Board of Visitors approves six-year strategic plan, ‘empowering brighter futures and building stronger communities’

A new strategic plan is in place to guide Radford University for the next six years.

The Radford Board of Visitors voted at its meeting Friday, Dec. 5, to adopt a resolution that would set the plan, “Shaping Tomorrow – Together,” in place in January 2026. The strategic plan, which runs through 2031, reflects the university’s spirit and promise to transform lives, build stronger communities and lead with purpose into the future.

Shaping Tomorrow – Together “leads us to the next exciting chapter in the university’s story,” said Radford University President Bret Danilowicz during his report to the board.

“We are now at an inflection point in our history,” the president continued. “We’ve come an extraordinarily long way in our last two years, and we’re positioned now for even greater things. The road map for the next six years will allow us to fulfill our mission of empowering brighter futures and building stronger communities. We’re going to be ignited by a culture of care that provides the services, resources and opportunities to support our well-being.”[DP1] 

The president praised the efforts of Vice President of Economic Development and Corporate Education Angela Joyner and Sharon Roger Hepburn, professor and chair of the Department of History, who led the efforts to create the six-year plan.

Before the resolution vote, Joyner and Hepburn offered updates on the plan’s progress since the board last met on Sept.  16.

As the new strategic plan is set for implementation, Danilowicz highlighted successes from the previous two-year strategic initiative, which launched in 2023 with a focus on four institutional priorities: to define Radford’s distinctive nature, stabilize enrollment, drive regional economic development and streamline resources to increase efficiency.

Some of the notable outcomes included increasing brand awareness, expanding experiential learning and stabilizing enrollment. The university’s Tartan Transfer program, Radford Tuition Promise and the opening of The HUB in downtown Radford, adjacent to campus, emerged from the two-year plan.

In his report to the board, Danilowicz touted the university’s enrollment growth over the past two years, noting a 28% increase in the number of new freshmen and a 39% jump in the number of transfer students. In addition, Radford’s graduate student enrollment is at its highest in the institution’s history.

Danilowicz noted that 92% of Radford students are Virginians, and 94% of graduates are employed within six months of earning their degrees. “That’s something the commonwealth can be really proud of,” he said. “We are a state institution. We are proud of it, and it shows in our numbers.”

Other university successes highlighted by the president included:

• Radford’s first Tartan Transfer summit was held on Oct. 23. The goal of Tartan Transfer is to create a seamless and supportive transition for community college students to Radford once they receive their associate degrees.
• This year, 14 Radford students were selected for the Council on Undergraduate Research’s Scholars Transforming Through Research program. Radford had the largest single institution representation.
• The president spoke about new economic development efforts, including those through The HUB and collaborative health education outreach in rural areas of Virginia.
• The new Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities is scheduled to open on campus in the fall of 2026.
• The NCAA recognized Radford University recently with two awards. One of those posthumously recognizes former women’s basketball coach Charlene Curtis with the 2026 Gerald R. Ford Award. Highlanders baseball coach Alex Guerra ’11 is receiving the 2026 Award of Valor for his quick actions to help rescue a man struggling against strong currents in the New River earlier this year. The NCAA is giving 14 awards, and Radford is receiving two of those, the president proudly emphasized.
• Radford is expanding its club and intramural sports offerings “because it plays an important part in engaging students with our campus,” Danilowicz said. The university is expanding participation in rugby, ultimate Frisbee, esports, women’s flag football and pickleball.
• In November, Radford hosted Virginia’s Senate Finance Committee on campus for its two-day annual meeting. Attendees included Virginia governor-elect Abigail Spanberger. Several students engaged in the meeting. “Our campus community had a very meaningful glimpse into public service, civic leadership and state government,” the president said.
• Advocacy Day is scheduled for Feb. 3-4, 2026, at the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.

At the recommendation of the Academic Excellence and Student Success Committee, the board approved the creation of the new Bachelor of Science in geospatial and earth sciences degree. The degree merges the Bachelor of Arts and B.S degrees in geology with the B.A. and B.S. degrees in geospatial sciences. In 2024, the departments of geology and geospatial sciences came together to form a new Department of Geospatial and Earth Sciences.

Friday’s meeting began with a presentation from elementary education major Kate Hudson, who spoke about her extensive experiences at the university, including serving as a Quest assistant and alumni ambassador, and participating in Advocacy Day. Hudson is also part of Radford’s Southwest Virginia Teacher Apprenticeship Consortium, a program that gives education majors hands-on experiences in classrooms in regional schools.

“I genuinely love this school,” Hudson said of Radford, “and I will be forever grateful for every opportunity it has given me.”

Later in the meeting, Executive Director of Government Relations and Strategic Initiatives Lisa Ghidotti presented to the board a recap of Virginia’s November election results. She spoke about Spanberger’s transition into office in January and provided insight into the 2026 Virginia General Assembly. Ghidotti told the board that two Radford students will participate in her office’s Government Relations Internship program during the spring semester. The program gives students an opportunity to work closely with Southwest Virginia state legislators and their staff in Richmond during the General Assembly session and then return to campus to work in the university’s Government Relations office for the remainder of the semester.

Later, Faculty Senate Chair Matthew Close, a biology professor, offered insight into a recent Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education faculty survey that allows for benchmarking and comparisons with self-selected peer institutions. The survey, Close noted, captures faculty sentiment regarding teaching, service and research, tenure and promotion, departmental engagement and collegiality, as well as various other aspects of the academic workplace. The survey was conducted by the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

The board also heard from its student representative, Dominika Butler, who reflected on her fall semester initiatives, which included an engagement event with the Radford University Police Department, a visit with students at Radford University Carilion in Roanoke and recruitment for the Student Government Association.

Throughout the meeting, board members reported on the various committee meetings that were held the day before, Dec. 4. Those included:

Academic Excellence and Student Success: Chair Betty Jo Foster ’69, Ed.D., provided an overview of the discussion on creating the new Bachelor of Science in geospatial and earth sciences degree. She noted that in the meeting, Provost Bethany Usher provided a plethora of points of pride from the academic year, including the College of Education and Human Development being recognized by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Foster noted, too, that the fall semester Wicked Festival, held in November, was the largest yet, with 735 students participating from disciplines across all colleges.

Business Affairs and Audit Committee: Chair Jeanne Armentrout ’81 said University Auditor Margaret McManus '87 gave a report on the quarterly review of the university discretionary fund, the fiscal year 2025 change in petty cash funds and a payroll review and the status of each quarterly follow-up audit. Vice President for Finance and Administration Rob Hoover provided the committee with an overview of how the university’s budget will be constructed for 2027. Armentrout presented the committee’s revision to the discrimination and harassment policy, which the board approved.

Enrollment Management and Brand Equity Committee: Chair Jennifer Wishon Gilbert shared an update of the university’s finalized communications plan and its goals of strategic focus, awareness and engagement, reputation and brand equity. The communications plan will be used to launch the university’s new strategic plan. Gilbert provided updates about enrollment stabilization, maintenance of high academic standards and improved pathways for students transferring to Radford.

External Engagement Committee: Chair Betsy Beamer ’81 reported on collaborative initiatives with the city of Radford, including student work examining the city’s unhoused population, the revitalization of a bike trail connecting Tyler Avenue to Bisset Park and an amphitheater project. Beamer noted additional projects with the town and county of Pulaski. She gave an update on The HUB, which now has 35 co-work memberships. Beamer informed the board of a report to the committee by Vice President of Advancement Penny White, who spoke about fundraising efforts for fiscal year 2026, saying $4.3 million toward the $6 million annual goal had been reached. Beamer reported on the success of Highlander Giving Day, an event that lasted one day, nine hours and 10 minutes – a number that reflects the institution’s 1910 founding – and raised $83,885 from 424 donors. Those numbers mark a 60% increase in dollars and a 30% increase in donors from the 2024 event.

Student Affairs and Athletics Committee: Chair David A. Smith '85, M.S. '87 shared that Student Government Association president Owen Starr reported significant progress to the organization’s membership goals. SGA now has 45 active members – a jump from 12 – with all cabinet seats filled and class-specific senate seats occupied. The SGA concentrated on increasing student engagement and school spirit. Smith noted that Vice President for Student Affairs Susan Trageser spoke to the committee about initiatives for students geared toward outdoor experiences, well-being and student employment and engagement. She also updated the committee on the success of Connected Communities, an initiative designed to foster a welcoming campus environment with campus locations in Heth and Trinkle halls. Smith shared highlights from a report given to the committee by Deputy Athletics Director Cory Durand. Some of the highlights were renovations to the softball stadium, which include the installation of an artificial playing surface. Smith mentioned the women’s soccer team winning the Big South Conference regular season championship, the seventh such title in the program’s illustrious history, all under head coach Ben Sohrabi. Smith reported that women’s basketball head coach Mike McGuire has now won more games than any basketball coach – men’s and women’s – in Radford hoops history.

Copies of the meeting agendas and board reports are available online, and a full video of the Dec. 5 meeting can be streamed through YouTube.

The next meeting of Radford’s Board of Visitors will be held March 19-20, 2026.