Strategic Planning Committee
David Sprouls
NYSID President
Bay Brown
Director of Marketing Communications & Engagement
Mackenzie Carr
Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Jane Chen
Vice President for Finance & Administration
Joy Cooper
Director of Development
Emmanuel Cruz
Director of Admissions and Recruitment
Ellen Fisher
Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean
Daniel Harper
Associate Dean
Karen Higginbotham
Dean of Students
Zeke Kolenovic
Director of Facilities
Anguelina Kravets
Bursar
Billy Kwan
Director of the Library
Jennifer Melendez
Registrar
Yvonne Moray
Assistant Vice President for Administration
Dan Truong
Director of Network & Technology Support Services
Christopher Vinger
Director of Institutional Research, Planning & Assessment
Strategic Planning Consultant
Suzan Globus
Principal, Think Frame
NYSID Board of Trustees
Ellen Kravet
Chairperson
David Sprouls
NYSID President
Chesie Breen
Jill H. Dienst
James P. Druckman
Cheryl S. Durst
Ingrid Ongaro Edelman
John Edelman
Susan Zises Green
Alexa Hampton
Young Huh
David Kleinberg
Courtney R. McLeod
Dennis Miller
Betsey Ruprecht
Brad Schneller
David Scott
Kelly M. Williams
Eric J. Gering
Faculty Trustee
Joanna L. Silver, Esq.
General Counsel
Inge Heckel
Trustee Emerita
Patricia M. Sovern,
Chairperson Emeritus
Introduction
The New York School of Interior Design enters its 2023-2026 strategic plan with renewed confidence in knowing that despite facing unprecedented changes in the last several years, it stands firm in its ability to plan for the future. The 107-year-old, single focus college has weathered severe pandemic-associated challenges to its pedagogy, staff and student body composition while demonstrating it is a nimble, responsive and responsible college with one eye strongly fixed on the future. In the last three years, the College pivoted to an exclusively online learning model at the onset of the pandemic, took advantage of the related staff attrition to bolster its administration and witnessed an increased enrollment. As it settles into a hybrid learning model with a combination of students and faculty accessing education on site and online, the New York School of Interior Design is strengthening its academic offerings, its outreach to prospective students and lifelong learners and its delivery of the experience of a New York School of Interior Design education.
Although enrollment is returning to near pre-pandemic levels, several factors cloud the future outlook. An anticipated drop in the College age population, the volatile global economy and climate, the persistent public questioning of the value of a college education and increased political polarization threaten to disrupt enrollment projections. The College’s administration recognizes that higher education may be in for a bumpy road ahead. Not content to rest on its repeated recognition as one of the best colleges in the country to pursue an education in interior design, the New York School of Interior Design has created an ambitious strategic plan challenging itself to expand its educational excellence and reach.
The New York School of Interior Design 2023-2026 Strategic Plan builds upon many of the goals and objectives established in the previous plan and advances avenues to guide the school into the rapidly changing future of interior design education. The strategies, tactics and success metrics which support achieving the plan’s goals are outlined in a separate work plan. The administration’s well-established culture of planning and assessment along with the robust support of the Board of Trustees, the faculty, staff, students and the institution’s community will serve as ballast as the College heads into the uncharted seas ahead.
Background and Summary
Founded in 1916 by architect Sherrill Whiton when interior design was forming into a distinct profession, the New York School of Interior Design (NYSID) began as a course of study of interior decoration and has developed to focus exclusively on the study of interior design and its related disciplines during its more than 100-year evolution. The New York State Board of Regents chartered the school in 1924 when it grew from a handful of students in a single course of study to more than 600 students enrolled in eight programs today. The private, not-for-profit college housed in two buildings located among the design districts on the Upper East Side and NoMad/Midtown South offers students an in-depth learning experience and access to a wealth of industry relationships in a city that is a magnet for designers around the world.
NYSID’s guiding principle is that the successful design of an interior environment improves human well-being, and the College is committed to actively improving the quality of life for all segments of humanity through creating the highest level of knowledge and appreciation of interior design. This ideal is put into practice by a dedicated faculty of designers, architects, art historians, and authorities in the field who guide more than 600 full and part-time students.
NYSID offers certificate, associates’ degree, undergraduate and graduate programs in the field of interior design, sustainable interior environments, lighting design, and design of healthcare environments. A wide range of additional classes is offered through the College’s Institute for Continuing and Professional Studies, online platform, Pre-College, domestic, and study abroad programs.
Accredited by the Middle States Commissions on Higher Education (MSCHE), the New York School of Interior Design is also an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). Additionally, NYSID’s BFA and MFA-1 programs are accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA). It is consistently rated among the top five interior design schools in the country in peer reviews and the design press.
The planning process for the 2023-2026 Strategic Plan was undertaken by building upon the foundation of the 2020-2023 Strategic Plan. Strategies were created to promote the College’s advancement, ensure its viability, and foster an exceptional and inclusive learning experience for its students resulting in their lifelong success and the College’s advanced standing in the academic community. During the planning process, several strategic issues were identified:
Increase the level of student services to deliver the highest quality educational experience.
Integrate technology seamlessly to enhance learning, foster a sense of inclusiveness, belonging, and community, and prepare for anticipated advancements for in-person and online learners, faculty, and staff.
Build upon the institution’s resources to ensure its continued contributions as a leader in interior design education.
Mission / Vision / Values
Mission Statement
New York School of Interior Design provides the most innovative, immersive, and transformative interior design education in the world, demonstrating the impact of professionally designed interiors on the health, happiness, and well-being of people and the planet.
Vision Statement
NYSID is a diverse and inclusive global community empowering students, alumni, and faculty to be thought leaders at the forefront of design.
Values Statement
With our rich history, New York City location, and commitment to inclusiveness, equity, and sense of belonging, NYSID values its:
Learners from diverse backgrounds and experiences who are driven to create spaces of beauty and utility, and are focused on improving the quality of life in the built environment:
Faculty comprised of designers, artists, and scholars dedicated to innovative teaching, conceptual and applied design, and empowering students to fulfill their creative and intellectual potential:
Community of professionals known for collaboration, innovation, and excellence; and
Alumni who contribute to the growth of the students, the College, the interior design profession, and the global community.
Goals and Strategies
Goal One: Attract a diverse group of interior design students, practitioners, and lifelong learners.
Strategy 1: Identify potential students, practitioners, and lifelong learners
Strategy 2: Engage with prospective students, practitioners, and lifelong learners
Goal Two: Provide exceptional learning experiences to all who engage with the New York School of Interior Design
Strategy 1: Evolve the curricula to maintain its foundation in tradition and its commitment to innovation
Strategy 2: Expand a broad range of co-curricular opportunities
Strategy 3: Provide a broad range of student internships and professional opportunities
Strategy 4: Leverage study travel programs and opportunities
Strategy 5: Streamline a holistic approach to delivering student services
Strategy 6: Formalize the OAA plan for virtual learning
Strategy 7: Utilize programs and exhibitions open to the public to engage the broader interior design community
Strategy 8: Advance NYSID’s role as a thought leader within the interior design community
Goal Three: Ensure appropriate and innovative resources and structures to support academic and institutional success
Strategy 1: Leverage technology to improve student success, experience, and institutional effectiveness and to transform the College to meet future needs
Strategy 2: Create facilities that express the mission, vision, and values of the New York School of Interior Design
Strategy 3: Recruit, develop, and retain the best faculty and staff to support the mission, vision, and values of the New York School of Interior Design
Strategy 4: Identify additional revenue streams
Goal Four: Strengthen a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
Strategy 1: Ensure curricula are representational and global
Strategy 2: Recruit and retain qualified staff and faculty
Strategy 3: Ensure all marketing, communications, and engagement represent the College’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging
Strategy 4: Reinforce the New York School of Interior Design’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in student life
A work plan outlining tactics and metrics has been developed by those responsible for executing the plan. Resources including time, personnel, and associated costs are assigned to the tactics. Metrics for success have been identified and included providing a tool to measure the effectiveness of the plan
Methodology
The purpose of The New York School of Interior Design’s Strategic Plan is to provide a road map for managed change. The planning process becomes a platform for the exchange of ideas about assessing the College’s current resources, services, initiatives and operations and reaching consensus regarding areas to improve and new initiatives. Considering the opinions expressed by representatives of the college community during the early stages of the process, the core planning committee determines the best course of action among reasonable alternatives and puts in place goals to increase organizational effectiveness and efficiency by focusing resources on what really matters to the College. The plan helps to focus staff and faculty efforts and creates opportunities for collaboration and sharing of expertise and resources among staff, faculty, trustees, volunteers, students and stakeholders resulting in the College’s ability to strengthen its service to its students, employees and the greater design community.
President David Sprouls, with the support of the Board of Trustees, initiated the strategic planning process in the spring of 2023. As Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee, President Sprouls, appointed the members of the committee listed above. Suzan Globus, a strategic planning consultant, was retained to facilitate the planning process.
The consultant conducted a series of preliminary, individual background interviews with key stakeholders over the course of several days to learn about issues likely to arise during the planning process and identify opportunities for agreement. The interview participants were informed about the strategic planning process and asked to participate in it by commenting on the College’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and challenges. Participants were encouraged to speak candidly with the understanding that their comments would not be attributed to them.
To make the strategic plan as inclusive as possible, all members of the NYSID community including students, staff, faculty and trustees were invited to contribute to the planning process. Two large group meetings were held in the Sherrill Whiton Auditorium in the East 70th Street building and in the Park Avenue South Graduate Center, respectively, on different days to accommodate those commuting from various locations. Additional participants attended via remote access.
The two strategic planning sessions facilitated by the consultant were designed to lead the group through a series of large and small group exercises to create mission, vision and value statements from which the goals and strategies would be formed. The first session began with the participants introducing themselves. Because the pandemic necessitated working remotely, changing schedules and a number of new faculty and staff, many of the participants had not met in person. Personal introductions were followed by an explanation of the planning process. A brief environmental scan based on research listed above and prepared by the consultant was presented to prompt the group in identifying how the New York School of Interior Design might be affected by global and local trends.
The notes synthesizing the comments contributed during the group meetings were distributed to the participants for their review and comment. These notes served as background information for the core strategic planning committee in preparation for the goal setting sessions.
The outcomes of the strategic planning committee’s meetings were incorporated into a draft of the New York School of Interior Design Strategic Plan 2023-26. The plan was presented the NYSID Board of Trustees for review and approval at the September 2023 board meeting.
As has become standard procedure, this plan will be reviewed quarterly and modified as needed so it continues to be a relevant and useful guide for institutional advancement.
Conclusion
The 2023-2026 strategic plan for the New York School of Interior Design is ambitious. It feels like an especially large-scale effort after the College divided their last three-year plan into one-year increments due to the unknown and rapidly changing effects of the pandemic on institutional operations. It would be convenient to categorize this plan as one that gets back to normal, but the College leaders know that what used to be standard in nearly every aspect of their operations may not reappear.
One aspect of the institution’s culture remains unchanged, the culture of planning and assessment. That strength carried the College through the pandemic and will continue to serve it into the term of this plan. The President has successfully led a quick pivot to respond to rapid and unforeseen challenges. That skill will be ever more important as the future unfolds. Unlike previous plans, this plan is not an expansive approach but rather a measured, appropriate response to a volatile education landscape at a specific point in time for this particular institution. It emphasizes shifting existing resources to focus on delivering the best possible education while expanding avenues through collaboration and relationships to create opportunities for greater success. As evidenced during the planning process, the College has anchored a committed community whose members care to work towards the continued development of the New York School of Interior Design.