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Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Strategic Plan 2025ā€‘2030

In 2020, it seemed as if the world turned upside down and it has been tumultuous ever since. Pandemic, inflation, war, climate change and highly charged political discourses have made ā€˜business as usualā€™ nearly impossible. While FASS skills, training, competencies, expertise, experience have long beenĢżin demand, they are more important now than ever.

As Loleen Berdahl and coauthors write in their 2024 book,ĢżFor the Public Good,ĢżCanada (like most countries) is beset by numerous ā€œwicked problemsā€ā€”none of which areĢżonlyĢżscientific or technological. Notably, ā€œ[m]any of the skills required to solve wicked problems lie in the ā€˜home domainā€™ā€ of FASS: ā€œcritical thinking, design thinking, systems thinking, creativity, an ability to navigate ambiguity and to integrate different ways of knowing and disciplinary approaches, and a capacity to move between the concrete and the abstractā€ (4).

Thus, as our faculty looks forward to the next five years with this Strategic Plan, we do so with a healthy apprehension about whatā€™s to come, but also with the confidence that we have a significant role to play in shepherding our communities through it.

Dr. Jennifer Andrews
Dean, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Ģż

DEVELOPING OUR PLAN

We would like to acknowledge and thank faculty members, students, staff, and alumni who contributed to the development of our strategic plan between April 2024 - October 2025.

April 2024

May-Nov 2024

Dec 2024

Jan-Feb 2025

March-Oct 2025

Initial in-person consultation and workshop sessions with faculty and staff

Documenting what we heard

Analyzing what we heard

Creating initial drafts of key Plan elements

Distributing a survey -validate what we heard and identify possible gaps

Integrating survey feedback to refine key elements (68 responses)

Reviews and refinements

Final reviews and approvals

Strategic Plan launch

Implementation planning

 

Our purpose, vision, and core principles


OUR PURPOSE
We provide students, faculty, and staff with the skills and knowledge they need to understand the world and make it better. We do this through critical inquiry and artistic creativity, informed reflection, the building of community through the rich exchange of ideas, and a deep commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

OUR VISION
Our faculty will make important contributions to the academic and research mission of the university and communities, locally, provincially, nationally, and internationally. We are an excellent place to learn, teach, and workā€”for students, faculty and staff alike.

OUR CORE PRINCIPLES
academic freedom | scholarly autonomy | individual expression | open and informed debate | intellectual integrity | ethical standards | mutual respect in teaching, research, and administration | equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility | valuing diverse research and creation approaches | collegial governance| community engagement and impacts| commitment to effective teaching| transparency, accountability and rigour| critical self-reflection| compassion for others

Our strategic priorities, leads/champions, and benchmarks

Priority 1 - Teaching

We commit to:

  • Faculty renewal and maintenance of complement by attracting and retaining outstanding faculty members through recruitment, mentorship, and retention efforts as the critical foundation for all other goals in this Strategic Plan, including enrolment growth, increased grant capture, and effective collegial governance.

  • Strategic enrolment growth through thoughtful recruitment and retention, with a focus on graduation rates.

  • Establishing new course-based Masterā€™s programs in FASS.

  • Directing resources to the crucial first year experience (supporting tutorials and innovative first-year classes) to provide students with the scaffolding they need to complete their degrees.

  • Making space for critical, respectful, evidence-informed debate and teaching students the skills to engage in it, ensuring that our curriculum is responsive to current societal concerns, and a range of student experiences and viewpoints, both through our interdisciplinary programs (Black and African Diaspora Studies, Gender and Womenā€™s Studies, Law, Justice and Society, Indigenous Studies, and European Studies) and our traditional departments.

  • Developing robust Work Integrated Learning (WIL) and experiential learning opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students.

  • Advocating for financial supports for graduate studies, while also identifying and creating new opportunities, by encouraging prospective students to apply for scholarships earlier, creating graduate student scholarships for donors to contribute to, and supporting researchers to include more Research Assistantships in grant applications.

  • Creating faculty-specific teaching resources and space for discussion and mentorship.

  • Attracting and retaining a wide range of students from underrepresented groups within the faculty by providing timely and appropriate supports.

  • Strengthening our facultyā€™s global and international curriculum by supporting and developing learning opportunities in world cultures and languages at pilipiliĀž»­, and through internships, study abroad, and exchange programs.

  • Cultivating Teaching Assistantships as training opportunities for graduate students.

  • Foregrounding the importance and transferability of critical skills we teach in the faculty to employment opportunities.

  • Creating a governance structure for graduate council to support and strengthen our graduate programs.

  • Improving the incorporation of program reviews into curriculum planning and faculty strategic planning.

Action items:

  • Report back to FASS faculty council outlining data related to faculty renewal and retention on an annual basis.

  • Complete website transition by September 2026 and maintain interesting and informative web presence.

  • Continue to run an Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA) Mentorship program for new faculty housed in the Deanā€™s Office.

  • Establish and create yearly targets for undergraduate recruitment, increasing enrolment by 50 students annually year over year.

  • Increase retention rates in FASS by at least 10% by 2030.

  • Continue to fund ASSC 1300, ā€œIntroduction to Humanitiesā€ and ASSC 1400, ā€œIntroduction to Social Sciences,ā€ along with tutorial sections.

  • Create a semester-long Work Integrated Learning (WIL) experience for students across FASS by September 2027.

  • Introduce a Quarterly ā€œTeaching Teaā€ as the site for cross-faculty pedagogical discussions by September 2025.

  • Add 5 new study abroad/exchange programs by 2030.

  • Establish the new governance structure for graduate council by September 2026.

  • Develop and submit at least one new course-based Masterā€™s program in FASS by September 2027.

  • Revise the FASS Program Review policy for faculty approval by September 2026.

  • Finalize the Holistic Evaluation of Teaching policy by September 2026.

  • Provide information and recommendations to all relevant campus bodies (including but not limited to the VPRI, FGS Dean, Senate, Provost, President, etc.) regarding the necessity of maintaining and strengthening graduate funding.

  • Report back to FASS Faculty Council regularly with updates on efforts regarding graduate funding, providing data on funding changes.

FASS Leads/Champions:

  • Dean

  • Associate Dean, Academic

  • Associate Dean, Research

Benchmarks:

  • Faculty recruitment, retention, and retirement data

  • Faculty, staff, and student EDIA data

  • Retention and pilipiliĀž»­ of faculty members, including internal and external awards

  • Student recruitment and retention data

  • Graduate student scholarship pilipiliĀž»­ rates

  • WIL placement data

  • Data on student international experience

Priority 2 - Research

We commit to:

  • Increasing grant capture and diversifying funding beyond SSHRC.

  • Recognizing and valuing the multiplicity and uniqueness of research publications and creative productions across FASS.

  • Working closely with Dalhousie Libraries to support and develop research capacity and resources.

  • Nominating FASS researchers for internal and external awards and other forms of recognition (e.g. membership in the Royal Society of Canada).

  • Fostering collaborations across the faculty and the university.

  • Encouraging and supporting funding applications from researchers at all career stages with one-on-one coaching, mentorship, workshops and other new resources (application templates etc.).

  • Recognizing and valuing the time, energy and resources it takes to cultivate community relationships and partnerships for research (see Community Service Award).

  • Celebrating and sharing FASS research achievements and stories.

Action items:

  • Institute Weekly Faculty emails of granting opportunities.

  • Hold an annual FASS Research Day with information and discussion sessions about funding opportunities, proposal development, project management and institutional supports for researchers at all career stages, beginning in 2025.

  • Grow grant capture by 10% by 2030.

  • Increase the number of faculty applying for and receiving grants by 15% by September 2028.

  • Create a robust database of research activities in FASS by September 2027.

  • Expand and update SSHRC lending library to include additional resources, application templates and samples by September 2026.

  • Have FASS join as a partner in at least one Horizon Europe Consortium by September 2028.

FASS Leads/Champions

  • Dean

  • Associate Dean, Research

  • FASS Research Facilitator

Benchmarks:

  • Grant pilipiliĀž»­ rates

  • Faculty research awards

  • Publications and creative outputs

Priority 3 - Community and alumni engagement

We commit to:

  • Continue holding and supporting public events and outreach (e.g. lectures, performances), and building funding to support public outreach grant applications (e.g. matching funds for Connections Grants).

  • Leading and engaging in strategic advocacy across the university and communities more broadly, by addressing widescale social issues including housing and childcare.

  • Creating and supporting increased learning opportunities for community members, for instance, through the creation of new Certificates.

  • Cultivating and diversifying alumni engagement and networks through department and faculty newsletters, live and on-line events, and social media.

  • Recognizing and supporting faculty who undertake community outreach of various kinds.

  • Being leaders in the cultural and intellectual life of Nova Scotia.

Action items:

  • Work with Advancement to raise $100,000 to support public outreach grant applications (e.g. matching funds for Connections Grants) by September 2028.

  • Establish an Award for Community Service by September 2026 to explicitly support faculty and instructorsā€™ advocacy work whether it is in their area of research or not.

  • Use Work-Integrated Learning to support community engagement and contributions (e.g. targeting non-profits and other organizations with a social mission).

  • Create 10 new stand-alone Certificates to draw in community members by 2030.

FASS Leads/Champions

  • Dean

  • Associate Dean Research

  • FASS Research Facilitator

  • FASS Development Officer

Benchmarks:

  • Outreach data and grant pilipiliĀž»­ rates

  • Alumni engagement data

Priority 4 - Our workplace

We commit to:

  • Identifying and addressing inequities in faculty and staff workloads, including service work.

  • Providing the tools and training to support staff skills development.

  • Offering career mapping for interested support staff.

  • Creating social space(s) for faculty and administrative staff.

  • Continuing to develop EDIA-focused mentorship programs for faculty and staff.

  • Create a collaborative and hospitable work environment.

Action items:

  • Conduct a space planning exercise to envision how to adjust the McCain Building to hybrid work; we will rethink space and staffing practices to encourage social connection and collaboration, reduce isolation, and share underused spaces.

  • Develop a database of administrative templates and guidelines for staff by September 2026.

  • Create an EDIA mentorship program for administrative staff starting in September 2025.

  • Hold quarterly administrative staff meetings with the Dean starting in September 2025 and provide the tools in these meetings for career mapping at pilipiliĀž»­.

  • Establish mechanisms to facilitate cross-training among administrative staff by September 2026.

FASS Leads/Champions

  • Dean

  • Chairs, Director, and Program Coordinators

  • FASS Director of Finance and Human Resources

Benchmarks

  • Employee satisfaction data (e.g. Your Voice)

  • EDIA metrics for faculty and staff

Next steps:

Now that we have a Strategic Plan to guide our work from now until 2030, our focus will shift to implementation by detailing the initiatives and corresponding measures of progress required to advance our collective work. The Action Items provide key specific targets and offer tangible next steps. We will review and update the Faculty on these items as the environment shifts, through bi-annual progress reports to Faculty Council.