Student Housing and Dining Services Strategic Plan2021

VIII. Strategic Initiatives

Student Housing’s strategic initiatives represent our priorities over the next 3–5 years. During this time, we will develop specific goals, identify applicable metrics and commit the time and resources necessary to ensure continued progress.

Student Program Enhancements

The demographics of our student population are ever changing. As such, we will continue to evolve and enhance our program in both anticipation of and response to students’ changing needs. In response to the campus plans for increasing numbers of international students, we will partner with other UC Davis offices to ensure we are providing a smooth transition to the university and incorporating these students into the overall campus community. Students with preexisting mental health concerns and those students who may not transition well to campus are another focus area for program enhancement. We will also proceed with continued enhancements to our academic advising programs, possibly expanding our efforts beyond residence hall students to include more segments of the general student population.

Dining Services

Student Housing works closely with a third-party vendor to operate our dining and retail program. The partnership changed substantially in 2009 and again in 2012 with the university taking over the majority of the staffing and property management components. We will continue to monitor the contract carefully as we move forward. We will also partner with the campus to construct a new facility in the Vet Med area and continue our efforts to upgrade current retail dining facilities. In addition, we will continue our focus on sustainability initiatives and infuse healthy food options and education as a priority, while evaluating if this contract is the most efficient method of delivering food service to the campus community.

The dining facilities inventory includes the following:

• Segundo Dining Commons – 805 seats?
• Tercero Dining Commons – 820 seats
• Cuarto Dining Commons – 338 seats
• Bakery
• Culinary Support Center
• Catering
• Silo – 300 seats
• Scrubs – 220 seats
• Bio Brew ??
• Cargo Coffee (King, Sproul, Ghausi)
• Concessions
• Hub (West Village)
• Coffee House – seats 566
• Coffee House South

Space Planning and Asset Management

We will continue our efforts to provide adequate studentcentered space. These needs include bed spaces, studentsupport space as well as administrative services space. We will implement an internal process to identify and provide for any unmet space-use needs as well as educate staff on the available options. In addition to providing space, we will continue our efforts to procure and implement a new asset management system (AMS). This effort will include staffing changes, the development of user interfaces and staff education.

Marketing and Communications

We will enhance communication and information sharing for both our internal and external audiences. These enhancements will include but not be limited to website improvements as well as expanded use of social and print media. External communication initiatives will include close collaboration with our third-party dining contractor, Student Affairs Marketing and Communications as well as the campus Strategic Communications group. Internally, we will evaluate the quantity and structure of our department and unit meetings, enhance opportunities for staff social interaction, and revisit the use of a department newsletter

Professional Development and Succession Planning

Student Housing provides a broad range of professional development opportunities for our staff. We will continue to enhance these efforts with a focus on providing a more structured array of opportunities. In addition, we will work to identify project-based and interim/short-term assignments that will prepare staff for future advancement while also contributing to department needs and goals.