IDC       #@1     
                                             Senate    #@1
                                             Approved  l0/09/86


                     Faculty Senate Document #1

                              1986-1987


                  Institutional Development Committee

                              Document #1

                                1986-87


PLANNING GUIDELINES FOR UNCA


THE MISSION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA


	Chapter 116 of the General Statutes of North Carolina, as
amended by the General Assembly effective July 1, 1972, provides
that the University of North Carolina shall be composed of the 16
public senior institutions of higher education.  The objectives
of the University of North Carolina are:  (1) to improve the
quality of education; (2) to extend its benefits; and (3) to
encourage an economical use of the State's resources, in order to
foster the development of a well-planned and coordinated system
of higher education (The Higher Education Reorganization Act of
1971).  For a more complete discussion of these objectives please
refer to LONG-RANGE PLANNING, 1984-89 adopted by the Board of
Governors of the University of North Carolina in October, 1985.
The document states relative to the University of North Carolina
at Asheville that:

The University of North Carolina at Asheville is a
Comprehensive University II, offering degree programs
at the baccalaureate level.  A strong liberal arts
curriculum has been broadened by the addition of
career-oriented programs in accounting, computer
science, communications and industrial and engineering
management.  A University Graduate Center, offering a
wide range of courses and cooperative programs, was
established on the campus in 1984.  These and other
initiatives will provide more extensive and effective
educational opportunities for citizens of that
community and region.  For the present planning period,
UNCA will remain fundamentally an undergraduate
university.  The institution is authorized to plan a
master's degree program in liberal studies.  The
interdisciplinary program will be offered through the
Graduate Center and will build upon a highly successful
undergraduate humanities program.


Aims and Objectives of UNCA

	The fundamental purpose of the University of North Carolina
at Asheville is to provide an education of high quality to
students at all stages of life.  The University offers
undergraduate degrees in the liberal arts and sciences and in
selected career-oriented programs; it further makes its resources
available to non-degree seeking students who wish to study for
personal enrichment or professional development.



	Historically strong in liberal arts, the curriculum at UNCA
continues to place special emphasis on liberal values in
education; that is, it aims to develop in all students a breadth
of perspective, a capacity to think both critically and
creatively, and an understanding of the role of values in thought
and action.  In support of this goal, the institution maintains
programs in the social and natural sciences, the humanities, and
the arts, and it seeks new ways of integrating these areas of
knowledge and inquiry with programs that provide training for a
career.
	Recognizing that teaching is central to its mission, the
University seeks to foster an environment in which students
committed to learning and a faculty dedicated to teaching and
scholarship may interact closely in a stimulating atmosphere.  It
encourages flexibility and innovation in the curriculum and in
instruction.
	As a public institution, UNCA serves the region and state in
ways that are appropriate to its educational mission, not only
through the formal curriculum, but by sponsoring such activities
as conferences, workshops, lectures, athletic teams, and artistic
performances.  It seeks to apply its resources to enrich cultural
life, enhance the conduct of public affairs, and contribute to
constructive development in the community.  (Revised statement
adopted March, 1982).

	

UNCA GUIDING CONCEPTS

(These guidelines should be reviewed no less than every
five years.  They shall be subject to change by two-thirds
vote of the Board of Trustees)


1.  UNDERGRADUATE EMPHASIS -- UNCA intends to continue to
concentrate on undergraduate education.  UNCA chooses to be
distinctive as one of the few public universities that places its
primary emphasis on undergraduates.


2.  LIBERAL ARTS FOCUS -- All students, regardless of academic
major or career intentions, are and will be universally required
to complete a basic core sequence of study.  The program will
include an interdisciplinary sequence of courses in the
Humanities that cover the most prominent thinkers and doers from
other cultures and eras, and that rigorously explore society as
well as speculate about the future.  All students will take
additional required courses in the arts, writing, mathematics,
and foreign languages as well as health promotion, natural
sciences and social sciences.  The academic majors will respond
to societal conditions and student needs, but the liberal arts
focus will be a constant.

3.  TEACHING EMPHASIZED -- UNCA is primarily an institution for
teaching and learning.  Additionally, UNCA supports and
encourages scholarship in all fields represented by the faculty. 
This scholarship enhances UNCA's effectiveness in the
teaching/learning process, its contribution to human knowledge,
and service to the community. 





4.  INVOLVEMENT -- UNCA's strategy for educating students centers
on diverse student-faculty interaction and activity.  These
activities include but are not limited to the classroom, library,
laboratory, field trips, etc.  UNCA intends these activities to
expose students to new unfamiliar ideas and concepts.  This
experience draws students into new relationships and activities
in all aspects of their education, e.g., artistic events, special
interest clubs, academic honor societies, student government
activities, athletic events, and living clusters.


5.  PEAKS OF EXCELLENCE -- UNCA will establish and maintain
national prominence in several carefully selected specialty
areas.  This will involve extra resources from regular sources
and extra effort to attract resources from grants and gifts. 
Known locally as "thrust areas or university distinctives", they
currently include undergraduate research, the Humanities Core,
and Health Promotion.  Institutional self respect, coupled with
respect of national opinion setters, is a key element in
attracting people and resources, and in motivating teachers and
learners.


6.  QUALITY GROWTH --  UNCA intends to grow to an ultimate size
of 5000 headcount, 3800 undergraduate and 1200 graduate students
by 1995.   A substantial portion of the undergraduate growth
should be with resident students in order to achieve a resident
student population of 1200 by 1995.  The remaining increase will
be commuting students (400 headcount).  This growth should be
quality focused.  An increased proportion of these students 
should be high ability students.  Furthermore, the quality growth
should be targeted to recruiting more liberal arts majors.


7.  STATEWIDE -- UNCA efforts will be directed toward offering a
distinctive liberal arts alternative of a publicly sponsored
institution to students from Buncombe & contiguous counties and
from throughout the entire state.

8.  DOWNTOWN WITH TWIN CENTERS -- As the Broadway corridor
between the central business district and UNCA is widened and
developed, there is a unique opportunity to view UNCA as a part
of downtown Asheville.  UNCA and Asheville can join in a
partnership which will stimulate downtown revitalization and also
guide campus growth.  Together, the University and the central
business district can provide a spectrum of cultural and
intellectual resources that reinforce rather than duplicate
facilities.  UNCA can provide leadership in the development of
appropriate educational, governmental, residential, commercial,
recreational and cultural uses in the entire area between
downtown Asheville and the campus to consciously create an
enhanced, enlarged concept for the "Central City".             




9.  UNCA'S 2ND ROLE --  A quality undergraduate learning
experience is UNCA's primary role.  UNCA's second role is to
serve Asheville and its environs by utilizing its intellectual
and physical capacities to enrich  the quality of life and the
economy for all.  The strengths of the educational program reside
in the knowledge, experience, and reputations of the personnel of
UNCA (faculty, administration, and support staff).  The
availability of these strengths will be important as the economic
and demographic environment of UNCA's service region changes. 
These changes will provide an opportunity for UNCA to add to and
build upon its Undergraduate Emphasis through the development of
a 2nd role -- creation of special relationships with Affiliate
organizations.  These Affiliate organizations and UNCA will
complement and strengthen each other and hence enhance their
respective contributions to the quality of life in Western North
Carolina.



10.  UNCA AND AFFILIATES -- A mix of approaches to the Affiliates
will assist UNCA in meeting its 2nd role.  The approaches will
vary depending on the nature of each specific opportunity.  At
one end of the range will be Affiliates owned and operated by
other organizations for which UNCA provides logistic and
professional support.  Examples include the Asheville Graduate
Center, the University Botanical Gardens, The U.S. Forest
Service, and the Arboretum.  Another type of Affiliate might be a
co-operative venture, of a franchisee nature, with a nationally
respected organization such as the Institute of government
(Chapel Hill), a small business incubator, or the Center for
Economic Education.  In this type of venture UNCA, as the
franchisee, would co-operate with the home agency in providing a
range of services to Western North Carolina.