This report makes the case for institutions to build and deepen partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs) as they seek to identify, enroll, and graduate thousands of talented students from lower-income, first-generation, and historically underrepresented backgrounds that can thrive in higher education. In addition to highlighting the ways in which CBOs can propel more young people to postsecondary success, the report features a three-stage partnership framework that institutions can leverage to initiate, implement, and improve collaborations with CBOs.
Alongside each element of this framework, the report features a set of actionable recommendations and examples in practice from our member institutions. Finally, the report includes case studies of the University of Michigan and University of Richmond’s respective efforts to establish and scale CBO partnership strategies.
For an overview of the findings in this report, refer to an executive summary here. And for content to help amplify and disseminate the report, we have developed a promotional toolkit that includes social media posts and shareables, e-blast/newsletter language, as well as an inventory of promising practices listed in this publication.