Mission
Merrimack’s Augustinian Catholic heritage and traditions are the anchors of our success. Strategic Direction 2 of the Agenda for the Future reflects on the College’s mission and work within the community.
Merrimack’s institutional focus on the human and spiritual development of the whole person and on the continuous improvement of our community as a caring, spiritual and inclusive community dedicated to the success of everyone regardless of their challenges or circumstances defines our values. These values inform our mission of enlightening minds, engaging hearts and empowering lives and they permeate every aspect of the Merrimack College culture, ethos and experience.
Our mission serves as our North Star and guides our community of students, faculty, staff and alumni to think creatively, to solve problems with innovation, to serve our neighbors, to exhibit compassion in everything we do and to make a difference by being servant leaders and engaging our community, neighborhoods and greater society.
Strategic Initiative 4
Focus on the modern-day Merrimack as an Augustinian Catholic college whose mission is to provide all students with an educational formation experience that transforms them into ethical, moral, spiritual and intellectual achievers and leaders. In addition, we will harness our Augustinian values and Catholic mission to serve our local community and to have a greater impact on our neighbors.
We will provide our students with an outstanding comprehensive educational experience that is connected to the Augustinian Catholic ethical, moral, spiritual and intellectual tradition. We seek to be known as a leading contemporary Catholic college in the Augustinian tradition that engages students and the communities the College serves by integrating scholarship, worship and action.
We will be an institution that embraces and provides an environment in which all voices can be heard while maintaining our Catholic identity. We will actively engage in the Augustinian process of knowing God by knowing ourselves through disciplined and critical self-awareness, prayer, ritual and worship, and by seeking to bring about peace, justice and sustainability in our world through generous service to others.
Aspirational Outcomes
BE a modern-day Catholic college that focuses on community, traditions and relevancy for a modern society.
CREATE a student and employee-formation program that assists students and employees in organizing their academic, intellectual, social and spiritual lives and brings the College’s foundational values to inform, inspire and guide its academic life, social and community life, and engagement with the broader community.
FOCUS on institutional activities that embrace the fully human person guided by a holistic approach that seeks to integrate body, mind and spirit. The activities of student formation will include programs that focus on mentorship, retreats, leadership opportunities and service experiences that encourage students to engage in self-reflection and identify their passion for a purpose in life that is just, moral, and serves the greater good.
SUPPORT the Pope’s encyclical on the environment, “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home,” by creating opportunities for students, faculty and staff to focus on environmental studies, science and outreach experiences that work to create a more sustainable planet.
BUILD upon recently developed initiatives to enhance the Catholic identity of the College and expand upon and provide a series of opportunities for our local and campus community to engage in spiritual, religious, service and community engagement opportunities together
INCREASE and nurture our interconnections and our impact on our local and regional community, by investing in activities that improve our relationship with, and the lives of, our local neighbors, cities and towns throughout the Merrimack Valley.
Strategic Initiative 5
Integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into every aspect of the College’s mission and operations to achieve the highest level of educational excellence and social impact.
We will build an institution that creates a welcoming environment for all peoples and identities and those of less-privileged backgrounds. Our diversity equity, and inclusion efforts seek to create meaningful, systemic change toward more equitable environments for everyone who works, learns or graduates from Merrimack College.
Aspirational Outcomes
RECRUIT, enroll and retain a larger number of students, faculty and staff from underrepresented communities.
INCREASE diversity, equity and inclusion across our student body and provide greater economic mobility and social capital for all of our students, especially those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and underrepresented populations. Invest in scholarships, programs and other opportunities necessary for their success.
CREATE the infrastructure to institutionalize diversity, equity and inclusion efforts on campus to support existing and new affinity groups of faculty and staff from underrepresented groups and create a peer mentoring program for students from underrepresented groups.
IMPROVE knowledge, understanding, skills and cultural competency by providing education and training for faculty, staff and students in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion.
INVEST in academic programs that improve diversity, equity and inclusion and increase campus knowledge and skills about diversity, equity and inclusion across all students as crucial preparation for any future career.
Strategic Initiative 6
Ensure that Merrimack College provides educational opportunity to a larger range of students whose socioeconomic backgrounds or personal circumstances will make attending a traditional private, residential college more challenging.
Higher education is adapting quickly as it seeks to be a more accessible and affordable version of itself. Merrimack has both the opportunity and responsibility to leverage its innovation, its teaching and learning, and its Augustinian Catholic roots to ensure a future that is more relevant to a wider range of lower socioeconomic students who need a high quality, affordable and accessible college education. To accomplish these goals we will need to provide an innovative, affordable, flexible and quality education for recent high school graduates that requires less time to complete, offers significant work experience opportunities, and removes economic and social barriers to admission while also providing a high-quality college degree that increases social capital and economic mobility.
Aspirational Outcomes
PROVIDE greater access to a college education for those who currently cannot afford a Merrimack degree by lowering costs, eliminating student debt, and providing students with social mobility, social capital and transferable skills that will lead to a fulfilling, inspiring and rewarding career.
OFFER alternative pathways for admission, including Early College, articulation for bachelor’s completion and simpler transfer.
CREATE programs that attract students to more accessible, affordable and innovative associate’s, accelerated bachelors and joint undergraduate/graduate degree opportunities with a common efficient curriculum and high-demand employment opportunities.
USE practices for school-to-work transitions, apprenticeship and experiential learning to develop less-expensive and faster pathways for students to earn a college degree and have a meaningful, moral and just life and a productive career.
LEVERAGE technology to enhance access and provide innovative delivery methods.
RETHINK how we un/re/bundle/reprice a Merrimack degree and college experience in order to appeal to different and changing segments of the population.
INVEST in community-focused activities and programs that improve, enhance and sustain the vitality of our local communities throughout the Merrimack Valley.
