Strategic Plan

The Steering Committee meeting to kick-off our countywide Strategic Planning effort was held on October 13, 2015. Focusing on the themes of "Public Health, Safety, and Well Being," this 9-month process is designed to involve a wide range of citizens and organizations from throughout the county. In addition to our 60-member Steering Committee, we have extended a special invitation to students representing our County's schools and citizens from every walk. A key outcome of our work together will be the development of a strategic plan (PDF) to:

  • Provide an in depth scan of factual information about Randolph County
  • Pull multiple plans (e.g. hospital, schools, mega-site) under one umbrella
  • Outline strategic challenges and opportunities in the county
  • Establish recommended goals and strategies to address key issues
  • Explore county and municipal government roles in meeting these challenges

Our first step in the process has been to develop a detailed Environmental Data Scan (PDF) providing a wide range of factual data to give us a clear picture of Randolph County - past, present and future. Core staff from 8 county departments along with representatives from 17 public and private agencies and municipalities in the county met over the summer to ensure the scan contains the data most relevant to meet the needs and interests of County residents. To sharpen our focus and ground our discussions, we begin our strategic planning process with 4 key questions: Where Have We Been? Where Are We Now? Where Do We Want To Be? and How Do We Get There?

Individual Task Force meetings will be scheduled. Multiple issues will be examined by each Task Force and Sub-Committees will be formed to address some important topics in more depth. Examples of potential issues to be explored include:

  • Public Health: Economic impact of health services; recruitment of expanded health-related services; impacts of projected increases in communicable disease; increased demand for health services for the County's growing senior adult population; impacts of potential privatization of select public health programs.
  • Public Safety (Including Emergency Medical Services; Fire and Law Enforcement): Impact of the Community Paramedicine Program on the growing senior adult population; delegation by state of regulatory responsibilities to local governments; county/municipal Hazard Mitigation planning; enterprise risk management and ability of local government to manage risks to employees and public; centralized telecommunications and its expanded impacts to all local government public safety operations; types of crimes and their cost to the community; crimes and their impact on law enforcement resources; challenges faced by volunteer fire departments with increased responsibilities due to expected growth in areas, the difficulties in recruiting part time volunteer fire-fighters.
  • Well-Being: Likely to involve multiple issues requiring the formation of Sub-Committees such as:
    • Public Education - strategic challenges and impacts of the Charter School Act of 2011.
    • Economic Development - local government coordination on growth management and infrastructure; review of the existing countywide organizational structure to maximize recruitment opportunities; workforce development; expanded countywide tourism development opportunities.
    • Human Service Agencies (public and private) - Impacts of the declining economy, increases in the number of residents in poverty and/or on Medicaid.
    • Health and Wellness Programs - Increased need for coordination including recreational opportunities;
    • Agriculture - Challenge of retiring farmers over the next 20 years; demand for an Agri-Business Center or food distribution hub; impact of potential high-intensity developments on existing farmland.

We look forward to working together to forge a successful and flourishing future for citizens in all of our Randolph County communities.