Strategic Plan

The 2022-2025 Strategic Plan builds upon the plan published in 2018. The plan was revised in 2021 to include the school’s initiatives and strategic goals on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), after consultation with the school community and approval of the DEIB Council. DEIB was previously an overarching value and guiding principle of the 2018 Strategic Plan, but we needed to strengthen the language within each of the specific strategic objectives. The plan integrates tactics and metrics to track our progress towards realizing our strategic goals. As such, our Strategic Plan is a living document.

In 2022, given the changing landscape of the university and the transformational gift to the school made by the Wertheim Family Foundation, we are again updating our “living document” to encompass the new goals and priorities of the school. The 2022 plan will feature all of the previously proposed aims, but has been organized in five main areas of the school:

1. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB).
2. Education (Academic Curriculum): Clinic, DEIB, Education, and Students.
3. Faculty: Clinic, DEIB, Faculty, and Research.
4. Community Engagement:Alumni, Clinic, Communications, DEIB, and Office of Virtual Learning (OVLI).
5. Finance and Administration: Administration (incl. Academic HR, Facilities, IT), DEIB, Development, and Finance.

We will be reviewing progress regularly and will dynamically update our tactics and strategies accordingly. Our plan will provide an external facing declaration of intent, and will continue to inform every aspect of our internal decision making within all five aspects of the school.

Strategic Objectives

1. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging

Strategic Objective: Promote diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice in all that we do at the school of optometry and vision science through our teaching, research, and clinical care, and the recruitment of students and hiring and retention of faculty and staff. Diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice drive our values and guiding principles. Our four priorities are recruitment, belonging & climate, education & curriculum, and community building & engagement.

1. Create a culturally responsible community and environment for an increasingly complex world.
2. Recruit and retain diverse students, staff, and faculty through inclusive and equitable practices.
3. Ensure all aspects of diversity, including, but not limited to, socioeconomic, cultural, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, and racial and ethnic backgrounds are embraced in our community are essential to our school’s core values and guiding principles.
4. Provide safe and brave spaces to promote a sense of belonging and improved campus climate for students, faculty, and staff.
5. Provide health equity, health disparity, anti-racism, anti-homophobia, anti-oppressive, and culturally humble education for students, staff, faculty, and alumni.
6. To strengthen relationships and building partnerships with internal, university-level, and external community in order to advance equity, inclusion, and belonging.

2. Education (Academic Curriculum)

Clinic
Strategic Objective: Lead the field of optometric clinical education, while providing world-class primary and specialty vision care.

1. Deliver world-class primary and specialty vision care to a diverse patient base.
2. Be a recognized leader in the advancement of clinical and specialty vision care education.
3. Provide patients with expert, cost-effective and accessible visual solutions, and train students in the application of ophthalmic optics.
4. Continuously improve clinic processes to advance patient outcomes, student learning, and operational efficiency
5. Recruit, retain and develop the best and most diverse faculty and staff and empower them to enhance patient satisfaction, advance clinical teaching and research, and optimize operations and outcomes.
6. Manage clinics as self-sustaining teaching and patient care business units.

Education
Strategic Objective: Provide an exceptional education to: 1)Prepare our optometry students and residents to deliver high quality vision care in a diverse and rapidly evolving health care system, 2) Enable vision science students to excel in discovery, and 3) Develop the leaders of tomorrow.

1. Further our excellence in didactic, experiential, and clinical teaching by continuously providing an updated curriculum to reflect the latest in research, inclusive clinical training, and the continuing integration into primary and interdisciplinary health care to serve our diverse community.
2. Provide a preeminent education that challenges convention, promotes diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice, inspires development within the profession, and produces future leaders in optometry and vision science.

Students
Strategic Objective: Recruit and retain highly qualified and diverse students and residents, contribute to a productive and inclusive academic environment, and foster a culture of belonging to inspire a lifelong connection to Berkeley Optometry.

1. Recruit, admit and enroll a diverse student population who embody our values of excellence, inclusion, curiosity, collaboration, and passionate engagement.
2. Help provide a clear path for academic, clinical, and professional success.
3. Promote and ensure a sense of belonging

3. Faculty

Faculty
Strategic Objective: Ensure an excellent and diverse faculty to enable vibrant and exceptional optometry, residency, and vision science programs. Promote an inclusive and equitable environment that fosters a culture of belonging.

1. Actively recruit, hire, develop, and retain an excellent and diverse faculty.
2. Maintain an optimum student-faculty ratio.
3. Identify, implement, and maintain a strong and vibrant career structure for clinician-scientists.
4. Prioritize and maintain high standards of teaching and mentorship.

Research
Strategic Objective: Be a responsible world leader in basic, clinical, and translational eye and vision research.

1. Provide an exceptional research and discovery infrastructure in an inclusive and equitable academic environment.
2. Increase the funding of our research and discovery efforts.
3. Ensure diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice within our curriculum and our socially responsible research.

4. Community Engagement

Alumni
Strategic Objective: Provide alumni with meaningful engagement opportunities to enable them to lead their community in knowledge, advocacy, and patient care.

1. Cultivate a vibrant and robust community that engages alumni purposefully, personally, and professionally.
2. Build a sustainable culture of philanthropy among our alumni.

Communications
Strategic Objective: Enhance Berkeley Optometry’s institutional reputation, optimize its brand value, and sustain awareness, while embracing diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice.

1. Promote the school’s excellence in optometric education, clinical practice, and vision research.
2. Develop public recognition and awareness of our primary and specialty clinics’ eye care capabilities.
3. Enhance our communications infrastructure and processes.
4. Provide excellent communications support to the Berkeley Optometry community and Vision Science community.
5. Ensure all communications embrace diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice.

Office of Virtual Learning (OVLI)
Strategic Objective: Develop and deliver asynchronous and synchronous with practical, evidence-based optometric continuing education to optometrists, faculty, alumni and business professionals to meet their professional goals. Manage technological support of school programs and events hosted on and off campus, including classroom support.

1. Provide faculty and community optometrists with practical, evidence-based optometric continuing education.
2. Establish the school’s technological support and infrastructure.
3. As the scope of optometry practice expands, provide education towards certifications for new treatments and therapies.
4. Ensure that all continuing education promotes diversity, inclusion, equity and social justice.

5. Finance and Administration

Administration
Strategic Objective: Ensure school-wide effective business planning, implementation of best practices, strategic resource allocation, and performance management.

1. Streamline business processes, increase accountability, and implement best business practices.
2. Ensure successful implementation and execution of the strategic plan through effective communications and management.
3. Recruit and retain a high performing and diverse staff and leadership.
4. Actively engage with UC Berkeley and other UC campuses to leverage and share expertise on best practices, processes, and systems.
5. Provide quality venue and event support to our school community.

Development
Strategic Objective: Accelerate the school’s growth, leadership position, and preeminence through fundraising.

1. Expand Philanthropic Support.
2. Increase Awareness of & Advocacy for the school.

Finance
Strategic Objective: Provide innovative, collaborative, client-focused financial, analytical, equitable, and strategic decision support.

1. Align financial resources to support the mission of the school.
2. Simplify and standardize business processes to ensure policy compliance, audit readiness and operational efficiency.
3. Establish key performance indicators and leverage data for strategic decision support.