The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) received a seven-month planning grant in March 2019 from the Teagle Foundation to formulate plans for a new transfer initiative between community colleges and independent colleges. The initiative, known as the New England Independent College Transfer Guarantee (Guarantee), is laying the foundation for a systematic transfer pathway from community colleges to four-year independent colleges in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, focused on the liberal arts.
Preliminary convenings on the Guarantee have been held in the three states, which have garnered support from those states’ community colleges and independent institutions. NEBHE is excited to report that 52 institutions to date have signed on to participate in the planning phase of the initiative, which will include project design and implementation planning. The participating institutions are listed on the Guarantee’s webpage, which will be updated as additional institutions submit letters of support.
NEBHE is partnering with the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges (CCIC), Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts (AICUM), Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Rhode Island (AICURI) and community colleges in the three states to begin establishing the Guarantee. The Teagle Foundation has invited NEBHE to submit an implementation application in early fall of 2019 to support the initiative.
The initiative aims to ensure acceptance at an independent nonprofit four-year institution for students graduating from a community college with an associate degree. Students who meet eligibility criteria under the Guarantee will be able to transfer as juniors and be fully prepared to successfully complete a bachelor’s degree. The overarching goal of this project is equitable participation in higher education.
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