Strategic Planning Meeting
Strategic Planning Meeting –November 8, 2013
Facilitator-Bart Den Boer
On November 1st, members of the college’s board, faculty, and staff reviewed the results of an OSAT (Organizational Self Assessment Tool) assessment of the college conducted by local UNAIS partners in October 2013. It was interesting and also surprising to look at the picture of our overall strengths and weaknesses. Similar to a doctor’s examination, this is only the first part of a Strategic Planning and Assessment examination that is to take place over the next 2 years; in order to become strong and healthy, the college must go through a series of treatments. On November 8, with the help of our qualified friend and facilitator, Bart den Boer, we began a step in this direction. During this meeting President Jack Sara gave an introduction to the process of Strategic Planning and Development, sharing that in order to grow within and without, we need to strategize and adapt to new ideas and methods. He used the scripture reference of “New Wine Skins for New Wine” to point out the need for analyzing where we are and where we are going and the fact that we can’t use old wineskins for taking the college forward into the future. We need to have new wineskins for future growth and innovations.
Following this, Bart Den Boer, was introduced as the facilitator for helping us to fine-tune our mission statement. He began with an inspirational scripture, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10).”
In small groups, members of the faculty, staff and student body collaborated together to answer questions that would lay the foundation for creating a comprehensive mission statement—questions such as “Why does the college exists?”, “What would be missing if we did not exist?” and “How do we plan to fulfill our mission purpose?”.
The following initial statements were gleaned as being common areas of agreement as to “Why BBC Exists”:
*To equip and prepare Palestinian leaders (men and women)
*To alleviate poverty
*To provide an evangelical Palestinian Christian witness, promote unity and interpret theological positions.
*Empower churches and Christian organizations
As an interim activity, college participants viewed an inspirational video on “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” by Simon Sinek emphasizing from various business success stories that, “What You Do Proves What You Believe”.
As the day wore on more reflection took place, statements from the various groups were summarized on charts and from these charts a master plan of common ideas and agreement began to formulate culminating in “4 Things We Will Do to Meet the Why and How of Our Existence”. A follow up meeting with Bart den Boer will take place on December 13 at which time we will continue to improve upon our mission statement and from there we will proceed to write strategic objectives for BBC.
