Campus Plan 2050, a yearlong effort to craft a blueprint for how the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus will develop over the next 30 years, has officially launched.
The comprehensive, long-term campus planning effort, which President Santa J. Ono announced in January, will proceed concurrently with the recently announced Vision 2034.
MORE INFORMATION
While Vision 2034 seeks to define what U-M wants to accomplish and how it will evolve over the next 10 years, Campus Plan 2050 will explore how the Ann Arbor campus’ physical spaces and places should be designed to support the university’s mission and vision.
A new website recently launched to provide resources and updates about the Campus Plan, as well as gather feedback from the community.
In addition, in-person and online events and focus groups are being planned for the coming months to collect critically important input from university and community stakeholders.
Online mapping and survey tools will become available to help maximize engagement opportunities.
An April 12 email from the university’s executive vice presidents to the Ann Arbor campus community encouraged faculty, staff and students to get involved and contribute ideas, both to the ongoing strategic visioning process and the campus planning process.
“Campus Plan 2050 provides an extraordinary opportunity to engage our campus community and help craft this blueprint for our future — a future that will ensure the physical campus evolves to provide the living, learning and working environments necessary to fulfill the university’s strategic vision,” wrote Geoff Chatas, executive vice president and chief financial officer; Laurie McCauley, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs; and Marschall Runge, executive vice president for medical affairs, dean of the Medical School and CEO of Michigan Medicine.
“While Vision 2034 will help answer the questions, ‘Who are we? Who do we want to be? What do we want to accomplish together?’ Campus Plan 2050 will address, ‘How are we going to get there?’ and ‘What spaces will we need to achieve our goals?’” the three executive officers wrote.
“The best answers require casting a wide net to obtain feedback from a variety of diverse groups and individuals, which is vital for transparency, accountability, and the plan’s success.”
A core project team with co-project leads has been established to advance the planning process. The team will work with an advisory committee, to be established over the coming weeks, made up of people with diverse perspectives and interests across campus.
Initial campus outreach will take place throughout the spring, and preliminary ideas and concepts will be shared at community engagement sessions in the fall.
Campus Plan 2050 will include five- and 10-year development planning horizons, as well as a long-term, 25-year plan that will serve as a catalyst to advance ongoing initiatives and establish clear priorities for capital investments.
The final plan is expected to be released in early 2024.
