Strategic Plan 2026-27
Statement of Strategic Intent
Our intent is to grow enrollment while deepening our Franciscan and Catholic college mission, strengthening our financial position, optimizing our current intellectual and physical assets, and fulfilling our potential as a vital liberal arts institution in Western New York. We will focus our energies on these areas:
- Enhancing our Franciscan Mission and Identity
- Growing Enrollment
- Strengthening Academic Performance and the Student Experience
- Strengthening Financial Position
Commitment 1:
Enhancing our Franciscan Mission & Identity
We will enhance our Catholic, Franciscan identity by deepening our engagement with our values and heritage. Our understanding of the dignity and worth of every human being inspires us to serve and develop all members of our community, and to give special welcome and support to those among us who experience marginalization and injustice.
Evidence of Progress
- Create a “Mission in Action” guide connecting each Franciscan value to daily campus life. In Progress
- Highlight one “Living the Mission” story each month featuring a student, faculty, or staff member to display on the Hawk Squawk. In Progress
- Include a brief mission statement in syllabi, presentations, and campus events. In Progress
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Ensure Franciscan/Catholic identity language is easy to find on the website. Completed
Evidence of Progress
- Host two Mission & Community Conversations each year to invite dialogue on Franciscan values and Catholic Social Teaching. In Progress
- Conduct a student mission survey to capture student perspectives. In Progress
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Offer annual workshops for faculty, staff, and students on Franciscan values and supporting student belonging. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Partner with Student Life and Academic Affairs to align mission with student success efforts. In Progress
- Expand reflection opportunities within service-learning experiences. In Progress
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Develop a guide to student support resources and provide staff/faculty development focused on supporting diverse and first-generation students along with supporting the First-Generation Mentoring Program. In Progress
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Offer two semester retreats to deepen spiritual and mission engagement. In Progress
- Re-evaluate key student processes, including Bias reports, scholarship funds, and campus-based scholarship selection. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Host one annual Mission Alignment forum to reflect on progress. In Progress
- Publish a Mission Impact summary highlighting service, support, engagement, and CST initiatives. In Progress
- Integrate mission language into major communications. In Progress
- Reevaluate the mission statement to ensure it reflects our current campus needs and Franciscan/Catholic identity. In Progress
- Celebrate traditions such as St. Francis Week, the Live Nativity, Annual Giving Tree, New Employee Mission Orientation, Baccalaureate Mass, Franciscan Leadership Program, and Agape Latte series. In Progress
Commitment 2:
Growing Enrollment
We will diversify and develop our enrollment to strengthen the college’s financial position. In addition to increasing applications for traditional enrollment, we will improve the experience of our prospective students, including application and recruitment processes, communication, services, and visits. We will seek new populations of students, expanding Hilbert’s impact to include online and international student programs, increased graduate programs, and a more robust athletics strategy.
Evidence of Progress
- Naviance Intersect Marketing Initiative: Hilbert now has an enhanced profile and the ability to deliver targeted advertising to select students on the Naviance platform, which is widely used by guidance counselors across many states, including all of New York. In Progress
- Appily Marketing: Hilbert has signed a contract to receive both prospects and inquiries from Appily, which reaches 3.5 million prospective college students. Outreach is focused specifically on core recruitment markets. In progress. In Progress
- EAB Enroll360: Hilbert will implement EAB Enroll360, purchasing 55,000 high school junior and senior names within core recruitment markets to drive prospective student engagement. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Hilbert’s traditional and online enrollment management functions will be unified into one enrollment team. Specialized staff will support students based on their preferred delivery modality. In Progress
- All enrollment partnerships are currently under review to evaluate performance, ensure alignment with enrollment goals, and identify potential cost-saving opportunities where appropriate. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Offer flexible visit options across a variety of formats, days, and times, including Saturdays and extended weekday hours, with a no-one-gets-turned-away mindset. In Progress; Completion March 2026
- Design highly personalized visit experiences based on students’ academic, co-curricular, and career interests. In Progress
- Provide strong communication, thoughtful follow-up, and clear next steps for visiting families. In Progress
- Create a welcoming, memorable experience with incentives that drive engagement. In Progress
- Enhance the visit experience with Hilbert swag at every visit; each event features a different item to encourage repeat engagement. In Progress
- Promote a Visit Grant incentive to reinforce the value of experiencing campus in person. In Progress
- Increase consistent participation from faculty and Financial Aid during visit programs. In Progress
- Expand visit offerings across multiple formats and schedules, including Open Houses, individual in-person and virtual visits, shadow days, major-specific events, and group visits. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Strengthen the partnership between Admissions and Athletics, with a focus on coordinated event planning, an enhanced visit experience, and timely application processing. In Progress
- Identify recruited student-athletes who may present retention risks and collaborate with campus stakeholders to develop targeted onboarding and support strategies. In Progress
Commitment 3:
Strengthen Academic Performance and the Student Experience
We will strengthen Hilbert’s academic performance and the student experience, resulting in greater student success and retention. A student’s education is dependent on an inclusive living and learning environment, which we will support by increasing the diversity of our staff, faculty, and students, and enhancing our resources for our students. Expanding academic opportunities and educational experiences will help us to be identified as a higher education hub for the Southtowns.
Evidence of Progress
- Hired a full-time HEOP (Higher Education Opportunity Program) Director to oversee the program, which now numbers approximately 40 students.
- Hired professional tutors to provide support to students in key subject areas
- Instituted a required academic lab for Assisi Scholars to provide additional support and instruction
- Instituted an academic alert system
- Created an Academic Advising Committee
- Hiring an Opportunity Program Coordinator
- Enrolled the HEOP students in a specific section of BLU 101, taught by the HEOP director, to further create community and provide support
- Instituted SOAR (Student Orientation, Advising, and Registration) for students new to Hilbert; this is a “one-stop” shop where students can talk with faculty, Student Finance representatives, Accessibility Services, Athletics, Residence Life, etc. as well as familiarize themselves with Hilbert’s various platforms (email system, learning management system, etc.)
- Develop technology infrastructure (SIS) to provide real-time data on students In Progress
- Reinvigorated the Retention Taskforce with broad campus involvement. In Progress
- Hiring an Assisi Program Coordinator. In Progress
- Collaboration between academics, athletics, and admissions focused on retention efforts. In Progress
- Integrating graduate programs in program review process In Progress
- Intentional scheduling for first-year students in the Assisi Scholars program. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Realized continued growth and engagement in our annual Franciscan Day of Caring, a campus-wide service day wherein over 400 students, faculty and staff serve the missions of over two dozen community partners and share in reflection after.
- Increased housing capacity by 20% in Trinity Hall and in St. Joseph Hall
- Introduced Fresh Check Day® as an annual mental health promotion event that features peer-centered, interactive booths and a festive engaging atmosphere.
- Developed and implemented a multi-phase security enhancement project that includes installation of new exterior cameras, additional interior cameras, access control devices and upgraded secure ID cards for access.
- Reinstituted the Hire-A-Hawk program and began hosting an annual All Majors Career Fair, hosting over fifty employer recruiters on campus throughout the most recent academic year to share employment and internship opportunities with students.
Evidence of Progress
- 3+3 programs with University at Buffalo Law School
- 4+1 programs with Canisius University School of Education
- MS in Cybersecurity Technology
- MA in Cybersecurity Administration
- New minor in Artificial Intelligence
- Minor in Artificial Intelligence and Society
- Development of a new Program Proposal Process that will involve all necessary stakeholders earlier, to ensure that, in addition to curriculum, the areas of marketing, financial impact and technological needs will be considered earlier and more thoroughly In Progress
- MS In Clinical Mental Health Counseling In Progress
- 3+2 programs with University at Buffalo School of Social Work In Progress
- BA in Sports Communication degree In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Blueprint goals were developed
- Blueprint-specific student evaluations were created and used
- Culminating Blueprint reflection added to capstone courses
- Addition of Public Speaking (BLU 151) to the Blueprint; students take this course in their second semester at Hilbert
- Student participation in regional conferences
- Numerous research- and instruction-focused workshops offered through the Center for Excellence in Learning
- Implementation of a sabbatical program for faculty
- Dedicated support for student research In Progress
- Created the Institute for Applied Artificial Intelligence
- Partnered with Heard of Buffalo media company
- Revised the Faculty Handbook
- Instituted the President’s Council, with representation from faculty, staff, and administration
- BA degree in Artificial Intelligence Studies In Progress
- BS degree in Individualized Studies In Progress
Commitment 4:
Strengthening Financial Position
We will focus on philanthropic growth and efficiency, as well as investment in our campus assets, to strengthen, grow, and sustain the college. We will build and grow a strong Annual Fund program and seek appropriate private, corporate, and public foundation and government funding. We will develop and improve our technology infrastructure to meet the needs of today’s students.
Evidence of Progress
- Adding influential individuals to the Board. In Progress
- Raising awareness of the Institution by building and increasing marketing spend in the 26/27 budget. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Enhanced counseling support
Evidence of Progress
- Start the budget process earlier in the year to allow thorough discussion across all departments. In Progress
- Base the budget on conservative enrollment projections. In Progress
- Include time to review and discuss underlying budget assumptions. In Progress
- Prepare a budget that supports operations and debt repayment, avoiding zero-balance budgets. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
- Review all contracts for reasonableness and confirm necessity with each department. In Progress
- Join a Group Purchasing Organization to secure the lowest possible costs. In Progress
- Limit spending on outsourcing key functional areas. In Progress
Evidence of Progress
Stay tuned for more details.
