Cultivate and Strengthen Community Engagement

1. Enhance the academic and work environments of the university by fostering a culture of service, servant leadership and inclusive excellence among faculty, staff and students.
   1. Increase diversity of faculty, staff and students through inclusive recruitment and retention practices.
   2. Strengthen onboarding and professional development programs for faculty and staff in accord with the mission, vision, core values and goals of the university.
   3. Affirm commitment to shared governance, transparency, timely communication and inclusive participation.
   4. Reward outstanding performance and advance quality of life in the workplace.
   5. Regularly evaluate the climate at South Dakota State University as experienced by faculty, staff and students, and communicate and respond with actionable strategies.
2. Grow the university’s external engagement through extension, collaborative service, community outreach, alumni relations and public-private partnerships that enhance the quality of life in South Dakota and beyond.
   1. Ensure that communities have a voice in defining the university’s external engagement activities.
   2. Align academic and outreach programming across the university to optimize institutional efforts to support tribal communities and underserved populations.
   3. Increase engagement with K-12 schools at the local, state and national levels.
   4. Build reciprocal relationships with industry partners.
   5. Celebrate, promote and communicate the results and impact of engagement activities.