Executive Summary

Launched in January 2025, LEAD ON: Values in Action is a bold, values-centered roadmap built upon four foundational pillars: 1) Enhancing the student experience through Student-Centered Growth; 2) Elevating academic distinction through significant increases in Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities; 3) Achieving excellence across Athletics in support of student-athletes and programs; and 4) Expanding Community Engagement in Fort Worth and beyond. The four pillars are shaped by an interdependent system of 45 initiatives and goals across all pillars to ensure TCU continues an upward trajectory as a world-class university.

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LEAD ON: Values in Action2025-2035

Strategic Plan Executive Summary
Published June 2026

ASPIRATION

Guided by TCU’s four core values – Integrity, Engagement, Community and Excellence – TCU’s next chapter will lead to its future as “The University of Fort Worth,” a top private institution with a national reputation for best-in-class student experience, scholarly impact and the most competitive athletics. TCU will reach new heights in:

Student-centered Growth: Deliver an exceptional student experience to an expanded student body.
Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities: Solidify its position as the premier research institution for Fort Worth and beyond.
Athletics: Elevate TCU athletics’ winning legacy and student-athlete experience.
Community Engagement: Be the institution that writes the next chapter for Fort Worth and beyond, in partnership with the community.

PILLAR 1: STUDENT-CENTERED GROWTH

TCU’s mission calls for the university to extend its reach and broaden access to its exceptional student experience by strategically growing enrollment of undergraduate and graduate students over the next decade. Over the next 10 years, TCU will:

Grow enrollment to approximately 14,900 undergraduate and 3,000 graduate students by 2035 while preserving the exceptional student experience, 14:1 student/faculty ratio and academic quality of incoming scholars.
Improve access to TCU by continuing to grow endowed funds and institutional financial aid to meet student needs.
Improve key student success outcomes by increasing the first-year retention rate, six-year undergraduate graduation rate and the undergraduate graduation rate for Pell-eligible students.
Ensure that undergraduate students complete an internship, research project, study abroad, service-learning opportunity or experiential learning opportunity while enrolled, with at least half completing an international experience.
Ensure the TCU experience will translate into highly desired post-graduation outcomes for graduate and undergraduate students, increasing the value of a TCU degree.

PILLAR 2: RESEARCH, SCHOLARSHIP AND CREATIVE ACTIVITIES

To advance TCU’s mission, remain a vibrant partner to a rapidly growing Fort Worth and continue its reputational trajectory, TCU will invest in university-wide research, scholarship and creative activities over the next decade. Strategically investing in its research agenda will improve student readiness to enter the workforce, enhance the student experience and elevate TCU’s ability to compete for top student, faculty and staff talent. It will also generate synergies with student-centered growth, athletics and community engagement. Elevating its academic and research output will lay the groundwork for TCU to join leading institutions as an R1 university and solidify its position as the premier academic partner for the Fort Worth and broader North Texas community. Over the next 10 years, TCU will:

Become one of the top 200 U.S. universities for total R&D expenditures.
Award at least 100 research doctorates annually.
Become a top 150 U.S. university recognized for the proportion of publications belonging to the top 10% most cited in each field as given by industry benchmarks.
Elevate TCU’s national reputation and visibility of programs across all disciplines.
Increase faculty awards and recognition of faculty earning scholarship accolades across all disciplines.
Become a top institution in terms of innovation and licensing revenues.

PILLAR 3: ATHLETICS

For TCU to continue to grow and thrive as an institution, athletics will remain an integral aspect of the experience for TCU students, alumni and the broader community. Over the next 10 years, TCU will:

Compete at the highest level of athletics and bolster TCU’s national reputation.
Grow paid-for attendance at revenue-generating home sporting events.
Seize the opportunity of increased interest in women’s sports by growing attendance at women’s home volleyball, basketball and soccer games.
Provide an unmatched student-athlete experience to build a competitive edge and center our student-athletes.
Drive compelling value to the institution in recruiting scholars, bolstering the student experience and raising TCU’s awareness and reputation more broadly.
Continue to operate with integrity, maintaining a safe, supportive and compliant environment

PILLAR 4: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

For TCU to expand and prosper as an institution, engagement through deep and broad relationships with a wide array of community organizations is foundational to sustaining excellence and expanding impact. Strong community engagement is vital to every element of the plan. Over the next 10 years, TCU will:

Drive curiosity, creativity, collaboration and innovation across TCU to realize new academic, research and community-focused initiatives.
Focus on mutual growth that enhances the local community, employers and student experiences by developing strong multi-dimensional academic, research, service and philanthropic partnerships with top employers in Texas and the Fortune 500.
Maintain and expand ongoing partnerships with Fort Worth health care systems, non-profits and education systems to address societal factors that affect well-being in Fort Worth, Texas, and beyond.
Leverage local, state and federal government partnerships to advance key policy and program opportunities with transformative potential for TCU and the region.
Establish TCU as the dynamic, creative, cultural hub for Fort Worth through arts-focused collaboration, innovation, engagement and entrepreneurial activities.
Be recognized as the leading entrepreneurial support organization in North Texas, inspiring, supporting, launching and attracting businesses.
Bolster TCU’s engagement as a leader in the community via leadership and service positions at leading regional, national and global organizations.

BACKGROUND

Following the successful completion of Texas Christian University’s historic Sesquicentennial in 2023, the Board of Trustees convened in January 2024 for a Day of Dialogue to exchange ideas and perspectives as the university looks to the future and the next 150 years of advancing its mission.

Trustees reflected on the strong outcomes of TCU’s previous strategic plan, Vision in Action: Lead On, which elevated the university’s academic profile, strengthened the endowment, enriched campus culture and enhanced workforce opportunities. During this period, TCU outpaced peers in undergraduate enrollment growth from 2012 to 2022; improved its six-year graduation rate to 85.52% and first-year retention rate to 94.3% in 2023; surpassed its $1 billion Lead On: A Campaign for TCU fundraising goal; and won seven national and eleven Big 12 Conference athletics championships in the last five years, in addition to becoming the first university in Texas and Big 12 Conference school to win a College Football Playoff contest. At the same time, TCU’s hometown of Fort Worth also experienced tremendous growth, with the second highest population growth among U.S. cities and rising to become the 12th largest city in 2023.

In light of this momentum, Trustees affirmed that the university is exceptionally well-positioned to continue its upward trajectory by embracing the distinctive strengths of the TCU experience and its four core values of integrity, engagement, community and excellence. Chair Kit T. Moncrief, on behalf of the Board, charged President Daniel W. Pullin with beginning an inclusive planning process to develop a new strategic plan to guide TCU to a sustainable and ambitious future.

Strategic planning efforts throughout 2024 included input from more than 10,000 community members through surveys, town hall meetings, workshops and other focused stakeholder engagement sessions. More than 200 TCU faculty and staff members, including members of the President’s Cabinet, Steering Committee and Core Strategy Team, were directly involved in designing the initiatives and authoring the plan.

TCU’s next strategic plan was presented to the Board by President Pullin at the November 2024 Board of Trustees Retreat/Meeting. The new LEAD ON: Values in Action strategic plan was unanimously approved by the Board. Chair Moncrief, on behalf of all Trustees, conveyed her sincere appreciation to the TCU community for their dedication and hard work in developing a bold, innovative strategic plan that builds on TCU’s momentum and position of strength.