Vision Quest

Shared Ideas, Lingering Gaps

The Cooperative Vision Quest served as one of the central components of the All-Campus Conference, aiming to connect participants’ day-to-day work with the goals of the UNM-Valencia Strategic Plan and the broader UNM 2040 framework. Structured as a series of small group discussions, the activity invited staff, faculty, and administrators to reflect on key priorities, identify challenges, and propose future directions. It was a bold attempt to deepen strategic engagement and surface cross-campus insights. While participant feedback revealed areas for growth, it also reaffirmed the community’s willingness to reflect, collaborate, and move forward.

Summary

• Mixed reviews: Some felt empowered and connected; others cited off-topic discussions and unclear facilitation or a lack of structured guidance.
• Strong desire for future sessions to translate talk into actionable outcomes.
• Breakout groups helped build cross-departmental understanding, but relevance varied by role.

Goals and Format

Participants were grouped to ensure departmental diversity and asked to respond to prompts relating to strategic alignment, operational improvements, and institutional culture. The intent was to encourage cross-functional thinking, identify shared concerns, and generate ideas that could inform future planning efforts.

What Worked

Many attendees found value in the opportunity to hear from colleagues they don’t typically work with. Several noted a renewed sense of connection across departmental lines and appreciated the chance to explore issues through different lenses. One participant remarked, “It broke down some silos—or at least started to—and for that, I found it super useful.” Others emphasized that the session fostered a collaborative spirit, with thoughtful exchanges that reinforced a sense of shared purpose.

For some, the session helped them better understand how their work supports broader strategic goals, particularly in areas like community outreach, student engagement, and operational efficiency. A few groups bonded over their shared frustrations or aspirations, which led to productive problem-solving and brainstorming.

What Fell Short

Despite these positives, feedback also revealed several areas for improvement. Some groups struggled with unclear facilitation or felt the prompts lacked direction. A few groups noted challenges in ensuring balanced participation and suggested clearer ground rules for discussion equity. Others felt the discussions veered off-topic or became too abstract, missing the opportunity to address practical next steps.

Some expressed concern that the discussions echoed past conversations without clear indicators of progress, raising questions about how feedback will be acted upon.

Relevance to Daily Work

Ratings for the session’s relevance averaged 3.67 out of 5, suggesting moderate alignment between the discussion content and participants’ everyday responsibilities. Some, especially part-time or adjunct staff, felt the session addressed issues outside their immediate role. Others, however, saw it as a chance to envision how their individual efforts contribute to campus-wide goals, especially in areas like student success and cross-departmental collaboration.

Looking Ahead

The Vision Quest session underscored both the campus’s collective investment in strategic planning and the need to rebuild trust in the process. Participants called for clearer facilitation, more practical outcomes, and most importantly, visible follow-through on the ideas shared. The activity showed that the UNM-Valencia community is rich in insight and passion—but that passion must be matched by leadership accountability, transparency, and sustained engagement.