University of Manitoba - Office of the President - V. Forging Connections
V. Forging Connections

to foster high impact community engagement

V. Forging Connections to foster high impact community engagement

Our mission includes the traditional aspect of service to the community, yet we have embraced a shift in thinking to better reflect the reality that we don't simply serve our communities, we engage with them. Our relationships with our colleagues, alumni, friends, donors, and partners - local, national and international - are both reciprocal and collaborative. 

We believe in the importance of forging strong connections, ones that join our efforts with those in other organizations, that embed members of our community within others, or that create opportunities for the University of Manitoba to be the place where those joint efforts take shape. We are firmly committed to engaging with communities beyond the University, to closer collaborative relationships with them, and more integration of the University and community. We believe in being present in the communities we serve, and to welcoming them in return.

We are committed to sharing our knowledge and expertise, and to developing and fostering relationships that enable the University and our alumni, donors, and partners to have a direct and positive impact on people's lives.

 

Goals

Supporting Actions
  1. Establish, strengthen and support meaningful connections between the University community and key stakeholders.
  1. Create an inventory of the University's existing engagement with its communities based on its academic, research and service mission.
  2. Increase engagement between the University and its communities, connected to the institution's academic, research and service mission, via a comprehensive university-wide community engagement framework.
  3. Increase opportunities for faculty, staff and students to participate in outreach programs.
  1. Foster a dynamic relationship between alumni and the University.
  1. Increase the percentage of alumni who participate in the University's activities and initiatives, including student recruitment, mentoring, career transition and continuing interactions with the University; alumni forums; affinity programs; lifelong learning; international activities; events, awards and Convocation.
  1. Be an internationally engaged university with local relevance and global impact.
  1. Focus the University's membership efforts in networks and associations that advance our core values and enhance our global reputation.
  2. Align international partnership efforts with provincial and national government priorities, targeted at synergies, innovation, mutual learning and growth.
  3. Leverage the University's connections with ethno-cultural communities in Manitoba and worldwide, within the context of stable or diminishing resources.
  4. Celebrate and promote the impact of the University's partnerships in communities around the world.
  1. Enhance engagement, and build and strengthen relationships with Indigenous communities in urban, rural and northern settings.
  1. Establish strategic approaches and initiatives designed to further the growth of partnerships between the University and Indigenous communities.
  1. Demonstrate the principles of inclusion, consultation and integration in finalizing a long-term vision and implementation plan for the development of the Southwood precinct.
  1. Provide comprehensive, thorough and effective opportunities for the community to engage in the planning process for the development of the Southwood precinct, in a manner that promotes its integration with the surrounding community.
  1. Ensure the University is seen as an open resource for members of the community, offering space and opportunity to pursue education, recreation, arts and music, and sporting interests.
  1. Increase the diversity of outreach programs throughout the spectrum of communities the University serves (prospective students, alumni, Indigenous people, youth, etc.) that can be accessed by faculty, staff and students.
  2. Promote the University of Manitoba as an opportunity for community members to develop their knowledge and skills, and pursue their interests.
  1. Build a culture of advancement and philanthropy across the University community.
  1. Increase the number of students, staff, faculty and Board of Governors members making philanthropic donations to the University of Manitoba.
  1. Tell the story of the University, engage alumni and community partners, and secure funds through philanthropy and government support.
  1. Develop and execute a comprehensive campaign to advance the University, that engages students, faculty, staff, Board of Governors' members, alumni, friends, and governments and raises $500 million for Indigenous achievement, graduate student support, research excellence, an outstanding student experience and enhanced places and spaces.