NSHE Strategic Plan Released Without Metrics or Budget | The Locally Times
The Nevada System of Higher Education's plan to guide the state through 2031 lacks specific goals, financial details, and performance indicators, while key meeting records remain publicly inaccessible.
On February 25, 2026, the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) published a document titled ‘What’s Driving NSHE: A Systemwide Plan for Student and State Success,’ intended to guide the state’s public colleges and universities through 2031. According to a description on the NSHE website, the plan sets forth systemwide priorities to support students and align higher education with Nevada’s needs. However, the public document consists only of a title and a brief summary; it contains no specific initiatives, measurable objectives, or budgetary information. ## Plan Lacks Metrics and Details A review of the public information released by NSHE reveals a complete absence of the details typically associated with a strategic plan. There are no timelines for implementation, no key performance indicators, and no designated leaders for any proposed initiatives. This lack of specificity stands in stark contrast to other reporting NSHE provides to the public. The system’s website features extensive financial documentation, including annual single audit reports, financial statements dating back to 2004, and downloadable budget files with some records extending back to fiscal year 2009. These documents provide granular detail on the system’s financial operations. Similarly, the NSHE Office of Academic and Student Affairs publishes numerous in-depth reports, including biennial planning reports for the Nevada State Legislature, annual financial aid reports with five-year trend analyses, and periodic reviews of distance education and faculty workload. The existence of these detailed reports demonstrates a system-level capacity for data collection and public accountability that is not evident in the rollout of its new strategic plan. ## Approval Process Hidden by Inaccessible Records The process by which the strategic plan was developed and approved is not detailed in public documents. The records do not specify when the NSHE Board of Regents may have discussed or voted on the plan, nor do they outline any opportunities for public input from students, faculty, or Nevada residents during its creation. A meeting of the NSHE Board of Regents was scheduled for February 26, 2026, the most logical venue for the formal adoption of a systemwide strategic plan. The NSHE website includes a page for the meeting and provides a link to download the agenda. However, the linked PDF document, titled ‘SEC022626.pdf,’ is unreadable. Attempts to open the file result in an error, rendering the agenda—and any supporting materials—inaccessible to the public. Without a functional agenda document, it is impossible to verify if the strategic plan was an item for discussion or action. The public is therefore unable to determine whether the state’s highest governing body for public education formally approved the document now presented as the system’s guiding vision through 2031. ## A Pattern of Missing Information The strategic plan is not the only recent NSHE announcement that lacks supporting documentation. Similar to the strategic plan, the announcement is not accompanied by the actual report, data, or analysis that constitute the “new findings.” The public is informed of a conclusion but is not provided the evidence to scrutinize or validate it. For a system that oversees eight institutions and a research institute, the release of a multi-year strategic plan has long-term consequences for the state’s economy and workforce development. Yet, the document presented to the public as ‘What’s Driving NSHE’ currently contains no specific, actionable, or measurable information. The plan that promises to align colleges with the needs of the state does not identify what those needs are. The plan that pledges to support students does not detail a single new program or resource to do so. And the plan that is meant to guide decisions provides no framework for making them. To substantiate its vision, NSHE would need to publish a functional Board of Regents agenda, detailed reports outlining the plan's specific goals and metrics, and budget proposals that show how these priorities will be funded. Until then, the document guiding Nevada's higher education system is a plan in name only.