For the second consecutive term, the Austin Community College District (ACC) has bagged the Achieving the Dream 2024 Leader College title, a nod to its ongoing commitment to student success and its tangible community impact. This recognition was announced after the college had its status recertified, starting its three-year term this past Wednesday.
Chancellor Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart has been quoted saying, "Our priority is to ensure that students can finish what they starts. This recognition shows that focus and dedication are making a difference in the lives of our students and community." He emphasized on the college's equity and success endeavors to ACC's Newsroom, "I want our students to know that we see them. This college is deeply committed to equity and ensuring everyone has success here."
Achieving the Dream, a national nonprofit is in the business of boosting community college student achievement across the board. Of the ten community colleges to make a cut, ACC is the sole institution in Texas to have earned the Leader College label from the ATD Network. This recognition is based on ACC's wide-ranging reforms that have led to a surge in completion rates for all students. Their approach has led to an impressive jump in graduation rates—from a mere 7% in fall 2015 to a robust 23% among full-time, credential-seeking students. Remarkably, their transfer rate got a bump too, increasing from 23% to 25% during the same period.
ACC under Dr. Lowery-Hart's leadership, aims to propel their completion rates towards an ambitious 70% by 2030, as part of their new "North Star" goal, per the college’s news release. This drive for excellence hasn't gone unnoticed. Dr. Karen A. Stout, president and CEO of Achieving the Dream, lauded the college's efforts in advancing equitable student success, "These institutions are exemplars of excellence within the ATD Network... Their dedication and hard work both inform and inspire other colleges, and we admire them for their work."
Respected as Leader Colleges of Distinction, institutions like ACC must demonstrate improvements in multiple student outcome metrics and notably, at least one lagging indicator, such as completion or transfer with an earned baccalaureate. Additionally, these colleges are tasked with closing equity gaps in a minimum of two metrics for not less than two student groups. This criterion serves not only to acknowledge but also to fuel the kind of proactive and ongoing reform efforts that bring about substantial strides in student achievement and fairness.
