Our Vision

Digital Strategy and Innovation collaborates with faculty, staff, and students across UNT's academic and administrative units to ensure a world-class, 21st century institution; redefining public higher education through cutting-edge experimentation where the science of learning is the fulcrum that enables us to be at the forefront of innovative, omnichannel, lifelong education for the North Texas community and learners across the globe.

Our Mission

We embrace the mission of UNT by connecting our caring and creative community to pioneering strategies for the 21st century.

Our Purpose

Advancing modern learning through digital transformation.

 
 
Green and white U-N-T letters outside the Welcome Center. Flowers are in the foreground.

UNT 2020-2025 Strategic Plan

DSI aligns with the larger UNT Strategic Plan in all we do.

8 Commitments 

The following eight commitments reflect the strategic activities and future directions for the Division of Digital Strategy & Innovation and the University of North Texas in the area of Digital Strategy. Each commitment is essential to creating resiliency and ensuring UNT maintains its position as a world-class 21st century institution.

1. Ensure an Inclusive Environment
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • Student Empowerment and Transformation
  • Expand/develop inclusion and student success practices and policies
What We Have Done
  • Continued exceptional improvement in Gallup scores – receiving top scores for division of our size
  • Onboarded PGA for Essentials training
  • Created holistic onboarding documentation for new DSI staff
  • Engaged with undergraduate and graduate student groups (USAIB, GSAIB) for feedback
  • Integrated inclusive curriculum concepts in all faculty development programming & guides
  • Hosted Tech Tool Kit sessions with online students - reviewing Canvas, Inscribe, MS, & other technology tools to set students up for success
What We'll Do Next
  • Create and launch Accessibility Microcredential
  • Launch new DSI Gallup Committee for Belonging & Engagement
  • Revalidate & further solidify our divisional mission, culture, and vision
  • Continue to build opportunities for student to student engagement
  • Launch AI microcredentials for current students
2. Be Recognized for World-Class Online Courses and Programs
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • People and Processes
  • Increase enrollment at the Denton and Frisco campuses 
What We Have Done
  • Developed 262 online courses and 142 new, professionally produced, engaging videos  
  • Designed & launched VideoNow recording studio - enhancing production capabilities for faculty course development
  • Increased enrollments in the BAAS with Coursera by 30% & BSGB with Coursera by 500% year over year
  • Reached #41 for Best Online Bachelor’s - US News (#65 in 2023)
  • Set foundation for microcredential innovation & development
  • Launched GlobalTech (Podium) collaboration, expanding “study abroad” benefits to students unable to go abroad
What We'll Do Next
  • Strategic growth of microcredentials, leveraging marketing opportunities to reach enrollment goals
  • Adopt second instance of LMS to improve the learner experience
  • Leverage partnership with AI specialists to impact student success & persistence towards graduation
  • Assessing next level of instructional design at UNT
3. Encourage Experimentation and Foster a Culture for Research-Driven Practice
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • Scholarly Activity and Innovation
  • Support the development of “Tier One Our Way” through targeted innovation activities 
What We Have Done
  • Collaborated with peer institutions to secure research funding
  • Joined consortium with peer institutions, coordinated by Ithaka S+R, to investigate AI landscape & potential for impact in higher education
  • Secured RITTL grant to benefit literacy research & initiatives
  • Contributed to the field in all four major research areas 
  • Presented 5 different topics at professional academic conferences
  • 7 papers published, impacting accessibility, VR, Covid + remote learning, service-inclusive pedagogy, AI, & low-cost VR
What We'll Do Next
  • Continue to publish, present, implement, and evaluate new research
  • Continued engagement in Ithaka S+R project, utilizing findings to improve our AI utility and positioning for the future
  • Find new ways to utilize Canvas analytics, possibly connecting with DAIR dashboards & expertise
  • Investigate applications of adaptive AI and generative AI to optimize instructor workload and student literacy
4. Champion High-Utility Information and Learning Technologies that Lead to Better Outcomes
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • Scholarly Activity and Innovation
  • Expand resources and revise procedures to facilitate innovation at UNT 
What We Have Done
  • Increased staffing dedicated to training faculty on technology tools
  • Tested new learning technologies to optimize the UNT student and faculty digital experience (e.g. Packback’s Deep Dive & Writing Lab, Impact, Folio, Nolej)
  • Launched 2nd Senior Innovation Fellow (SIF) appointment - dedicated to identifying AI strategies (near, medium, & long term)
  • Launched Inscribe pilot, impacting student belonging and engagement
  • Purchased equipment to build foundation for GenAI capabilities
  • Selected shared registration system for all non-credit activity across UNT
What We'll Do Next
  • Continuous testing of DSI implemented (approved & supported) technologies, establishing best practice & addressing user concern and improvements
  • Onboard & launch new non-credit registration system, & formalize administrative processes that ensure efficiencies & continued improvements
  • Continue reviewing Inscribe pilot data for impact and fit 
  • Launch GenAI system pilot, continually assessing opportunities for impact
5. Reach New Students and Learners
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • People and Process
  • Decrease time to graduation, and increase and improve services to aid at-risk, underrepresented, transfer, non-traditional, veteran, online, and working students 
What We Have Done
  • Increased new visitor traffic for online.unt.edu by 24%
  • Selected as member of pilot consortium with UPCEA for scaling credential innovation, “Building Capacity, Expanding Pathways: Accelerating the Growth of Credential Innovation in Higher Education.” 
  • Launched Microcredential pilot with great enrollment success - 100 enrollments, 78 microcredentials issued
  • New industry partnerships with PGA & Louis Vuitton
  • Success in marketing 15 of our online programs, with enrollment impacts
What We'll Do Next
  • Grow enrollment outside of DFW
  • Identify & collaboratively build new high-need high-yield microcredentials
  • Continue to facilitate the formation of stackable programming at UNT 
  • Continue to build new industry partnerships
  • Continue to forge partnerships with industry leading experts and various platforms to extend our capability to reach prospective new students
  • Continue UPCEA pilot consortium for scaling credential innovation
6. Reimagine the Physical Classroom
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • Student Empowerment and Transformation
  • Increase best practice curricular experiences for students
What We Have Done
  • Facilitated collaboration towards ensuring technology strategy supports UNT Frisco’s enrollment & operational landscape
  • Continued augmenting technologies and capabilities of numerous spaces 
  • Began cross-divisional committee for utilization & impact of CLAW classrooms (CRADL), focused on research and design for innovative, active learning in classrooms
  • Completed AV refreshes for Greek Life & CoM class labs
  • Integrated Zoom with Office 365
What We'll Do Next
  • Fully engage CRADL committee, including faculty led research and implementation of findings in CLAW classrooms
  • Develop and share engagement strategies for each CLAW level
  • Continue trainings on teaching with technology in the classroom
  • Develop learning strategies for students taking a hybrid schedule & for students enrolled in courses with both in-person and online components
7. Be Leaders in Evidence-Based Faculty Development
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • People and Processes
  • Become a best place to work by providing training, resources, and development
What We Have Done
  • Developed and launched first “Certificate of Excellence in Teaching Online” (CETO) - a great success with 38 of inaugural 40 completing 
  • Hosted training series for instructional technologies (Packback, iClicker, Canvas, etc)
  • Increased instructional resources through literature review of research in the field, adding ~5 new resources
  • Increased staffing and capacity for technology & pedagogy professional development events for faculty
What We'll Do Next
  • Collaborate with Office of Faculty Success in reinstating and hosting the University Forum on Teaching & Learning - focusing on AI
  • Design and facilitate OCAI (Open Course Authoring Institute), a faculty learning community on designing open, accessible course content in Canvas
  • Launch shared website with Office of Faculty Success, ensuring faculty find the professional development they need from a variety of departments across campus
  • Begin designing content for GenAI Institute for faculty (Spring 2025)
8. Streamline Data to Allow for Shareable, Consumable, and Actionable Information
Connection to the UNT Strategic Plan
  • Scholarly Activity and Innovation
  • Expand resources and revise procedures to facilitate innovation at UNT 
What We Have Done
  • Launched new DSI website, providing more clarity around our services & division
  • Procured tool (Impact) that will allow Canvas data to be analyzed to inform engagement patterns & retention efforts
  • Finalized and launched the Program Health & Opportunity Index (PHOI) for both current and potential programs
  • Created dashboard for Key Data across DSI, informing our progress, goals and impact at UNT
  • Created dashboard tracking high-level projects across DSI for cross-divisional insights and priority setting
What We'll Do Next
  • Optimize financial modeling to inform program & course development
  • Extend & enhance PHOI data reporting & action planning
  • Improve information sharing via the new DSI website
  • Leverage retention data to create intentional goals & set priorities
  • Expand database for tracking program progression towards 100% online - benefiting priority setting & accreditation
  • Review latest data from Alumni Pathways, create action plans & goals
  • Establish project management for development of new programs

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