I am pleased to present the Doane University Strategic Plan for 2026-2029. Doane University's President

Throughout the planning process this past year, faculty, staff, students, alumni, trustees, and friends of the university shared their perspectives on Doane’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities. Their ideas helped shape the priorities and commitments presented in this plan. I am grateful to everyone who contributed time, insight, and care to this important work.

The plan begins with a clear statement of our purpose: We Build Leaders.  That purpose drives Doane’s mission, vision, and core values of Community, Integrity, Innovation, and Transformation. Together, our mission, vision, values, purpose, and commitment to the liberal arts provide the foundation for each of our strategic goals.

The 2026-2029 plan continues many themes from the previous strategic plan and honors what has long distinguished Doane while responding to the changing needs of our students and the communities we serve. It establishes a shared direction to strengthen the student experience, advance academic excellence, support innovation, and ensure Doane’s long-term sustainability.

Doane has navigated significant change throughout its history by remaining grounded in its mission to provide “distinctive educational experiences immersed in the liberal arts” and evolving in ways that honor our traditions. Our plan gives us a clear direction for the years ahead and calls us to turn our commitments into meaningful action. I am confident in Doane’s future and deeply grateful to all who have helped shape it. I look forward to the work that we will accomplish together.

Roger Hughes, Ph.D. ’82

President

 

 

Purpose

We Build Leaders

Leadership at Doane is built through the Mission, Vision, and Values.

MissionDoane University provides distinctive educational experiences immersed in the liberal arts to empower our learners for professional success, ethical leadership, and purposeful service.
VisionWe will build upon our foundation of student-centered innovation to develop leaders who foster meaningful change in their lives, careers, and communities.
ValuesCommunity: We create an authentic environment where everyone is respected, supported, and empowered.
Integrity: We act ethically, responsibly, and transparently in all we do.
Innovation: We champion creativity, curiosity, and collaboration.
Transformation: We commit to growth, learning, and meaningful impact for individuals and communities.

Liberal Arts Statement

At Doane, we see a liberated mind as the surest path to intellectual fulfillment and professional achievement. As such, we embrace the liberal arts as the core of our curriculum. We conceive the liberal arts to be an expansive educational approach designed to foster critical analysis of the world and self-realization of the individual. Through exposure to a liberal arts education, we expect our graduates to:

  1. Collaborate and lead with imagination and humility born of understanding and appreciating multiple perspectives;
  2. Continue learning and growing throughout life, becoming iteratively more refined regarding their worldview, values, and vocation;
  3. Navigate the complexities of contemporary society with resilience, integrity, and freedom of thought;
  4. Critically and effectively discuss, debate, and deliberate the evolving issues of a constantly changing community, nation, and world; and
  5. Identify and innovate opportunities to create value in their communities and in the broader world.
doane students working in a chemistry lab

Strategic Plan Goals

 

Academic Experience

Develop our academic programs to attract students, immerse them in a liberal arts education, and prepare them for careers and life.

 

Student Experience

Create inclusive co-curricular experiences for all Doane students to increase student satisfaction and success by utilizing data-informed decisions to prepare leaders to work and serve in their communities.

 

Financial

Improve financial sustainability through enrollment, revenue, contributions, expense management, and strategic allocation of resources to achieve Doane’s mission.

 

Technology Transformation

Leverage technology to improve the student experience, increase employee productivity, increase alumni engagement, and position Doane as an educational leader in the digital age.

 

Community

Foster a thriving Doane University by strengthening a sense of community and engagement to meet the needs of every member.