UND is seeking special designation from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities to further expand its service commitment, key administrators said.
On September 14, 2023, The Longest Table hosted 850 Grand Forks residents to share a free meal with strangers in a welcoming atmosphere, fostering stronger connections, exchanging ideas and promoting better health. The event had many accomplishments, including highlighting the close-knit town-university relationship that exists between UND and Grand Forks, a proud sponsor of The Longest Table. UND archive photo.
Editor’s note: The UND LEADS Strategic Plan is intended to be a compass for the community, a tool that points the way toward the University’s goals. With this in mind, UND Today will publish a special issue on the last Tuesday of each month to keep readers updated on the University’s progress.
So in today’s special edition of UND Today – the 10th in this series – we’re focusing on our core value: service. As readers will know, every story in today’s issue, including some we’re republishing today and some that were published for the first time in the past few months, focuses on a UND program or activity that reflects the service goals outlined in our strategic plan.
Continuing this series, the August 27th issue will feature the core value of “Learning” and the September 24th issue will feature “Equity.”
If you have any comments or questions, please contact UND Today Editor Tom Dennis at tom.dennis@UND.edu Thanks for reading!
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Jason Jensen and Cortney Jensen
A key part of UND LEADS’ service commitment is community collaboration and engagement, focusing on stakeholders and partners. Engagement can be done in many ways, including how we impact the economy and how we are impacted by the economy; for example, expanding economic opportunity by preparing students for a changing workforce and stimulating and expanding innovation and entrepreneurship.
In particular, we are furthering our engagement in core strategic areas that are increasingly important to our regional, state, national and global economies, including rural health, autonomous systems, energy and environment, space research and national security.
As part of the UND LEADS strategic planning process, UND developed goals derived in part from stakeholder input. These LEADS goals are being implemented in a variety of ways. One exciting development regarding implementation occurred in late 2023. We applied to participate in the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ (APLU) Innovation and Economic Prosperity (IEP) program, with the goal of receiving IEP designation.
UND will be accepted into the cohort in late 2023, joining seven other designated universities and fostering a vibrant community of practice. UND is well positioned to complete an IEP process that is derived from its strategic plan, meaning it has good, up-to-date information and data in place to complement the data it collects specifically for the IEP process.
At UND, Jason Jensen is a professor of political science and public administration and executive director of the Institute for Policy and Business Analytics, and Cortney Jensen is executive director of strategic partnerships for research and economic development.
What is an IEP designation?
Led by APLU’s Committee on Economic and Community Engagement, the IEP Accreditation Program is not only a collaborative institutional strategic planning and change process, but also a certification of excellence. IEP Accreditation recognizes higher education institutions that effectively collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to know, measure, communicate and maximize their contributions to “economic engagement,” defined as the ways in which universities and their public and private partners contribute to economic growth, opportunity and competitiveness.
What are the reasons for pursuing an IEP designation?
Although the goal of participating in an IEP program is to achieve the IEP designation, the organizational improvements that result from evaluation and assessment are the primary benefit of participating in an IEP program. In addition, the designation can provide other benefits, such as:
• Recognition and visibility: Achieving APLU IEP accreditation represents national recognition of UND’s innovation and economic development efforts, signaling to students, faculty, potential partners, the community and other stakeholders that the school is committed to fostering economic growth and improving quality in the region.
• Networking and collaboration: This designation connects UND to a network of institutions across the country that share similar goals and challenges. This network fosters collaboration, knowledge sharing and exchange of best practices in economic activities that can lead to new partnerships and initiatives.
• Regional Development Impact: By focusing on innovation and economic prosperity, UND can directly contribute to the economic development of North Dakota and the surrounding region, including supporting local businesses, attracting investment and fostering entrepreneurship, all of which create jobs and increase overall economic vitality.
• Enhanced funding opportunities: Many funding opportunities, both public and private, prioritize institutions with a demonstrated commitment to economic activity and innovation. The APLU IEP designation further strengthens UND’s competitive position for grants and funding aimed at supporting research, entrepreneurship and community outreach activities.
• Student and faculty engagement: We can enrich the educational experience by engaging students and faculty in economic activity through initiatives such as entrepreneurial programs, research partnerships with industry, and community outreach projects, which provide real-world learning opportunities, enhance career readiness, and foster a culture of innovation on campus.
• Long-term sustainability: Investing in innovation and economic development positions UND as a leader in addressing societal challenges and adapting to future economic trends. This proactive approach enables the school to remain relevant and resilient in a rapidly changing global landscape.
“The IEP program helps higher education institutions better understand, measure, communicate and enhance their impact on economic and community development while recognizing institutions that have demonstrated substantial and sustainable institution-wide commitments and strategies to local economic engagement, growth and economic opportunity,” the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities website states. Image by APLU.
What does the IEP process involve?
The program emphasizes a self-study process to help designated universities better understand, measure and communicate the impact story of their economic and community activities. Self-study is an internal assessment that engages campus and community partners to identify the university’s strengths, areas of growth and improvement.
An internal leadership team is guiding UND’s IEP self-study. The entire IEP process can take up to three years to complete. Part of the process includes completing a formal economic impact analysis to better evaluate how UND impacts the local, regional and state economies. The results of the analysis will help us better tell our economic engagement story to community partners and stakeholders.
Where do we go from here?
As we move forward with our IEP self-study, we will have opportunities to involve internal and external stakeholders and partners, and we will have mechanisms for updating and communicating our progress. Please contact us with any questions or comments you may have.
Author’s Note: Some of the details in this letter are based on information provided in APLU’s IEP-related publications and website. We encourage you to consult the website for more information about IEP designations.
About the author:
At UND, Jason Jensen is a professor of political science and public administration and executive director of the Institute for Policy and Business Analytics, and Cortney Jensen is executive director of strategic partnerships for research and economic development.
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>> Have questions or comments about the UND LEADS Strategic Plan? We want to hear from you! Please contact Angie Carpenter, Director of Special Student Populations at UND, or Ryan Zerr, Associate Provost for Strategy and Implementation, Co-Chair of the UND LEADS Implementation Committee.
You can also provide your feedback by visiting the UND LEADS Strategic Plan home page and clicking on the “Provide Feedback” link there.
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