Dear Colleagues and Friends of Complete College America:
When Stan Jones called me nearly nine years ago to ask that I join him in creating a new national non-profit, he knew I was looking for an escape from the crippling partisanship that had taken over the US Senate. He and I had enjoyed our time together in the Indiana governor’s office, getting things done that mattered and making better the lives of those we served. I jumped at the chance to help make a positive impact again.
With start-up funding from several of our country’s leading philanthropies – most especially the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Lumina Foundation for Education, and Carnegie Corporation of New York – our goal was audacious: to build a network of states uniquely committed to significantly increasing college completions and closing persistent achievement gaps. We had hoped to begin with five state members; Complete College America launched our Alliance of States with twenty-one.
In those early days, colleges and universities paid little attention to student success. It was considered enough just to ensure access to higher education. Graduation – no matter how long it took or whether it ever happened at all – was up to the students. Few noticed or cared about the plights of remedial, part-time or older students. And gaping achievement gaps for low-income, first-generation and students of color were simply considered facts of life: even slight narrowing of the gaps was accepted as adequate progress.
No more. After years of hard work in partnership with our funders, like-minded organizations, and fellow impatient reformers at all levels of higher education, leaders in states, across systems, and within 2- and 4-year institutions are expanding access as they urgently advance proven, evidence-based strategies to dramatically boost success. Most important, an essential commitment to equity is taking root from coast to coast, strengthened by proof that new policies, practices and technologies can work in tandem to completely eliminate achievement gaps.
For the first time ever, we can now imagine a time when all students will enjoy access to their American Dreams through higher education.
I will be forever proud of the contributions I made to help advocate for and advance these critical changes in our country. From convincing America that time is the enemy of college completion, traditional remediation is a bridge to nowhere, and that graduating on time is little more than a myth for too many of our students, I will be eternally grateful to Stan Jones, our board of directors, and our funders for their courage in allowing CCA to push against the status quo with the passionate and assertive voice necessary to bend the completion curve upward.
When my friend and co-conspirator, Stan Jones, was unexpectedly stricken with metastatic melanoma, it was a gut punch for all of us who loved and admired him. During his year-long battle, the CCA team pulled together and pushed forward. I’ve never been prouder of my colleagues.
Stan lost his fight one year ago; and it was under the saddest of circumstances that I accepted the appointment to become CCA’s second president. There were big shoes to fill and much to be done. Our team fought hard through those first weeks, rechanneling our grief into productive action.
By nearly every measure, 2017 was a banner year for Team CCA. Together, we:
- Strengthened and grew our now 44-strong Alliance, gathering them at our largest and most substantive Annual Convening ever.
- Established a new Alliance Compact and Scaling Standards to codify common beliefs, values and essential implementation practices discovered over years of work.
- Created the CCA Fellows program, providing a home to the best and brightest in college completion.
- Added a new Game Changer strategy for non-traditional students, offering them a fresh start and A Better Deal.
- Expanded the deployment of our best practices and reimagined them into a synergistic sequence for comprehensive implementation: Momentum Pathways.
- Launched the first-of-its-kind online network for impatient reformers from coast to coast, connecting over 700 leaders to date in a cutting-edge web platform for collective action and learning.
- Forged a new mission statement, placing equity and the elimination of achievement gaps front and center.
And that just scratches the surface of last year’s achievements.
So, why leave at this time? Because CCA stands at another key inflection point – and now at age 55, so do I.
Our organization just launched a formal strategic planning process to fulfill our new mission. And key funding grants will soon be up for essential renewal. It would be a breach of my personal integrity to prevent my successor from putting her or his stamp on strategy or to lead our philanthropic partners to believe I will continue to be president for years to come as they evaluate their future investments.
Personally, I had never anticipated retiring from CCA, always planning to help build or strengthen one more enterprise before my working years come to an end. My father succumbed to cancer at 45, so it wasn’t just Stan’s untimely passing that reminded me how brief our time can be to make a difference. Dad always encouraged us to “leave a mark” for the betterment of others – and I’ve done my best.
Most important of all, Nancy and I have a son who will begin high school next fall. Carter deserves the chance to enjoy these pivotal years in stability and happiness.
So, for these personal and professional reasons and more, I have come to the conclusion that it’s now time to make one last big move.
Leaving CCA was never going to be easy: I’ve poured my heart and soul into this upstart organization since we first opened its doors. But I can now move on knowing CCA is stronger than ever before. I have chosen to announce my departure at this time even though I will remain with CCA until early June to support the Board’s smooth transition to new leadership.
We’ve added extraordinary new talent to the CCA team. We’ve laid down highly-structured new implementation pathways on a foundation based on years of learning. We’ve become a critical hub for those most committed to this vital work. And we’ve doubled down on our commitment to equity.
I will forever look back with pride on all that’s been accomplished…and I cannot wait to see what the brilliant, stronger-than-ever Team CCA comes up with next!
Onward!
