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Priorities:Western Michigan University Student Priorities

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= Overview of Strategies =

Western Michigan University has many opportunities for different types of innovation on campus, for example, the annual pitch competition, the Innovation Club, and our campus makerspace. While we recognize all of the amazing opportunities for innovation already present here at Western, we have also come to understand the endless potential our university has for growth.  <br/span> As University Innovation Fellows, we have gained access to more resources than we knew existed.  Here we present what exactly those improvements are, so that we may positively begin to impact the student experience.

= Strategy 1 =

== Marketing for Campus Connections ==

~~Students that would like to meet others outside~~ There is a lack of cohesive marketing of ~~their discipline should be able to find others that~~ the WMU values within campus and even externally. We are ~~working towards~~ a top 100 research university, but students aren’t always taking advantage of these opportunities. How do we start asking the ~~same project goal. They can connect via common interestes~~right questions? The previous UIF group is trying to assuage this need with the Think Big campaign. Helping them continue to grow in this process and supporting the university in this endeavor is the best way to continue to grow in this area. We aim to drum up support and ~~common aspirations~~attendance for events like town hall meetings.~~ ~~

= Strategy 2 =

== Improving Campus ~~Collaboration~~ Culture ==

C^3 is an initiative to connect students to each other and to peer mentors who can aid in the overall understanding of an individual topic. This helps create an environment of learning and teamwork. <~~div~~span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Western is a community of well rounded students, focused on expanding themselves beyond the traditional student expectations. Students today are pressured from all angles to improve constantly.  This kind of pressure can cause a lot of students to isolate themselves within their major, becoming disconnected from the rest of campus because they are so focused on trying to keep themselves a float with grades and adulthood.  A lot of students who feel outside of campus culture are not likely to continue their education at Western.  By creating a culture focused on collaboration and innovation, we will not only improve the lives of students but our university as a whole. We intend to create a group of talent seekers who find students at Western with great, new, innovative ideas and then recognize them on a platform like Instagram or YouTube. A student committee nominating and putting the spotlight on their peers.<br/span></~~div~~span>

= Strategy 3 =

== Interdisciplinary Collaboration ==

There’s isn’t currently a space on campus that’s inviting and nature heavy, that’s conveniently available to all students.There are links to mental wellness studies and gathering students in one place will naturally lead to group socialization. Providing these groups with the tools they need to be productive with each other, which is also key to building bridges across disciplines.Interdisciplinary Collaboration on campus could be highly benefitted by a space that draws students regardless of major or course of study. The escape into nature aspect built in with an open productive space could exponentially augment the students interactino with each other, leading to a more cohesive and well rounded campus collective.Something like aGreen Lounge, a greenhouse inspired atrium with links to mental wellness that draws students from a variety of majors, and which also spurs interest in the Finch Greenhouses.

= Strategy 4 =

== ~~Focus on ''Intra''preneurship~~ Reputation ==

Overview~~font-variant-position: ~~~~Due to the campus culture at WMU~~As students and faculty alike, ~~“entrepreneurship” seems to only be~~ we can all agree that Western is a place that has served as a ~~buzzword. To many~~ cornucopia of academic expansion for students~~, entrepreneurship only means starting a business from scratch~~across all disciplines. ~~While this is true~~  That being said, it there is ~~not fully representative~~ still a misconception that students are more proud of ~~the entire scope~~ their extra curricular Saturday nights than of ~~entrepreneurship and innovation~~their academic prowess. The ~~other portion is often called~~ nickname of “Wastern” can be incredibly detrimental and damaging to the University's reputation, especially when we look to recruit <span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-~~style~~variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: ~~italic~~normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap~~; background-color: transparent~~;">~~intra~~academically focused innovators. We need to prevent these potential changemakers and those already at Western from looking at other universities because of our less than professional reputation<span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap~~; background-color: transparent~~;">~~preneurship~~. Not only are we turning students away from our University, ~~or innovation~~ but we noticed that ~~occurs~~ current student accomplishments are being swept under the rug as talk of boozy tailgates take center stagae. Internally, WMU needs more recognition of its students for the great work they are doing. Some colleges within ~~existing industries~~the University currently spotlight their students on Instagram pages and others have professors nominate their best students for a scholarship or award.~~~~But what about those students who are working on their brilliant ideas on their own, and only can be recognized by their peers?

~~~~Tactic #1: </span~~>While students within the College of Engineering & Applied Sciences are constantly building, creating, and designing solutions, few realize how much innovation is actually occurring, and how the lessons they are learning can be applied to their future career. One option is to bring in industry leaders to speak about how they use design thinking and innovation in their workplace. This could stress the importance of entrepreneurial thinking as a whole, independent of whether the student wanted to open a business or enter the workplace.Strategy 5<br/~~span>=

== Tactic #2: WMU could also offer intrapreneurship workshops to highlight the skills necessary to be successful in particular industries. Focus would be on the approach and application of the design cycle within the restraints of a company.Mobile Interfacing<br/~~span~~>==

<span~~><span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap~~; background-color: transparent~~;">~~Tactic #3: Entrepreneurship can be introduced to all~~ Engaging students ~~in introductory courses. While the Industial Engineering department as well as the Business College do a good job of exposing~~ through their most used devices, their ~~students~~ phones, is an area many universities are struggling to ecatch up with, WMU included. <~~/span></~~spanstyle="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Students need a way to interact with their Universities in a more streamlined and well designed process than currently available<span style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-~~family~~variant-ligatures: ~~tahoma, geneva, sans~~normal; font-variant-east-~~serif~~asian: normal; font-~~size~~variant-position: normal; vertical-align: ~~small~~baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">~~ntrepreneurship many other departments have lots~~ , something that can do anything from navigating them to class to ~~gain by introducing this concept~~ letting them know which classes to ~~students in~~ avoid registering for at the ~~early stages of their academic careersame time. Solutions could address issues such as: Dorm access, Digital IDs, paying for things on campus, like BroncoPay, a DegreeWorks revamp, class search/ recommendation/ review feature.

= ~~Strategy 4 =~~ ~~== Entrepreneurship and Innovation Resource Introduction for Underclassmen ==~~ Overview: In talking to younger students on campus, we found that many did not know about the opportunities that were readily available to them. By not knowing about the opportunities, they were unable to take advantage of them, completely defeating the purpose of the opportunities at all. We believe that students should know about all opportunities available to them so that if they are interested, they can partake in entrepreneurship and innvoation activities on campus.  Tactic #1: Tabling at admitted student events. By being present at events for students before they even attend classes, opportunities such as the Innovation Club will be more prevelant in students' minds when they do get to college. This is especially true for students who try everything before classes start because they won't be too busy to learn more in the first place.  Tactic #2: Better marketing tactics for things like the library makerspace and the Innovation Club. By having more marketing materials and ambassadors for entrepreneurship and innovation around campus, students will be exposed to opportunities that they wouldn't have otherwise known about. Particularly with ambassadors, students would be able to ask questions and learn more about their options than with traditional flyers.  ~~= Strategy 5 =~~ ~~== Interdisciplinary Student Engagement Initiative ==~~ Overview: After getting insight from the student body from WMU's campus, we noticed there was a lack of interdisciplinary student engagement. We believe a solution to this problem is holding an event in which all students can participate no matter school standing or major. This event would foster a collaborative environment at the university between students, faculty, and the community. Tactic #1: The event we have in mind is a 48-hour startup weekend/hackathon. At this event students will participate for 48 hours to innovate, create, and network with employers. There will be a single challenge that students will create and help innovate a new idea involving a company, product, or business plan ultimately presenting this model to a panel of judges. There will be a monetary award being sourced from the company and school for the winners of the competition. To avoid pre-planning, the topic will kick off the 48-hour challenge. Related Links Tactic # 2: Preceding the 48-hour hackathon/startup weekend, we will host a TEDx event to bolster student excitement for change in higher education. It will create a domino effect on how students would want to incorporate change. Which ultimately will lead to the creation of an authentic community between student and faculty for innovating change on campus.  ~~= Related Links~~ =

Graduated Innovation Fellows:  [[Christopher Woodward]], [http://universityinnovation.org/Persefoni%20Lauhon Persefoni_Lauhon], [[Zach Crawford|Zach_Crawford]]

~~Current~~ Fellows: [[Mackenzie Preston|Mackenzie Preston]], [[Jill Puckett|Jill Puckett]], [[Nathan LaWarre|Nathan LaWarre]], [http://universityinnovation.org/wiki/Daniel_Mozel Daniel Mozel], [http://universityinnovation.org/wiki/Andreas_Hobelsberger Andreas Hobelsberger], [http://universityinnovation.org/wiki/Megan_miller Megan Miller], [http://universityinnovation.org/wiki/Saleh_Mohamed Saleh Mohamed]

~~University~~Candidates:~~ ~~[[~~Western Michigan University~~Aisha Thaj|~~Western_Michigan_University~~Aisha_Thaj]], [[Caylee Prater|Caylee_Prater]], [[Cate Troost|Cate Troost]]

~~ ~~University: [[Western Michigan University|Western_Michigan_University]] [[Category:Student Priorities]][[Category:Student Priorities]][[Category:Western_Michigan_University]][[Category:Student_Priorities]]{{CatTree|Western_Michigan_University}}

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