Visitors to the open houses for two interrelated presidential initiatives — Vision 2034 and Campus Plan 2050 — are being asked to weigh in on a range of potential ideas to inform how the Ann Arbor campus might change over time.
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.
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President Santa J. Ono launched the initiatives soon after his arrival in October 2022. They are being led by U-M’s executive vice presidents: Geoffrey 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.
Four open houses will take place Oct. 10-19 in three locations across campus and will update the campus community on the various possibilities for the two plans, and will generate feedback that organizers will take into account as the presidential initiatives continue.
“This is a perfect time for the campus community to engage, because while there are a lot of possibilities to consider, nothing is set in stone yet,” said Sue Gott, associate director for planning and communication and a key coordinator for the campus planning.
“The displays that visitors will see present a great number of options, and show how the two initiatives are aligning based on all the information gathered from the U-M community so far.”
OPEN HOUSES
Representatives from Vision 2034 and Campus Plan 2050 will be on hand to answer questions. Registration is required for the open houses, which will be:
• Oct. 10, 4-8 p.m., North Campus Research Complex, Building 18 Dining Hall
• Oct. 11, 4-8 p.m., Michigan Union, Rogel Ballroom
• Oct. 12, 4-8 p.m., Pierpont Commons, East Room
• Oct. 19, 4-8 p.m., Pierpont Commons, Fireside Café
The open houses will be arranged with a series of stations throughout the room. Experts will be on hand at each station to answer questions. Color-coded maps will show potential scenarios for campus land use in 25 years. Visitors will have a chance to evaluate which ideas from the menu of options they would like to see move forward in the final plan.
There also will be a station for each of the six focus areas for Campus Plan 2050, providing an overview of the objectives, emerging approaches and inspirational concepts for each of these priorities for campus land use. Many of the concepts within the focus areas are related to each other.
The six focus areas are:
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility.
- Climate Action, Sustainability and Infrastructure.
- Arts and Humanities / Health and Wellness.
- Landscape and Open Space.
- Mobility.
- Space Planning, Development and Land Use.
There also will be a station for Vision 2034 where community members will be asked to provide their ideas and inspirations under key areas that have emerged through the visioning process, including sustainability, democracy, health and education.
The vision team is continuing to gather input to inform additional areas for shaping U-M’s strategic vision. Project team members will be on hand to discuss ideas and provide further insight about the process.
“The stations represent a vast number of ideas, so the open houses are designed to allow visitors to focus on the areas they care about most,” said Christopher Culley, associate vice president for planning and strategic initiatives in the Office of the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and primary lead for facilitating the process of the two initiatives.
“These concepts will affect our future campus, so we look forward to a lot of great questions and active discussion.”
