BGU PRESIDENT'S REPORT 2021

OUR NEXT FIFTY

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Our 50 th Annual Board of Governors Meeting last year celebrated the remarkable accomplishments of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev: its maturation and emergence as a world-class research institution, Israel’s third largest university, with some 20,000 students and 900 senior faculty across three main campuses, its role as a major engine of growth and development for the Negev region, and its impact on the community. Now it is time to look ahead and plot the course to achieve our goal: “We strive to be one of the most outstanding universities in the world and the leading university in Israel: in research, teaching and contribution to society.” BGU President Prof. Daniel Chamovitz initiated an in-depth strategic process upon assuming office, one which engaged and involved thousands of stakeholders across the University. The year-long process culminated in a strategic plan, BGU Beyond 50 , which defines the goal and a clear strategy for achieving it: “Recruitment and attraction of outstanding young and established faculty to the University, while nurturing and retaining them and our existing faculty.” The process identified existing strengths that can be leveraged towards this strategy, such as the Marcus Fund, the innovation ecosystem anchored by the University, Negev-specific areas

of research excellence like desert studies, the “Beer Sheva spirit,” and much more. It also identified roadblocks to success, such as lack of critical mass in many areas of research, recruitment procedures, and organizational culture. To overcome them, the strategic plan sets out clear

“Recruitment and attraction of outstanding young and established faculty to the University, while nurturing and retaining them and our existing faculty.”

steps for taking Ben-Gurion University forward. It suggests reforms to the University’s academic structure, faculty recruitment and administrative processes, branding, teaching, and more.

A plan that is not implemented is just words on a page; actions speak louder than words. We have begun working in multiple areas to make the strategic plan a reality. In the next few pages we provide a glimpse of how the plan is already reshaping our University.