Strategy & Planning
Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. —Psalm 127:1a
What We Do
Strategy and Planning oversees the creation of university strategy; serves as a resource to all academic and administrative units to facilitate the creation of individual unit strategy; defines and develops appropriate metrics, feedback and reporting mechanisms; oversees strategic implementation; and reviews, anticipates and reports on external trends effecting higher education and Samford University.
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Town Hall Meetings & Campus Interviews
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City Visits & Two Virtual Sessions
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Survey Responses
“Samford aspires to be the school of choice among national comprehensive Christ-centered universities, particularly among those that place extraordinary emphasis on residential undergraduate education as the foundation for its full complement of academic programs.”
—Beck A. Taylor, President
Samford’s Strategic Plan
The planning process was engineered to result in a plan that:
- Is missional. We start and end with Samford’s mission foremost.
- Reinforces Samford’s distinctive role as a Christ-centered institution.
- Highlights an aspirational community and seeks a better version of ourselves.
- Promotes informed “reach” goals. We will set aspirational goals and then reach further.
- Is comprehensive and representative.
- Is phased and informs our institutional priorities.
- Is grounded in research and facts and is data informed.
- Explicitly connects goals and aspirations with needed human and financial resources.
- Is inclusive, transparent, measurable, and accountable.
- Emphasizes clarity and transparency.
- Is flexible and adaptable.
Hover over each theme for details.
Academic Distinction
Samford distinguishes itself as a growing, comprehensive, Christ-centered university with rigorous and relevant undergraduate, graduate, and continuing studies programs that are innovative, led by faculty committed to excellent teaching, scholarship, creativity, and service, and designed to equip graduates for meaningful lives of vocation, service, and ministry.
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Goal: Cultivate a Christ-centered, student-focused culture that emphasizes academic excellence.
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Goal: Promote quality teaching and scholarship through opportunities for professional development and growth as scholars and leaders in the disciplines.
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Goal: Equip faculty and students to integrate faith and learning.
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Goal: Create new, expanded, and revised academic programs that enhance existing offerings and attract new student populations.
Student Engagement
Samford provides meaningful and creative opportunities for students to actively shape the university and their own experiences through leadership, service, social, spiritual, and wellness activities.
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Goal: Cultivate a community engaged in servant leadership.
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Goal: Foster a community committed to overall wellness and success.
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Goal: Create opportunities for all students to connect with and contribute to formative co- curricular activities.
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Goal: Emphasize awareness and deeper integration of institutional mission and values throughout co-curricular programming
Faith Formation
Samford encourages students and employees to grow in their Christian faith while extending the love of Christ to all and applying biblically- and theologically-informed reasoning to contemporary issues.
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Goal: Offer the love of Christ to all by inviting people to become Christ’s disciples through faith and spiritual growth.
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Goal: Recruit and retain faithful faculty and staff who support Samford’s community of Christian faith and learning.
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Goal: Host events that encourage the Samford community to consider contemporary issues through the lens of faith and scripture.
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Goal: Provide spaces and activities that cultivate Samford’s gospel-focused and ecumenically orthodox character.
Athletic Success
Samford attains athletic excellence through competitive success, academic achievement, community participation, and spiritual formation.
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Goal: Emphasize degree completion, Christian character, mental and physical health, and life-long learning among student-athletes.
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Goal: Maintain a culture that embodies mutual trust, sportsmanship, compliance, and diversity, equity and inclusion.
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Goal: Compete for SoCon championships and NCAA post-season championships.
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Goal: Engage and expand the community of individuals, businesses, and groups that support Samford athletics.
Global Influence
Samford positively influences the world through education, outreach, and service by preparing students to engage others through athletic, cultural, economic, intellectual, language, political, religious, and social exchanges.
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Goal: Invest in institutional infrastructure to maintain and grow international offerings.
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Goal: Develop and promote more international opportunities for students, faculty, staff, and other stakeholders.
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Goal: Grow formal educational opportunities at Samford for individuals from other nations.
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Goal: Host programs and events that promote cross-cultural education and outcomes.
Financial Stewardship & Strength
Samford stewards and grows its financial, physical, and technological resources to sustain excellence across the university in service to its mission and vision.
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Goal: Ensure resources are available and prioritized to realize the university’s strategic goals.
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Goal: Sustain a culture that emphasizes stewardship of university resources across all stakeholders.
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Goal: Promote access to and acumen around the financial strategies and outcomes of the university.
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Goal: Adopt a proactive and anticipatory posture toward planning and maintaining campus infrastructure including people, places, technology, and finances.
Community Celebration
Samford celebrates the different experiences and perspectives students, employees, and alumni bring to the campus community while cultivating unity and spirit around common aspirations for Christ-centered community life.
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Goal: Provide unifying educational opportunities for our campus community to respect different experiences and perspectives.
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Goal: Engage Homewood, Birmingham, and our broader communities in partnership, service, and cultural understanding.
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Goal: Promote Samford spirit, pride, and engagement among all stakeholders.
Employee Elevation
Samford elevates the professional, economic, and spiritual growth and overall wellness of its employees as essential to reaching the university’s full potential.
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Goal: Enhance sense of calling and vocation in the work environment.
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Goal: Offer competitive compensation and benefits in order to hire and retain a quality workforce.
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Goal: Provide positive and rewarding work experiences for employees.
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Goal: Ensure consistent, inclusive, and transparent employee communication and processes across the institution.
2024-25 Strategic Achievements
Academic Distinction
- Implemented Phase One of revised General Education curriculum and 3-credit course format
- Implemented key programs identified by the 2024 Strategic Enrollment Plan including Samford Online, Fast Track MBA, and expanded DPT cohort
- Signed seven new articulation agreements with in-state institutions
Athletic Success
- Won SOCON President’s Cup for Highest Graduation Rate and the Germann Cup as top Women’s program;
- Attained Graduate Success Rate of 98% tying for second nationally and first in Alabama
- Completed more than $6 million of improvements to Hanna Stadium.
- Completed and opened $5 million renovation of Bashinsky Field House
- Attained board approval for, and conducted first meetings of, the trustee Committee on Intercollegiate Athletics
Community Celebration
- Welcomed 153 transfer students from Birmingham-Southern College, graduating 63 in May 2025 while exceeding a 95% retention rate for returning former-BSC students
- Caf named silver medalist for Residential Dining Facility of the Year by National Association of College & University Food Services
- Awarded No. 2 national ranking by the Wall Street Journal for character development
- Awarded No. 8 national ranking by the Wall Street Journal for quality of career preparation
- Added 12 Adirondak chairs to the quad earning the best ROI ever for a student amenity!
Employee Elevation
- Administered our second Best Christian Workplaces survey with results indicating a 21-point increased percentile score over two years and improvement in 52 of 56 assessment areas
- Announced new Assistant Vice President and Director of Human Resources elevating an internal candidate unanimously recommended by a 10-person search committee
- Developed new management training program for all supervisors with implementation in Fall 2025
Faith Formation
- Appointed new director for the Center for Faith and Learning
- Successfully launched first cohort of the Christian Teacher Scholar Program
- Launched Initiative to Deepen Faith and Vocational Exploration in Study Abroad
Financial Stewardship & Strength
- Completed $300mm of new construction ahead of schedule and below budget adding 650 new beds and 540 new parking spaces
- Surpassed endowment value of $500 million
- Attained new highs in assets, net assets, unrestricted net assets and non-operating cash balances
Global Influence
- Samford University representative elected to the board of the Japanese American Society of Alabama and named to the education committee of the Southeast US Japan Association
- Identified location and entered into a purchase agreement for a second global learning center
- Expanded partnership between Samford Global and Enrollment Management with student coordinator for international and ESL students.
Student Engagement
- Opened Samford’s Campus Recreation and Wellness Complex (the “REC”) with average normalized monthly attendance of 30,000+ student and employee visits
- Attained 100% occupancy for all four new residence halls opening in August 2025
- Attained a 93% freshman-sophomore retention rate for the 2024-25 cohort and an 85% sophomore-junior retention rate for the 2023-24
2023-24 Strategic Achievements
Academic Distinction
- Completed review of General Education
- Hosted faith-learning conference
- Completed First Strategic Enrollment Plan
- Reestablished Office of Continuing Studies
Athletic Success
- Became first repeat winners of men’s, women’s and academic success sweep in SOCON history
- Exceeded donor giving increase goals
- Achieved national recognition of MBB with March Madness appearance
Community Celebration
- Continued focus on our commitment to one another as One Samford
- Expanded reach of Community Engagement Office
- Expanded partnerships with City of Homewood
Employee Elevation
- Completed 18-month Compensation and Benefits study and Implemented Phase I adjustments
- Allocated Largest base compensation raise pool in recent history
- Graduated first cohort of Leadership Samford
- Continued town-halls and written campus updates to improve communication
Faith Formation
- Further strengthened process to recruit faithful Christian faculty and staff
- Completed baseline Best Christian Workplaces survey and disseminated results among divisions
Financial Stewardship & Strength
- Updated Campus Master Plan / Samford Horizons
- Began construction on new Rec Center, Freshman Housing, Greek Housing and Parking Deck
- Raised $365 million of capital (Net $280 million)
- Developed multi-year financial forecasting model
Global Influence
- Implemented cross-divisional governance structure
- Celebrated 40th Anniversary of Daniel House
- Hosted our first Indonesian-based online cohort
- Welcomed Japanese Consul General to campus
- Returned to pre-COVID study abroad levels
Student Engagement
- Developed and implemented a comprehensive student success plan with an emphasis on second-to-third year retention
- Opened major renovation of Caf earning a bronze medal for Innovation from the National Association of College and University Food Services
- Developed new service model for the Rec to provide a first class health club environment
Innovation Fund Awards
Our second cohort of Samford Innovation Fund recipients has been named. Last spring we received four times as many applications than in our inaugural year and we are pleased announce this year’s recipients. This year’s awards range from $45,000 to $140,000. You may recall that awards may be granted for one or two years. Therefore, in addition to seven new awards, we have two carry-over recipients.
2024 Innovation Fund Recipients
SWELL: A Samford Wellness Initiative for Staff
April Robinson
"…explore, expand and engage the campus resources to promote the personal and professional well-being of staff."
Creation of an RN to BSN Program
Lora Shelton, Cindy Berry
"Creation of an RN to BSN program from licensed registered nurses whose entry into practice degree is the associate degree."
Kaplan All Access Plan: Pathways
Kristin Newberry
"Secure the Pathways Kaplan All Access Plan, which provides currently enrolled students access to prep courses for various post-baccalaureate entrance exams and licensures…"
Office of Research Expansion
Linnea Minnema
"…the next steps to accelerate the growth of external research funding, a potentially significant revenue stream, through a strategic investment into a two-phased expansion of the Office of Research."
Associate Director of Land Use & Natural Resource Law Center
Blake Hudson
"…build out Land Use and Natural Resource Law Center ("LUNR") programming, oversee clinics, develop new tuition streams through international and online academic programs, and develop stronger ties with related Samford University programs."
English for Academic Purposes
PJ Hughes, Lauren Doss
“A program designed to provide English language support services to all Samford students…international and other students from non-native English environments.”
Center for Sports Analytics Strategic Storytelling Space
Darin White, Chad Carson (One-time Award)
“… development of…storytelling space…which utilizes innovative technology and purposeful audience journey methodology to foster (1) graduate enrollment growth, (2) undergraduate enrollment growth, and (3) fund raising growth."
2023 Innovation Fund Recipients
Continuing Studies Programs
Marci Johns
Our new Office of Continuing Studies, a collaboration of Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management, launched new programs and continues to grow.
Entrepreneurship Center
Chad Carson
"…a shared resource hosted by the Brock School of Business to create an environment supporting innovation, creative thought and collaboration."
Masters of Accountancy Semester Abroad
Cam Pierce
A pilot program promoting a semester abroad to Masters of Accountancy students attracted more students to our already successful MAcc program as they experienced our remarkable Daniel House in London.
