Community College Baccalaureate Association Awarded Second Coveted ECMC Foundation Grant to Scale Up Baccalaureate Pathways for a More Equitable Future for America

ORLANDO, Fla. (March 24, 2023) – As community colleges continue to earn national recognition for delivering accessible, affordable and equitable bachelor’s degree pathways, the Community College Baccalaureate Association (CCBA) is guiding this important higher education movement. In recognition of this critical leadership role, ECMC Foundation recently awarded the CCBA and its partner, Bragg & Associates, Inc., a $500,000 grant to further its work to scale up community college baccalaureate (CCB) degrees across the country.

“CCBA is the only organization in the nation dedicated to promoting bachelor’s degrees conferred by community colleges as a means of closing racial, ethnic and income gaps,” says CCBA President Dr. Angela Kersenbrock. “With ECMC Foundation’s generous support, we will continue to research and share promising practices to advance the CCB movement.”

Three key goals of this 2-year project include:

1) Assessing the needs, capacity, and interest of existing and prospective CCB-conferring states to determine their readiness to confer equity-focused CCB pathways.

2) Identifying existing CCB pathways that utilize promising practices and achieve equitable student outcomes to serve as models for scaling up more high quality CCB-degree programs across the United States.

3) Supporting a plan to develop the capacity of CCBA to fulfill its mission as the premier national organization advocating for more equitable baccalaureate pathways to scale up CCB-degree programs.

“We are excited about the opportunity CCB degrees hold for both individuals pursuing career advancement after earning sub-baccalaureate career and technical education credentials as well as employers seeking a prepared and diverse workforce,” shared Jennifer Zeisler, senior program director at ECMC Foundation. “The CCBA continues to be well positioned to build awareness of CCB degrees and provide guidance to state leaders and college administrations during this time of fast growth.”

ABOUT CCBA
Since 1999, the Community College Baccalaureate Association (CCBA) has been the nation’s only organization dedicated to promoting baccalaureate degrees on community college campuses as a means of closing racial, ethnic, and economic gaps by providing its members access to research data and strategic guidance as they develop and implement their baccalaureate degree programs.

ABOUT BRAGG & ASSOCIATES
Bragg and Associates, Inc., led by Dr. Debra Bragg, is an equity-minded consulting group dedicated to advancing student success in education and employment. In collaboration with Tim Harmon of Workforce Enterprise Strategies (WES) and New America, Bragg & Associates published the first national inventory of CCB-degree programs and authored an E-Book highlighting community college baccalaureate promising practices.

ABOUT ECMC FOUNDATION
ECMC Foundation is a Los Angeles-based, nationally focused foundation whose mission is to improve higher education for career success among underserved populations through evidence-based innovation. It is one of several affiliates under the ECMC Group enterprise based in Minneapolis. ECMC Foundation makes investments to remove barriers to postsecondary completion; build the capacity of institutions, systems and organizations; and transform the postsecondary ecosystem using a spectrum of funding structures, including strategic grantmaking and program-related investments, to support both nonprofit and for-profit ventures. Working with grantees, partners and peers, ECMC Foundation’s vision is for all learners to unlock their fullest potential.