Actually there are lots of big ideas, as you might expect at an institution of higher learning.

In 2019, though, UNO began a Strategic Planning process to identify the biggest of those ideas, inviting faculty, staff, students and community partners to join an ongoing dialogue about UNO’s continued maturation into a premier metropolitan public research university.

The Strategic Plan centers on four goals: 

• Student Centeredness
• Academic Excellence
• Community Engagement; and,
• Institutional Quality. 

The UNO Big Ideas process was created as a planning structure for Goals 2 & 3 of the UNO Strategic Plan — Academic Excellence and Community Engagement. Input was sought to prioritize investment in areas of campus strength and where there are opportunities to enhance scholarly, research and creative activities at UNO. 

Following a six-month process engaging various audiences, UNO deans recommended six cross-campus themes for the UNO Big Ideas. Click on each link for more information.

• Samuel Bak Institute

• Transforming Wellness and Aging Through Business, Informatics and Gerontology

• Security and Intelligence Studies

• STEM TRAIL Center

• Ted Kooser Center for Health Humanities

• Biomechanical Rehabilitation and Manufacturing

The six themes span all the colleges, the Graduate School, and the Criss Library. Through them, UNO will further advance student opportunities and community partnerships, and will attract philanthropic and sponsored revenues.

The Big Ideas process provides for regular opportunities for assessment, refinement, and improvement. Annually, UNO will hear progress reports on the Big Ideas, track progress towards concrete metrics, celebrate successes and adapt as circumstances require.