Building Momentum in the Early Weeks of 2022

Dear Faculty, Staff, and Students,

I know my most recent notes to campus have focused on important programs and events, so it is high time for me to send a communique that highlights key initiatives we are working on at the cabinet level and in various work groups and task forces across campus. As we move into the second half of the Spring Semester, please know that the following updates and issues are the critical ones at this moment.

The Strategic Planning (SP) process: it is well underway, inclusive, and instructive. Over two hundred of you participated in spirited small group discussions at the November Community Day Event and we are using feedback from that day to shape the next steps of the plan. Currently, there are three work groups organizing and prioritizing initiatives around the three themes of the plan. The themed groups are as follows:

• A vibrant student experience co-chaired by Sarah Garcia and Michael Panesis
• A fulfilling work environment chaired by Vanessa Webster-Smith
• Distinctive impact/partnerships co-chaired by Kevin Baxter and Michael Hillis

A new SP website has just gone live, and we expect to post updates and information there in the coming weeks.

The Master Planning (MP) process will commence soon. As explained at the November Community Day, the Master Plan — one that prioritizes the construction, renovation, and enhancement of brick-and-mortar facilities, and the utilization of our natural environment — will be driven by the priorities that emerge from the Strategic Plan. Repeatedly, faculty, staff, students, and Regents have identified one high-level priority: leveraging our outdoor space. With this in mind, the Cabinet and I expect to identify a few “outdoor projects” that we believe could successfully launch the Master Plan. More on those projects in the coming weeks.

We are moving forward with the above planning process during a time of significant employee turnover. Just as industries within and beyond Ventura County have been hit by what has been dubbed the “Great Resignation,” so has the university. We have been collecting HR data on employee turnover, and we are at an all-time high. These departures have left almost every office on campus understaffed and overwhelmed. In many cases, those who have stayed have picked up much of the work of those who have resigned or retired. The resulting stress and anxiety are palpable in many areas around campus. Industry papers like this one confirm we are not alone in facing this phenomenon. The infographic below, from a recent report published by “Finances Online,” captures what the national employee turnover rate looked like for 2020.

To help us deal with the attrition challenge, the Division of Talent, Culture, and Diversity is working on ways to expedite our hiring and onboarding process. Additionally, each VP is taking steps to acclimate employees to campus in ways that make them feel welcomed and appreciated. Longer-serving staff are going through more routine evaluation processes that provide feedback, pathways to success and, when possible, advancement.

As we bring new colleagues into the university and provide better feedback and assessment of those who have been here for a while, we are leaning strongly into the governance changes we made last year. Now that the University-level ADRI chart and the University Bylaws have been officially adopted, Cabinet members are drawing from them as we continue to make changes to structures and policies. Over the next few months, all VPs will have worked with their respective managers and colleagues to design and populate their own ADRI charts. At the same time, a committee of faculty are working on a major rewrite of the Faculty Handbook, and Carol Chung and Andrew Castro are leading the way for staff to establish a shared governance body. It will be highly advantageous to have completed ADRI charts at both the institutional and divisional levels, to have an updated Faculty Handbook that aligns with the new bylaws and ADRI charts, and to give staff official standing in the new structure.

As ADRI helps us shape policies and structures, values will help us shape culture. Pastor Melissa Maxwell-Dougherty '76 and I have started to convene focus groups with our constituents. We are bringing together faculty, staff, students, Convocators, and members from one of our local Lutheran churches to talk about the values that they think should be most important to California Lutheran University. By summer, we expect to identify and clearly define the four or five values that we expect to ground our campus culture and ethos. These same values will be incorporated into our student and employee recruitment process, our onboarding and orientation programs, and our staff evaluation and faculty promotion systems. The values that have garnered significant attention and endorsement early on in this process are: Grace, Generosity, Inclusion, and Service to Neighbor. My inaugural speech will be dedicated to talking about each of these.

Related to our values-clarification exercise, are our efforts associated with building and strengthening mutually beneficial partnerships. Cal Lutheran has long been seen as a vital community asset. As we move to our next level of excellence, the partnerships we aim to build and grow must be those that allow both sides to “win.” Our agreement with the Super Bowl Champion L.A. Rams is exactly that — we are proud to provide the Rams with a distraction-free practice site in a beautiful and safe location. Additionally, we are thrilled to be part of a co-branding program that associates us with this superb NFL team, and to accept the internships, chalk talks, and other programs they graciously offer to our students.  Our agreement with the Rams should be highlighted as part of our differentiation strategy. Having a Super Bowl Champion Football team use our campus as its practice facility is something we can and should use to promote our athletic program and facilities, our natural environment, our proximity to the L.A. metro area, and the desirability and safety of recreating and working here.

As we think about differentiation, I suspect the upcoming inauguration will pave a path forward in this area. Thankfully, the forthcoming activities are more about ushering in a new day than about ushering in a new leader. This inauguration comes at a time when I have served as President for eighteen months. During that time, the leadership team, the Board of Regents, and many of you reading this note have worked jointly to lay the groundwork for change and to update and revise fundamental governance documents and policies that are shaping the structural changes afoot. The aforementioned values-clarification and strategic-planning processes will help shape the cultural change that is much harder to enact.

Amidst all of these changes, the upcoming ceremonial activities and festivities are not just about a new president. Instead, they officially mark a new time, a new beginning for the University: a time to celebrate what makes Cal Lutheran special as we prepare to move to our next level of excellence.

Accordingly, the festivities kicked off with a wellness activity to celebrate the tremendous work we have done during the pandemic to keep the campus as healthy as possible. On Saturday, we hosted a fun-run that included over 150 runners and dozens of student and staff volunteers, performers, and route guides. Yesterday afternoon, we celebrated all employees at the University by hosting a faculty and staff employee reception. Next week, we will highlight academic and educational excellence by showcasing faculty and student work. And finally, the festivities will conclude the last weekend of the month with an outdoor worship service in Kingsmen Park Saturday, February 26th, and the installment itself on Sunday, February 27th. Please attend these events to celebrate our community. They are all outside and they are all free.

I hope this note brings you up to speed on several of the key issues at hand right now. We will host a university-wide assembly in mid-March to further discuss these and other important updates. Information on the time and place is forthcoming.

I wish you all the best as you work through the semester.

Lori E. Varlotta, Ph.D.
President