In this episode of Data Stakes, host Debbie Phelps explores how to transform high-level institutional strategy into tangible daily practice. She is joined by Dr. Callie Holden (College Director of Strategic Planning and Grant Development) and Misty Tollett (Director of Strategic Planning) from Ozarks Tech, a two-year technical community college in Springfield, Missouri. Callie and Misty share the journey of building Ozarks Tech's integrated planning model—a streamlined approach that brings student learning assessment, departmental planning, program review, and budget requests into one cohesive, user-friendly cycle. They discuss the importance of democratizing campus data, proving that you don't need complex dashboards to tell a compelling story, and explain how the planning team partners seamlessly with Institutional Research to drive data-informed decisions. To wrap up, the guests highlight the invaluable professional development and networking opportunities available through MidAIR (the Midwestern Association for Institutional Research) for higher education data professionals. In this episode, we cover:

• The Integrated Planning Model: How to consolidate conflicting timelines into a single, complementary 3-year cycle.
• Data for the Masses: Moving away from complicated charts to accessible, 10th-grade reading level data points that help every department see their story.
• Budgeting with Purpose: Why every budget request must directly tie back to a departmental or institutional strategic goal.
• IR & Strategy Collaboration: How planning departments and Institutional Research (IR) can split the data puzzle to better serve the campus.
• MidAIR: Upcoming virtual and in-person conferences, resources, and community support for IR professionals in the Midwest.