Montgomery County Community College was selected to join the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program’s expanded Unlocking Opportunity network—an initiative designed to help community colleges reform programs in ways that improve student outcomes—ensuring students earn degrees that lead to high-demand jobs with livable compensation.

MCCC, alongside 54 other colleges, will join 10 pilot institutions in a growing national effort to align their programs and student​ advising with the two of the most important goals of community college students: ​leaving college with a credential and​​​ good job or ​transferring and ​completing a bachelor’s degree. Through three years of focused reforms, these colleges will work with Aspen to assess current programs, set goals, and implement research-based reforms to increase student success.

“Montgomery County Community College is honored to join the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program’s expanded Unlocking Opportunity network,” said Dr. Vicki Bastecki-Perez, MCCC President. “This initiative directly advances the College’s mission of transforming lives by strengthening our commitment to deliver relevant programs and educational experiences that lead to quality employment and career opportunities. Through this partnership, we will continue to ensure our students are well-prepared to succeed in the workforce, contributing to the economic success of the communities we serve.”

“Every year, millions of students rely on community colleges for a low-cost pathway to what they assume will be a high-value credential,” said Josh Wyner, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. “They rightly assume that the degree and certificate programs their colleges offer will deliver a good job and fulfilling career either directly after community college or after transferring and earning a bachelor’s degree. The leaders at each of the 55 colleges that have signed up for Unlocking Opportunity have made clear that they will spend the next three years working towards the kinds of reforms needed to make that assumption a reality for thousands more students.”

The multi-year initiative will engage college leaders and teams through a series of virtual and in-person sessions focused on scaling reforms that align their community college programs with available high-demand occupations and bachelor’s degree pathways in their regions. Guided by lessons from successful reforms implemented by the 10 Unlocking Opportunity pilot institutions, the new 55 colleges will set goals to increase student enrollment in and completion of high-value workforce and transfer programs, while reducing lower-opportunity pathways.

The 10 Unlocking Opportunity pilot institutions are on track to collectively move over 20,000 students into high-value programs of study​ that lead to good jobs​. With this expansion, Aspen will (for at least the next three years) track and support progress for 65 participating colleges, including those 55 just selected. Aspen will use insights from this work to inform the broader field through fellowship programs, publications, and state partnerships to provide professional development to college leaders and teams.

The full list of colleges joining the expanded network is available on the Aspen’s website. 

Unlocking Opportunity, developed in partnership with the Community College Research Center, is supported by Arnold Ventures, Ascendium Education Group, Bank of America, ECMC Foundation, and JPMorganChase. The expansion of the Unlocking Opportunity network is made possible by the support of JPMorganChase.