From the President



Five years ago, we set high goals for ourselves and, in realizing them, we secured our standing among the nation’s leading institutions of advanced scholarship and graduate education. We owe this progress in large measure to the design and attention that went into our 2012–2016 Strategic Plan.
It is with a confidence born of that progress and standing that I am pleased to present Building for the Future: The Graduate Center Strategic Plan 2017-2022. It, too, is the product of broad consultation and serious deliberation. And, like our earlier plan, it identifies ambitious but attainable goals. It is also aligned with the vision articulated in the CUNY Master Plan 2016–2020: a university enlivened by collaborations across campuses and a shared commitment to our students and faculty.
In organization—a freestanding, doctoral and master’s degree institution that is deeply embedded within the nation’s largest public urban university—we are exceptional. In the new Strategic Plan, we have a road map to a new Graduate Center which, underpinned by financial resourcefulness and resilience, and driven by a shared responsibility for the public good, is equally exceptional in academic excellence and broad impact.
When well designed and carried out, strategic planning facilitates clear and collaborative reflection across the entire community. I look forward to working with you as we realize our vision.

Chase F. Robinson