Jerry Goolsby, Loyola MBA program director, said he believes if the university’s current strategic plan had been more carefully implemented, the university would not be facing the challenges it is today.

The Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, announced over the summer that the university was facing a multimillion-dollar budget shortfall after recruiting efforts netted a smaller-than-expected incoming freshman class.

Goolsby said he believes the proper implementation of “Loyola 2012” would have put Loyola in a different place and avoided those shortfalls.

“In my opinion, the plan, if implemented, would have saved the university,” Goolsby said.

Goolsby was a member of the University Planning Team, the committee that created the strategic plan over a two-year period ending in 2009.

He said he believes university decision makers ultimately dismissed the spirit of that document.

“So we spent-I like to use the word wasted-two years, doing a complete analysis,” Goolsby said.

The primary area Goolsby said the university failed in its implementation was in raising the reputation of its programs.

“Creating high-profile programs takes years, and the university administration clearly did nothing to implement at least that part of the plan,” he said. “Those lost years are really hurting the university now.”

Goolsby said putting a true focus on the areas identified as strengths by “Loyola 2012” – Religion, Reputation and Retention – could have given the university a strong position to compete in a national education marketplace.

Goolsby said he has worked and consulted with major companies in the past, and he said he believes running your operation according to strong and well founded principles can be the key to avoiding a crisis in the first place.

“I gave Loyola my very best effort, and I failed. Another group is putting together another plan right now, and I wish them better luck than our group had,” Goolsby said.

Lucy Dieckhaus can be reached at [email protected]