Augustana toasts strategic plan, Bold & Boundless

The Augustana College community will gather Feb. 14 to celebrate and showcase Bold & Boundless, the strategic plan adopted one year ago to prioritize engaged learning, maximizing student success and connecting through partnership with the city of Rock Island. 

Registration is limited to faculty, staff and alumni. Media are invited to attend the event, which kicks off at 12:30 p.m. at the Gerber Center for Student Life, 3435 9 1/2 Ave., Rock Island. Remarks by President Andrea Talentino begin at 1 p.m.

“We rolled out Bold & Boundless a year ago to our faculty and staff as a collaborative approach to creating change that impacts our people and our community,” said President Talentino. “We’re investing resources and time into the ideas of our people who carry out the Augustana mission of serving students and our community every day. This celebration marks a milestone in this transformative work and looks ahead to continued progress.”

The Augustana community will raise a glass of champagne and sample sweets at the event as they reflect on the achievements in the plan’s first year. They will also have the opportunity to spark new ideas at an idea incubator session. 

“From the very start, the Augustana community has been invited to bring their ideas for enriching the Augustana community today and shaping its future,” said Executive Vice President Kent Barnds. “From Success Teams to equip current students with all the support they need to embracing initiatives to contribute to the vitality of our Rock Island community, we’re incredibly proud of all we’ve achieved to date and all that is ahead for Bold & Boundless.”

In addition to matching every student with a customized Success Team, Bold & Boundless achievements include awarding Augustana Possible grants to meet 100% of demonstrated need for qualifying newly enrolled students. Augustana also developed a campus master plan, which included reviewing current housing and evaluating classroom spaces as part of a holistic look at reevaluating priorities to design Augustana’s strong future. 

“In addition to reflecting on Bold & Boundless initiatives already launched, we’ll be looking ahead to projects that will shape the Augustana experience and impact the Quad-Cities community for years to come,” said President Talentino.