family--and the entire USM community--will advocate for our ambitious plan to secure Maryland's future.
CLICK HERE to learn more about Powering Maryland Forward.
Towson University 2016
 Achieving Maryland's College Completion Goals
Towson University serves a key role in achieving the State of Maryland's 55% college completion goal. Towson is optimizing retention and graduation of all students by making college more accessible through off-campus sites such as the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center, USM at Hagerstown, partnering with Harford Community College (HCC) and the HEAT Center, as well as offering the summer trimester program on campus. During the past 13 years the TU/HCC Partnership has provided upper-level undergraduate education to the residents of Harford County and northeast Maryland. Towson University has 23 2+2 articulation agreements in place with HCC to make the transition from HCC to Towson seamless for the student. Towson's ability to expand degree offerings in northeast Maryland addresses the population and degree completion goals of this growing region.
2016 Plan | Guiding Principles
New in the News
Read up on the latest higher education issues that have appeared in the news recently:
 Upcoming Hearings and Legislative Bills
These hearings are on the schedule as of February 28, 2011:
MARCH 1 at 1:00p.m.
HB72 Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act of 2011
House: Appropriations
SB 746 Economic Development - Task Force on Job Creation
Senate: Finance
MARCH 2 at 1:00 p.m.
SB 87 Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act of 2011
Senate: Budget and Taxation
SB 628 Public Employees and Retiree Health Care
Senate: Budget and Taxation
SB 629 Teachers' Retirement and Pension Systems - Local Employer Contributions
Senate: Budget and Taxation
HB 628 Commission to Study Streamlining and Increasing the Efficiency of the
Procurement Process
House: Health and Government Operations
MARCH 3 at 1:00 p.m.
SB 401 Use of State Employees Instead of Service Contracts
Senate: Education Health and Environmental Affairs
HB 670 Real Property - Retaliatory Actions - Landlords and Mobile Home Park Owners
House: Environmental Matters
MARCH 8 @ 1:00 p.m.
HB 995 Higher Education - Regulation of Public, Private Nonprofit, and For-Profit
Institutions of Higher Education
House: Appropriations
HB 803 Criminal Law - Possession of a Handgun - Institutions of Higher Education and
Hospitals
House: Judiciary
MARCH 15 @ 1:00 p.m.
SB 856 Maryland Higher Education Commission - Review of Program Proposals
Senate: Education Health and Environmental Affairs
For updated bill information, please click here.
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