Office of Public Affairs Acadia University Wolfville, Nova Scotia B0P 1X0 (902) 585-1362 Fax (902) 585-1072 News Release For Release:  July 24 , 2001

Dr. Kelvin Ogilvie chosen to share Acadia's strategic planning success at international conference

(Boston, Massachusetts) - Universities, like business and industry, are facing the challenges associated with rapid change.  Unlike business and industry, universities have found strategic planning to be a monumental, if not impossible, task. Despite the obstacles, Acadia University has had measurable success with defining its vision, and Acadia’s president Dr. Kelvin Ogilvie will be at the 36th Annual International Conference and Expo of the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP) in Boston today as a keynote speaker to share this success.

During a recent conference in Montreal, Dr. Ogilvie’s case study on the Acadia Advantage Program was chosen as the best from the North Atlantic region. This honour led to the invitation to share Acadia’s success story at SCUP’s international conference.

In his address entitled "The Acadia Advantage Program-A Case Study," Dr. Ogilvie will discuss the award-winning program, sharing with conference participants the reasons why Acadia initiated the Acadia Advantage, exploring the critical success factors, the planning and consultation process, and the early results and implications.

The internationally recognized Acadia Advantage Program provides each student with a notebook computer, enabling them to connect to the Internet from any location on campus. The program has enhanced the classroom environment by empowering students and bringing them in as full partners in the learning process. The Acadia Advantage Program has been incorporated into the permanent collection at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC.

Building on the success of the Advantage Program, the University has engaged itself even further in its strategic planning. A new vision for the future has been developed with exciting changes planned for the University’s future, including a new Campus Master Plan, which will guide the University's topographical development over the next century, a $70,000,000 residence project, the construction of the Irving Project: Environmental Sciences Research Centre, Botanical Gardens and Campus Meeting Place and the expansion of the life sciences at Acadia including a new Academy of the Environment.

Dr. Ogilvie explains that as Acadia begins a new century, it is very much the product of 19th and 20th century vision, passion and careful planning. “A heritage of 160 years of academic excellence has not been by chance,” he said.

The Council of the Society for College and University Planning promotes the advancement and application of effective planning in higher education. The North Atlantic Regional Council of SCUP provides networking opportunities and programming for its members in New England, New York, Quebec and the Atlantic Provinces.  They also represent European SCUP members in Greenland, Iceland, England, Ireland, Scotland, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

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For more information contact:
Sheri Woodland
Communications Manager
Office of Public Affairs
Acadia University
(902) 585-1362
 
 
 

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Published by: The Office of Public Affairs Last revised: July 24, 2001 URL: http://www.acadiau.ca/whatsnew/newsrelease/2001/PlanningSuccess_July24.html