Johnson State Athletics has released a five-year vision outlining plans to ensure student and institutional success. The plan, outlining aggressive growth through 2018, builds on the gains made by Johnson State College and its Athletics and Recreation Department in recent years.

“The athletics and recreation program at JSC has seen tremendous growth in the past two years,” said Director of Athletics and Recreation Jamey Ventura. “We’ve increased student-athlete retention rates, created several new positions and launched a new sport. But there’s still more to do, and this five-year plan will put us on the path to furthering student-athlete and college-wide success.”

The five-year plan was developed over the course of 18 months and incorporated input from President Barbara Murphy, senior college administrators, faculty, staff, and student-athletes. It identifies six key goals to reach by 2018 for a number of critical measures, from enrollment and retention to development and alumni relations:

The student-athlete population will reach 20% of total full-time undergraduate population;

The number of varsity sport sponsorship will grow to 16.

The student-athlete overall retention rate will increase to 75 percent.

The varsity sport GPAs at 3.0 will increase from 17 percent to 50 percent.

The coaching staff of full-time status at the college will increase to 50 percent.

The college will launch a campaign to raise funds for facility upgrades.

These targets reinforce four key priorities identified in JSC’s comprehensive five-year plan, “JSC 2010-2015: A Plan for Access, Engagement & Success”: to identify and recruit student-athletes most likely to succeed at JSC; to increase retention and graduation rates by enhancing the student-athlete experience; to strengthen the department’s future through gifts, grants and investments; and to strengthen JSC’s contributions to and relationship with Lamoille County and Vermont.