ASCO’s Strategic Plan Update in Progress

The past several months have seen tremendous progress in the development of ASCO’s new Strategic Plan. This progress was reported by ASCO’s Executive Director, Dawn Mancuso, during the Board meeting on Nov. 8, 2016.

The Strategic Planning Committee, led by ASCO President Dr. Karla Zadnik (OSU) and including Dr. Jenny Coyle (PUCO), Dr. David Damari (MCO), Dr. Larry Davis (UMSL), Dr. David Heath (SUNY), and Dr. Lewis Reich (SCO), continues to oversee and guide the process, which is intended to provide as much opportunity as possible for input from ASCO volunteers.

During the summer, ASCO staff met to brainstorm around the measurable results, strategies and tactics for each of ASCO’s draft Strategic Objectives. The Strategic Objectives are:

  • develop a highly qualified, diverse applicant pool
  • establish and promote leadership development programs for all levels for faculty, administrators, residents and students
  • serve as the primary resource and leading voice for optometric education
  • facilitate inter-institutional and interprofessional collaboration
  • enhance systems to assure effective governance, responsible resource allocation and an appropriate infrastructure

The Strategic Objectives resulted from ASCO’s Core Values (revised in September):

  • leadership
  • inclusion
  • innovation
  • integrity

More progress on the Plan includes:

  • refinement of ASCO’s Mission Statement, currently drafted as:

The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) advances optometric education and research to enhance the health and well-being of the public, with the recommended descriptive paragraph: The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) accomplishes this mission through collaboration with educators, administrators, students, industry, government, health care organizations, and other stakeholders through its education, research, advocacy and development activities, in order to nurture robust, forward-thinking, and evidence-based optometric education and research

  • drafting ASCO’s first Vision Statement, currently drafted as: Focusing Optometry’s Future, with the recommended descriptive paragraph: The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) serves as a catalyst for the advancement of optometry. ASCO member schools and colleges provide the best education, conduct the most innovative research, and attract and graduate the highest quality professionals who reflect the diversity of the population we serve. Our graduates go on to serve as doctors of optometry, researchers, educators, collaborators, and leaders in the health care community.

The next steps in the strategic planning will be to:

  • finalize the Mission Statement, Mission Statement Description, Vision Statement, Vision Statement Description, Core Values and Key Strategic Objectives
  • work with lead committees and SIGs to draft measurable results and to engage in a brainstorming exercise around strategies and tactics for each strategic goal
  • engage stakeholders in a prioritization exercise around measureable results
  • conduct a cultural assessment of ASCO today and identify what organizational/infrastructure changes need to be made to fulfill stated objectives

Please share additional ideas, suggestions or comments with ASCO’s Strategic Planning Committee and ASCO’s Executive Director Dawn Mancuso via email to dmancuso@opted.org. Ongoing progress on the Strategic Plan will be featured in future issues of Eye on Education.