Excelencia in Education

10/13/2026

How do community colleges play a vital role in expanding access to opportunity in their communities?

In his new piece for Excelencia in Education's Voces y Excelencia: Leadership in Action series on Harold Washington College President Daniel López shares how HWC opened a world of opportunities for him when he first enrolled there as a student. Almost 40 years ago, the institution's pathways for student success helped him discover higher education as a career. Today, as an affiliate of the Excelencia in Action network, its commitment to intentionally serving Latino, and all, students continues to promote economic and social mobility.

Read President López’s story and see how Harold Washington College open doors for every student → https://excelenciaineducation.medium.com/85b121912485

10/08/2026

Excelencia in Education and the National Skills Coalition (NSC) share a commitment to ensuring higher education remains an engine of opportunity for students and a driver of workforce development for the nation.

Excelencia Co-founder and President Sarita Brown, who serves on the Advisory Board for NSC’s A New Promise of Work initiative, spoke with NSC CEO Brooke DeRenzis. They focused on talent, aspirations, and the potential of Latino students — and why their success matters to our country’s future.

Excelencia’s Latino College Completion: United States 2026 analysis highlights just how essential accelerating Latino student success is to tomorrow's workforce. With Latinos projected to account for over 90% of new workers by 2031, the question before us is whether our colleges and universities are prepared to cultivate that talent and create learning environments where Latino, and all, students thrive.

Watch Sarita and Brooke's conversation and explore Excelencia’s latest analysis on Latino college completion → https://www.edexcelencia.org/latino-college-completion

10/07/2026

How does Excelencia in Education help colleges and universities unite departments on their campuses to become more student-centered and data-informed?

Unlike conferences, our Capacity Building Institutes support institutional team members in building relationships and having important discussions between key players across campus departments and units. This unique approach is anchored in more than 20 years of working directly with institutions, and it facilitates long-term collaboration, shared commitment, and accountability for student outcomes.

Consider Dalton State, where institutional leaders utilized our Team Time to reflect on progress, challenges, and opportunities to advance their work — a collaborative process that Nicholas Gewecke, Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment, says were integral to Dalton State becoming the first institution in Georgia to earn the Seal of Excelencia in 2025.

Foster campus-wide collaboration that leads to lasting transformation → https://www.edexcelencia.org/capacity-building

10/05/2026

It's time to redefine excellence in higher education. That's what Excelencia in Education Co-founder and CEO Deborah Santiago argues in a new op-ed for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Deborah makes clear that the colleges and universities that will thrive in the decades ahead are those that understand who they enroll and ensure degrees translate into economic opportunity for their students. That includes Latinos, who are representative of the growing post-traditional student majority that higher education must serve today.

Learn what lessons Latinos have to offer higher education → https://www.ajc.com/education/2026/10/opinion-its-time-to-redefine-excellence-in-higher-education/

AJC Get Schooled is publishing a series of guest essays this week exploring the educational landscape for Hispanic students in Georgia.

10/02/2026

READ🗞️: The EDU Ledger spoke to Excelencia in Education Co-founder and CEO Deborah Santiago about the negative impacts of federal cuts on student support programs at Hispanic-Serving Institutions.

Excelencia analysis shows that close to one-third of HSIs that earned federal funding through Title V grants leveraged it for student support services. The current administration's decision to end this funding limits institutional capacity building and innovation that benefits all students enrolled at these institutions, including Latinos and other post-traditional students.

Explore our perspective on what's at stake from earlier this year→ https://medium.com//title-v-developing-hsis-funding-in-2026-64161b3e315e

Read more from Jamaal Abdul-Alim in The EDU Ledger → https://www.theeduledger.com/leadership-policy/article/15836163/federal-cuts-put-hispanicserving-institutions-student-support-programs-at-risk

While some colleges are finding ways to maintain student services, others face mounting concerns that funding losses could eventually weaken retention and graduation rates.

10/01/2026

Excelencia in Education Co-founders Deborah Santiago and Sarita Brown joined Latino leaders from government, business, and the broader community to honor our friend Secretary Ken Salazar and his new book, Borderlands: My Fight for an Inclusive America. Thank you, Héctor Sánchez Barba, for hosting this special Hispanic Heritage Month celebration.

Secretary Salazar's career in public service, personal journey, and vision show us what's possible when we expand opportunity and cultivate talent so everyone has the chance to contribute to America's future.

Excelencia is proud to work with a national network of results-oriented educators, policymakers, and others transforming higher education to ensure access to excellence for Latino, and all, students — and strengthen our civic leadership.

Learn more about our community of common cause → https://www.edexcelencia.org/about

10/01/2026

📚 Wear your support for Latino, and all, student success.

Every shirt in Excelencia in Education's apparel collection is more than something to wear — it’s a way to show your commitment to ensuring more students succeed in higher education and beyond.

From “Latino Student Success is America’s Success,” to designs celebrating educational excellence and leadership, each piece helps amplify a movement grounded in opportunity, achievement, and student success.

Wear the mission, support Excelencia, and help expand our positive impact. Shop the collection today → https://bit.ly/ExcelenciaWearYourSupport

09/29/2026

🎉 Excelencia in Education congratulates 11 institutions for their commitment to Latino, and all, student success and their participation in the 2026 Alignment Institute.

The Alignment Institute brings together institutions with a strong foundation of engagement with Excelencia to take the next step in their transformation journeys: aligning institutional data, evidence-based practices, and leadership strategies to strengthen positive impact and increase student success.

Through a cohort-driven and interactive experience, participating institutions are:
📊 Leveraging disaggregated data to better understand student experiences and outcomes
🔎 Examining and documenting the impact of evidence-based practices
💡 Identifying institutional strengths and opportunities for growth
🤝 Aligning data, practice, and leadership to more intentionally SERVE Latino, and all, students

Grounded in more than 20 years of experience working directly with higher education institutions, Excelencia’s capacity building programming meets institutions where they are to build sustainable, campus-wide habits of accountability for student outcomes.

Get tailored support and achieve measurable outcomes with Excelencia → https://www.edexcelencia.org/capacity-building

🔹Aims Community College (CO)
🔹Dalton State (GA)
🔹Elgin Community College (IL)
🔹Fitchburg State University (MA)
🔹Hunter College (NY)
🔹Kean University (NJ)
🔹Northern Illinois University (IL)
🔹Pasadena City College (CA)
🔹Salem State University (MA)
🔹University of the Incarnate Word (TX)
🔹Wayne State University (MI)

09/25/2026

Excelencia in Education CEO, Deborah Santiago, joined Jaime Anzalotta, Vice Provost of Student Affairs and Chief Enrollment Officer at Miami Dade College, and other community college leaders at last night’s special Cena Familiar marking the National Community College Hispanic Council's 40th anniversary.

Community colleges play a critical role in facilitating access to excellence for Latino, and all, students. Seal of Excelencia recertified institution MDC exemplifies that positive impact, demonstrating continuous improvement in student outcomes through the intentional alignment of data, evidence-based practices, and leadership.

Congratulations, NCCHC, on 40 years of advancing Hispanic leadership at community colleges. We’re proud to celebrate this milestone and look forward to continuing our shared mission of expanding opportunity for Latino, and all, students.

09/25/2026

We’re proud to celebrate Excelencia in Education Co-founders Deborah Santiago and Sarita Brown, who were honored with the Raíces Award for Community Leadership at the 2026 Avanza Awards, hosted by the Hispanic Lobbyists Association (HLA).

Excelencia leads a national community of educators and policymakers transforming higher education to tap the talents of the Latino community amongst all — and strengthen our nation's civic leadership and workforce. We work directly with colleges and universities because we believe institutions must transform to accelerate Latino student success, while increasing all student success.

Deborah Santiago shared upon receiving the award:

“We are grateful to the Hispanic Lobbyists Association for recognizing more than 20 years of Excelencia’s positive impact. Excelencia transforms higher education to more intentionally serve Latinos amongst all because it’s what our students deserve and what our country needs. Earning the Raíces Award for Community Leadership speaks to the value institutional leaders, policymakers, and others continue to find in our national research, advocacy, and capacity building support.”

Sarita Brown reflected on the community behind Excelencia's impact:

“We are honored to receive the Raíces Award for Community Leadership. Excelencia is proud to lead a community of practice committed to cultivating the talent already present in our communities — talent that will ensure America’s future. As we catalyze and support student-centered transformation at more than 140 colleges and universities nationwide, this recognition underscores the power of our collective efforts and our shared commitment to advancing Latino, and all, student success.”

Thank you, HLA, for recognizing more than two decades of positive impact for students, institutions, communities, and the country. 🎓🌱