Mission, Vision, and Values

Our Mission

St. Philip's College, founded in 1898, is a comprehensive public community college offering associate’s degrees and certificates, whose mission is to empower our diverse student population through educational achievement and career readiness. As a Historically Black College and Hispanic Serving Institution, St. Philip's College is a vital facet of the community, responding to the needs of a population rich in ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic diversity. St. Philip's College creates an equitable and inclusive environment, fostering excellence in academic and technical achievement, while expanding its commitment to diversity, opportunity and access.

Core Competencies

The college fulfills its mission through three core competencies:

1) Quality Instruction for Educational Programs

We will prepare students through:

  1. General courses in arts and sciences leading to an associate degree.
  2. Transfer education for students desiring to attend senior institutions.
  3. Developmental courses that improve the basic skills of students whose academic foundations require strengthening.
  4. Applied Science and technical programs leading to an associate degree or certificate designed to prepare students for employment and/or to update crucial skills.
  5. Workforce and Career development training programs for business, industry and government.
  6. Continuing education programs for occupational and educational enrichment or certification.
  7. High School Program partnerships that align pathways, enhance learning and provide career readiness and transfer opportunities.
  8. Continuous quality improvement of programmatic offerings based on a culture of assessment.

2) Student Engagement

We will empower students through:

  1. Counseling and guidance designed to assist students in achieving their educational and professional goals.
  2. Educational support services including library services, tutoring, open use computer labs and a writing center.
  3. Services, accommodations and advocacy support provided in appropriate formats and modalities.
  4. A commitment to diversity, opportunity and access.

3) Community Engagement

We will partner, leverage, and collaborate through:

  1. Quality social, cultural, and intellectual enrichment experiences for the community.
  2. Equity-minded and diverse campus activities and events.
  3. Participation in community service and economic development projects.

Our Vision

St. Philip’s College will be the best in the nation in Student Success and Performance Excellence

Our Values

St. Philip’s College is committed to building individual and collective character through the following set of shared values in order to fulfill our vision and mission.

  • Students First
  • Respect for All
  • Community Engaged
  • Collaboration
  • Can-Do Spirit
  • Data-Informed

Our Institutional Priorities

  • SACSCOC Compliance
  • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
  • Graduation, Persistence, Productive Grade Rate Improvement

Strategic Objectives

Student Success

OBJECTIVE

Provide academic and student support and align labor market-based pathways to achieve student completion.

ACTION PLAN FY22–FY25

  1. Leverage and strengthen resources, with special emphasis on the High School Program’s capability and capacity, targeted to engagement with P-12 and industry partners to improve the college-readiness and transition of students from high school to college and to the workforce.
  2. Increase student performance to exceed the state and national benchmarks (retention, graduation, persistence, transfer, job placement, and other key performance indicators).
  3. Increase overall student success by closing performance gaps between ethnic/racial, gender, socioeconomic groups, and other special population groups.
  4. Establish a Strategic Enrollment Management Plan to improve access to the MyMAP student experience and integrate AlamoENROLL, AlamoADVISE AlamoPROMISE, and other associated strategies along the student academic pathway.
  5. Build Campus Capacity by expanding infrastructure, creating an operational model for evening and weekend courses, and expanding in programs of high demand.
  6. Assess and improve student learning outcomes/competencies for all academic and workforce/continuing education programs.
  7. Establish and deploy the Alamo Institutes to align our instructional and institutional system to labor market demand and career pathways.
Leadership

OBJECTIVE

Provide opportunities for St. Philip’s College students and employees to develop as leaders.

ACTION PLAN FY22–FY25

  1. Incorporate personal and social responsibility, global citizenship, critical thinking and lifelong learning as the framework of principle-centered leadership into the culture of St. Philip’s College.
  2. Promote current and accurate data-informed innovation, risk-taking and entrepreneurship.
  3. Enrich Academic Excellence by balancing faculty/staff with course requirements, expanding CTE offerings and establishing flexible scheduling (Evening/Weekend courses and course scheduling offerings that meet the needs of our students in all course modalities).
  4. Build upon and foster two-way internal communication with students and employees to improve collaboration and teamwork and build trust to promote leadership.
  5. Develop a robust DEI initiative that focuses on inclusion of all students and employees across the college, extends to hiring and promotion practices and transforms SPC to an equity-minded campus culture.
Performance Excellence

OBJECTIVE

Continuously improve our employee, financial, technological, physical and other capacities to enhance efficiency and effectiveness.

ACTION PLAN FY22–FY25

  1. Deploy to scale performance excellence (Baldrige) approaches to ensure organizational sustainability through use of data and efficient, effective work systems.
  2. Improve Operational Excellence across campus by intentionally enhancing cybersecurity of IT systems, establishing a holistic OER plan and creating Advocacy Centers on MLK & SWC.
  3. Build Research Capacity to establish St. Philip’s College as the recognized “Go to Community College in San Antonio.
  4. Ensure sound financial management with emphasis on cost containment.
  5. Build talent and empower all employees to improve collaboration and teamwork in support of the student success agenda.
  6. Create a Culture of Assessment where every faculty/staff member understands and implements a routine, data-informed, assessment of their activities/student outcomes and their alignment with SPC MVV/Strategic Plan.
  7. Brand and Implement a Marketing and Communications Plan for all annual communications (enrollment cycle, advising, graduation) that leverages the student voice as brand ambassadors.