NISOD joined CCCSE.
A major milestone in 2025 was the integration of NISOD into CCCSE. This partnership significantly expanded our reach and infused our work with new energy, innovation, and capacity. Together, we are uniquely positioned to elevate the student voice while strengthening professional development for educators—advancing a more holistic and inclusive student experience nationwide.
See NISOD's press release. Exciting participation opportunities will be announced in early spring.
We elevated the experiences of parenting students.
Parenting students bring extraordinary perseverance and purpose to their educational journeys. Our research highlighted both their resilience and the financial, time, and resource challenges they face—pointing to clear opportunities for colleges to strengthen support and remove barriers to success.
We deepened understanding of campus cultures of caring.
More than 60,000 students shared their perspectives on how cared for and connected they feel on their campuses. Students who experience strong cultures of caring report higher engagement and GPAs. At the same time, many students described a “mixed” experience—reminding us that expanding and sustaining cultures of care remains essential work.
We advanced the conversation on AI and learning.
Drawing on insights from more than 70,000 students and nearly 3,000 faculty members, our research explored how AI is shaping the learning environment. While awareness of AI tools is widespread, the findings reveal important gaps in use, understanding, and guidance—offering a roadmap for thoughtful institutional action.
We listened closely to students through focus groups and interviews.
Centering student voice remained a priority in 2025. In the spring, we held focus groups with 37 multilingual learners of English to better understand their experiences. In the fall, we interviewed 64 students about how their colleges support mental health and well-being, generating actionable insights for campus leaders.
We launched the CCCSE LEADers Academy.
In October, we proudly launched the inaugural cohort of the Leadership in Engagement and Data (LEADers) Academy. Designed for mid-level campus leaders, the Academy builds capacity to lead student engagement conversations and transform data into compelling narratives that inspire action.
We expanded insights into the dual enrollment experience.
For the third time, CCCSE administered DESSE, surveying more than 20,000 dually enrolled students across two pilot administrations and a field test. This growing body of data continues to illuminate the experiences, needs, and aspirations of dual enrollment students.
We reimagined SENSE for a more holistic view of entering students.
In 2025, we completed a comprehensive update of SENSE, the Survey of Entering Student Engagement. The revised survey broadens its scope to include students’ basic needs, learning modality preferences, and more robust tracking of academic, essential, and student support services. The revision was guided by a national committee of experts, and CCCSE conducted rigorous cognitive interviews with students at three community colleges to ensure clarity and relevance.
The updated survey will be released in early spring and first administered in fall 2026.
We strengthened professional development nationwide.
Through NISOD, we provided professional development to educators at more than 320 colleges. In 2025, we hosted 20 webinars with 3,816 registrants, published 24 practitioner-authored white papers, and facilitated four campus workshops—supporting educators as they innovate and lead.
We are currently accepting webinar proposals and white paper submissions for fall 2026.
We launched a new member benefit: Learning Communities.
This fall, CCCSE introduced Learning Communities, a new member benefit designed to foster connection, collaboration, and shared learning. Eighteen communities engaged more than 480 participants around timely topics such as AI in the classroom. Five communities supported department chairs, engaging 215 leaders.
The call for new facilitators will open in spring. See the topics of last year's communities.
We celebrated excellence at the NISOD International Conference.
Excellence was celebrated at the NISOD International Conference in Austin, Texas, which welcomed more than 500 attendees from 126 colleges. More than 1,000 Excellence Awards were presented nationwide, with over 300 recipients recognized in person during the Excellence Awards Dinner and Celebration. Student creativity shone through more than 160 essay submissions and 90 graphic design entries.
We connected the field through a virtual conference.
NISOD's fall Virtual Conference brought together more than 1,800 registrants for two days of learning and collaboration across 50 engaging sessions.
We grew the NISOD community.
In 2025, NISOD welcomed 26 new member institutions (and counting), bringing total membership to 321 colleges. We look forward to continuing strong partnerships and meaningful professional development throughout 2026.