Purpose, agility, opportunity: President Bendapudi shares vision for Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi today (Feb. 27) shared her vision for the future of the University — a vision defined by building steadfastly on Penn State’s purpose, enabling agility across the institution to respond to ever-changing needs, and leveraging the University’s many strengths to realize strategic opportunities. 

“Focusing on our purpose, increasing our agility and leveraging our opportunity will be the core drivers of the future of our great University,” Bendapudi said. “We must build on our legacy as Pennsylvania’s only land-grant university and our foundational purpose of serving our commonwealth, our nation and our world. We must be agile to meet the needs of our students, an evolving workforce, the commonwealth and, indeed, humanity. We must rise to meet the opportunities before us, to continue preparing our students for lifelong success, to continue solving the world’s most pressing problems through cutting-edge research, and to continue living our 21st-century land-grant mission.” 

Using these as her guiding principles, Bendapudi has identified five key goals for the University to work toward over the next five academic years: 

• Enhance student success 

• Grow interdisciplinary research excellence 

• Increase land-grant impact 

• Foster diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging  

• Transform Penn State’s internal operations 

Focus areas are taking shape as initial work begins across some of the goals, and Bendapudi has named leaders from her President’s Council to continue to help guide the work and engage the community. Progress will be periodically shared with the University community and Board of Trustees, and each goal comes with planned actions and metrics for determining success.  

Efforts across each goal and workstream also will help build toward a larger institutional planning process to develop the University’s next strategic plan when a permanent provost is in place. 

“Each of these goals directly relates to how we, as Penn Staters, carry out our academic, research and public service missions. And every Penn Stater — from our students to our faculty and staff to our alumni and our supporters — has an important role to play,” Bendapudi said. “My vision for our University, which has been informed by time spent at our campuses and conversations I’ve had with our community, is grounded in our shared, collective success. I look forward to working with community members across our great institution to realize these goals and create meaningful outcomes.” 

Enhancing student success 

Preparing students for lifelong success and fulfilling careers is at the core of Penn State’s academic mission. Bendapudi identified investing in students and distinguishing Penn State as the exemplar for the most employable graduates, regardless of their field of study, as the first of her five key goals. Bendapudi is resolute in her focus on preparing students for professional success and for success in their personal lives and civic engagement as well.   

Focus areas of this goal include: 

• Aligning academic offerings and advising with a student’s strengths and sense of purpose, and bringing these in line with employment trends and employer experience data. 

• Developing more avenues for students to tap into Penn State’s vast alumni network for mentorships, internships, training, advising and job searches. 

• Making paid internship opportunities possible for all students. 

• Building on existing efforts to develop a curricular and co-curricular map for each student to help them discover and engage in a range of opportunities for the development of the whole person at Penn State. 

• Leveraging the rich research enterprise at Penn State to engage and inspire students by bringing cutting-edge research and hands-on experiences into the classroom, offering more opportunities for students to be involved in research activities, and demystifying research for students who may not ever have been exposed to this valuable side of Penn State. 

• Enhancing the University’s commitment and offerings related to student mental health and financial literacy. 

The following members of the President’s Council will lead progress toward this goal: 

• Justin Schwartz, executive vice president and provost (lead) 

• David M. Vallejo Pérez, interim vice president for Commonwealth Campuses (co-lead) 

• Andrea Dowhower, interim vice president for Student Affairs (co-lead) 

 
Growing interdisciplinary research excellence 

Penn State is a top-tier, globally recognized research University with more than $1 billion in research expenditures for the 2021-22 fiscal year. This research enterprise is an engine for global impact, with scholars conducting research across the fields of health care, sustainability, social sciences, cultural issues, energy, materials science, art, engineering, agriculture and more. Continuing to build on Penn State’s strengths as a University with real-world impact is key to attracting and retaining world-class faculty, creating engaging and enriching experiences for students, and fully living Penn State’s land-grant commitment. 

“It is impossible to overstate the impact that Penn State’s researchers have on the commonwealth, the country and our world, which is why the activities of our research enterprise are vital to the success of Penn State as an institution,” Bendapudi said. “Continuing to build on our strong culture of interdisciplinary research, scholarship and creative activity is central to the long-term success of our University, and I am looking forward to working together to support our scholars as we further strengthen the breadth and depth of impact that our research has on the world.” 

Specific focuses to support this goal include: 

• Identifying key research areas for greater investment and growth.   

• Increasing research expenditures to continue to lead Penn State research to top rankings.  

• Building a robust pipeline of historically marginalized and underrepresented researchers and scholars. 

• Supporting faculty at all campuses in research activities, across their careers. 

• Pursuing large Program Project (P01) grants and incentivizing interdisciplinary and multi-university partnerships that increase research funding and scale of impact. 

• Increasing biomedical and health-related research, translational research and commercialization opportunities. 

The following members of the President’s Council will lead progress toward this goal: 

• Andrew Read, interim senior vice president for Research (lead) 

• Kevin Black, interim dean for the College of Medicine (co-lead) 

• Justin Schwartz, executive vice president and provost (co-lead) 

Increasing land-grant impact 

Penn State is Pennsylvania’s sole land-grant university, which underscores its obligation to enrich lives and livelihoods, advance knowledge, improve society, and create positive impacts across the commonwealth. Penn State serves as a critical engine of economic development, a catalyst for entrepreneurial growth, a resource for agricultural success in every Pennsylvania county, and the leading institution preparing the next generation of Pennsylvania’s entrepreneurs, workers and business leaders. As part of Bendapudi’s vision for Penn State, continuing to build on these critical mission-driven services will be crucial for the future of the University. 

“The success of Penn State and the success of Pennsylvania are tied together. What is good for Penn State is good for Pennsylvania, and what is good for Pennsylvania is good for Penn State,” Bendapudi said. “One of the reasons I came to Penn State is because of my strong belief in the importance of our land-grant mission. A foundational aspect of Penn State history is its commitment to serving Pennsylvania and its people. We will continue this commitment through economic and workforce development, helping businesses grow, our extension network, our multidisciplinary research tackling practical problems, and new opportunities to keep our alumni in Pennsylvania.”  

Key steps related to this goal include: 

• Developing a plan for leveraging the Commonwealth Campuses and current extension and outreach structure to further fuel economic development in the state.  

• Continuing to build strong networks with the public and private sector community throughout Pennsylvania. 

• Increasing individual support — particularly across the commonwealth — for Penn State by growing understanding of the University’s critical importance to the state’s overall success. 

• Attaining per-student funding equal to the per-student allocation for other state-owned or state-related universities as part of the University’s commitment to keeping a Penn State education accessible and affordable for Pennsylvania families. 

The following members of the President’s Council will lead progress toward this goal: 

• Larry Terry, vice president for Outreach (lead) 

• Zack Moore, vice president for Government and Community Relations (co-lead) 

• Rachel Pell, vice president for Strategic Communications (co-lead) 

Fostering diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging 

Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) is a foundational element of Penn State’s academic, research and land-grant missions. Creating an environment that welcomes community members from all identities, backgrounds and walks of life while providing equitable opportunities for all Penn Staters to thrive as their authentic selves is central to Bendapudi’s vision for the University. Bendapudi has previously outlined to the Board of Trustees and the Penn State community her plans to take a data- and metrics-driven approach to foster greater DEIB across Penn State, with a focus on producing demonstrable results.  

In March, Bendapudi will host a town hall for the University community to discuss ongoing progress related to DEIB, including the new DEIB dashboard and updates from the special adviser for institutional equity.  

Steps toward fostering greater DEIB across the University include: 

• Inventorying DEIB activities across all campuses, academic and administrative units, and colleges to determine breadth of offerings, gaps in offerings and best practices. 

• Establishing baseline metrics and goals for campuses and units to close DEIB gaps. 

• Increasing recruitment of underrepresented students, faculty and staff. 

• Closing gaps in graduation rates across backgrounds and identities. 

• Diversifying Penn State’s faculty across all ranks and tracks. 

• Creating robust communities of support for faculty, staff and students of all backgrounds. 

• Creating equitable professional development and advancement opportunities for staff at all levels. 

• Enhancing a sense of inclusion and belonging for all Penn Staters, as measured through data-driven tools such as the recurring Living Our Values Survey.  

The following members of the President’s Council will lead progress toward this goal: 

• Marcus Whitehurst, vice provost for Educational Equity (lead) 

• Pat Kraft, vice president for Intercollegiate Athletics/director of athletics (co-lead) 

• Jennifer Wilkes, vice president for Human Resources (co-lead) 
   

Transforming Penn State’s internal operations 

The final component of the president’s goals is to make Penn State easier to navigate for students, faculty and staff who learn and work at the University. Through a combination of streamlining operations, modernizing processes, and maximizing efficiencies and savings, Bendapudi aims to focus on new innovations to help eliminate red tape and improve the breadth of support available to all Penn Staters to enhance their personal and professional growth. 

Focus areas to realize this goal include: 

• Implementing the budget model and adapting the model to support institutional and leadership needs. 

• Developing a pipeline of internal experts for ideas on and implementation of continuous improvement.  

• Streamlining operations and processes to improve user experience, create efficiencies and potential savings. 

• Working effectively in a shared governance model. 

• Achieving a balanced budget by July 1, 2025. 

• Implementing the Compensation Modernization Initiative to become an employer of choice. 

• Implementing technological systems to make work easier, evaluate outdated systems and act on recommendations.   
   

The following members of the President’s Council will lead progress toward this goal: 

• Michael Wade Smith, senior vice president and chief of staff (lead) 

• Kathy Bieschke, vice provost for faculty affairs (co-lead)  

• Sara Thorndike, senior vice president for Finance and Business/treasurer (co-lead) 

 
“Each of these goals is designed to build on Penn State’s proud history of excellence, achievement and purpose as a land-grant university, enhance our agility as an institution, and leverage strategic opportunities to increase the impact of Penn State and its people,” Bendapudi said. “It is an honor to be part of Penn State and to share in this important work together. I ask every Penn Stater to find ways to incorporate this vision — a vision of promise and excellence — into their work and into their lives as proof of our unyielding commitment to our land-grant mission.” 

Editor's note: This story has updated to reflect Executive Vice President and Provost Justin Schwartz's title and changes in workgroup leadership.