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Innovate – 2026 

TCC’s Five-Year Strategic Plan

Vision

To be our community’s first choice for education, opportunity, partnership, and innovation. 

MISSION 

Tidewater Community College provides collegiate education and workforce training to individuals of all ages, helping them achieve their goals and contribute to the vitality of the regional and global community. 

CORE VALUES 

Teaching & Learning Excellence: Provide students a path to academic achievement through active engagement, high academic expectations, and opportunities for exploration and curiosity. 

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion: Create an environment in which policies, practices, and beliefs are grounded in the principle of fairness and that acknowledges structural racism, gender disparities, and systemic poverty while honoring the diversity of humanity. 

Community: Actively engage our stakeholders to design and deliver programs and services to support our students and the region. 

Innovation: Imagine and proactively apply new methods and creative solutions.

Empathy: Engage in actions that promote personal well-being, social good, and trust by continually recognizing the interdependence of our students, employees, and community in a shared human experience. 

Integrity: Demonstrate truthfulness, transparency, and Strategic Directions stewardship through responsible actions and decisions. 

Accountability: Hold ourselves and each other responsible for fulfilling our obligations. 

Strategic Direction 1: Enrollment Growth: Build awareness, expand access, increase affordability, and optimize student services to promote enrollment. Build awareness, expand access, increase affordability, and optimize student services to promote enrollment.

1.1 Develop marketing and public relations outreach materials that include program-focused highlights, alumni success profiles, and a focus on teaching excellence. 

1.2 Establish efficiency goals for student on-boarding processes including: 

  • Improved customer service goals and necessary customer service professional development,
  • Pathway and credential stacking to improve non-credit to credit merging for students, 
  • Student intake and advising services aligned with military and veteran benefits. 

1.3 Expand K-12 outreach and dual enrollment access. 

1.4 Establish targeted student recruitment goals and supporting strategies with annual reviews to include: 

  • FTIC,
  • Military, military dependents, and veterans, 
  • Annual data-identified target groups. 

1.5 Increase availability of and access to scholarships, grants, and financial support for students. 

Strategic Direction 2: Student Progression, Retention, & Completion: Support student learning and achievement through meaningful academic programs, comprehensive and accessible support services, and co-curricular activities.

2.1 Develop a comprehensive Academic Plan that includes: 

  • Academic program and curriculum review. 
  • Integrated and aligned Program Learning Outcomes, General Education Competencies, experiential learning, and co-curricular competencies to improve student completion.
  • Improved access to and use of high impact academic support services, including libraries.
  • Scheduling review and application of high-impact practices (accelerated programming, rolling 8-week sessions, cohorts, block scheduling etc.).
  • Textbook reform that includes expanded use of textbook alternatives such as OER and library resources, college-wide consistency, lower textbooks cost, and reduced student expenditure on all learning supplies.
  • Operationalize regular outreach to and information sharing with K-12. 
  • Expanded use of advisory boards for transfer programs.
  • Targeted growth, access, and success for the military and veterans including academic programming aligned with military and veteran needs.

2.2 Establish college-wide student resources and services goals to improve persistence and retention that include: 

  • Early Alert and Advising system.
  • Multi-modal academic support services.
  • Single-stop and wrap-around auxiliary services.
  • Improved student information access and literacy.
  • Comprehensive system of career services and career-focused student learning opportunities. 

2.3 Form a comprehensive outcomes-measured student engagement system that includes:

  • Student leadership and governance. 
  • Activities supporting co-curricular outcomes.
  • Campus Student Center operations including an operationalized Virtual Student Center. 
  • Student recognition and rewards program for high-performing and engaged students.

2.4 Integrate student focus groups and student input into institutional annual planning to address student barriers. 

2.5 Develop a Student Honors Program 

Strategic Direction 3: Innovation to Support Teaching & Learning: Provide quality teaching and learning through high impact practices, technology integration, and continuous development for faculty and students.

3.1 Create an Academic Technology Plan that will support the development of Centers for Teaching and Learning Excellence and integrate Academics and OIS in planning management and budgeting. 

3.2 Establish a Center for Teaching Excellence supporting the design and development of high- impact digital learning experiences that includes: 

  • A comprehensive Academy for faculty professional development that is relevant to specific subgroups of faculty (i.e., new, experienced, full-time, adjunct).
  • Increased in-person, virtual, and on-demand training opportunities.
  • Increased capacity to support faculty by with instructional designers, instructional technologists, graphic designers, programmers, and librarians.
  • Implementing badging system to award and track progress in the completion of professional development and the development of relevant skills.
  • Establishing a Faculty Innovation Award to recognize teaching excellence.
  • Establishing Faculty Learning Communities to nurture collaboration, mentorship, and innovation.
  • Increasing on-demand support capabilities by leveraging virtual collaborative spaces.
  • Increase awareness of available resources and services through strategic communication and advertising (i.e., newsletter, web presence). 

3.3 Establish Centers for Student Learning Excellence that include: 

  • Increase efficiency in supporting students by centralizing access to relevant services and support. 
  • Increase student computer competency,
    Establish support for personal computers and home computing. 
  • Increase on-demand support capabilities by leveraging virtual collaborative spaces.
  • Increase internet access through community partnerships and mobile hotspot distribution.
  • Increase awareness of available resources and services through strategic communication and advertising (i.e., newsletter, web presence). 

3.4 Increase remote access to classroom and lab software applications. 

  • Implement remote and/or virtualized desktop access for faculty and students. 

Strategic Direction 4: Community Partnerships & Workforce Development: Engage with and take actions to support the economic development and public good of our service region.

4.1 Complete an economic impact report to be used for marketing, outreach, and development. 

4.2 Respond to industry and partner needs and workforce gaps including: 

  • Increasing short-term training opportunities 
  • Increasing customized training, work-based learning, and apprenticeship programs
  • Optimize alternative funding models to support relevant workforce training expansion 
  • Targeted participation in region-developing organizations. 

4.3 Target Advancement, fundraising, and grant opportunities aligned with: 

  • Community, industry, and workforce needs 
  • Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives 
  • Academic technology and instructional design
  • Student access and achievement.

4.4 Establish annual TCC community engagement goals focused on employee-driven community outreach and volunteerism opportunities. 

Strategic Direction 5: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion: Create an environment 1) in which policies, practices, and beliefs are grounded in the principle of fairness; 2) that acknowledges structural racism, gender disparities, and systemic poverty while honoring the diversity of humanity; and 3) that prioritizes the success of all students to ensure they have the necessary resources to fulfill their college and career goals.

5.1 Close student access and achievement gaps. *

5.2 Engage in DEI and cultural awareness training and professional development. 

5.3 Conduct a policy and curriculum review focused on DEI.

5.4 Develop annual employee DEI recruitment and retention targets.

*Will align with VCCS Equity Goal Strategies 

Strategic Direction 6: Organizational Resilience & Sustainability: Meet the needs of our students and employees through responsive and equitable resource management, transparency, and communication.

6.1 Develop internal communication processes that include expectations for regular and ongoing college-wide updates, project status reports, and division reporting. 

6.2 Engage in continuous strategic plan review, progress, and accountability reporting. 6.3 Develop resource management goals for: 

  • Space utilization and facilities repurposing
  • Academic and workforce facilities and equipment collapsing and sharing 
  • College-wide master facilities planning. 

6.4 Develop an integrated Employee Evaluation, Succession, and Promotion plan.

6.5 Continually review and revise emergency and safety plans and policies. 

  • Revise COVID-19 Response Plan as necessary. 

Download TCC’s Five-Year Strategic Plan

View Innovate 2026 – One Page

View the Strategic Plan Update