By Mary Pieper, Mason City Globe Gazet

MASON CITY — North Iowa Area Community College officials unveiled a five-year strategic plan for the college Thursday during a joint meeting of NIACC’s board of directors, foundation board and alumni board.

The pillars of the plan are education, leadership and partnership.

The plan also includes a vision statement — something the college has never had before, according to Shelly Schmit, vice president for organizational development/human resources.

That vision statement is, “North Iowa Community College is our region’s first choice in post-secondary education, recognized for its commitment to quality teaching and learning and dedicated to seamless educational opportunity, exemplary programs and services, responsive and collaborative partnerships with business and industry, and steadfast commitment to the individuals we serve locally, regionally and internationally.”

NIACC President Debra Derr said 14 percent of students who enter community colleges nationwide don’t complete a single credit during their first year while others may get through the first semester but leave before completing the second.

NIACC has a 64 percent retention rate for first-year students, which is better than the national average.

“But is that good enough? No, it isn’t,” Derr said.

NIACC has created a Center of Excellence in Teaching and Learning to help its instructors fill in their skill gaps, Derr said.

The college also is getting involved in an initiative called Foundations of Excellence to help provide students in their first semester with the support they need, she said.

Under leadership, Derr said, the college is “poised to move North Iowa forward” because of its emphasis on three areas the Iowa Innovations Council has identified as important for the state: bioscience, information technology and advanced manufacturing.

Derr said the college can’t take its existing partnerships for granted and said it is also important to look for new partnerships.

Over the past year, NIACC has partnered with the Winnebago Foundation, the National Science Foundation and SunGard Technology Services, among others, she said.

Schmit said college officials held 25 separate focus group sessions with NIACC staff, faculty and members of the public while developing the strategic plan.

Now that the three pillars have been identified, NIACC officials are working on objectives for each of them as well as strategies for achieving those objectives, according to Schmit.

The plan will be updated annually so “it becomes a living document,” she said.