News & Updates
Achieving the Dream (ATD), a national reform network committed to advancing community colleges as accessible hubs of learning, credentialing, and economic mobility, proudly announces the selection of 16 community colleges across four states for a new five-year nationwide effort to help state and college higher education systems scale the adoption of shortened academic terms, such as eight-week semesters or quarters.
The Scaling Shortened Academic Terms initiative, funded by Ascendium Education Group, will support the colleges, which have already taken steps toward implementing shortened terms, in accelerating their progress as a strategy to improve student outcomes and align academic structures with the complex needs of today’s learners.
The four states/systems and 16 colleges selected are as follows:
Maryland
- Community College of Baltimore County
- Howard Community College
- Montgomery College
- Wor-Wic Community College
Michigan
- Kalamazoo Valley Community College
- Mid Michigan College
- Oakland Community College
Ohio
- Columbus State Community College
- Edison State Community College
- Hocking College
- Lorain County Community College
- Northwest State Community College
Virginia
- Brightpoint Community College
- Mountain Empire Community College
- Rappahannock Community College
- Tidewater Community College
Traditional 15-week semesters can pose barriers for students who balance college with work, family, and other responsibilities. Shortened academic terms offer a flexible, evidence-informed alternative that allows students to focus on fewer courses at a time, maintain momentum, and complete credentials more quickly. Research and institutional experience suggest that well-designed short-term structures can boost course completion rates, increase persistence, and strengthen student confidence.
Scaling such models, however, requires intentional design, strong student supports, and alignment with institutional goals. The Scaling Shortened Academic Terms initiative addresses these challenges directly — helping colleges and states/systems build the capacity to design, implement, and sustain shortened terms in ways that advance student success and expand the field’s evidence base for effective reform.
Through targeted coaching, professional development, cross-state learning, and data-informed decision-making, ATD will help the colleges embed and sustain shortened term formats in ways that enhance student momentum and credential attainment.
In addition to supporting ATD’s work with the systems and colleges, Ascendium is funding a comprehensive external evaluation of the initiative through a complementary grant to the Community College Research Center (CCRC), Teachers College, Columbia University.
“We are honored to be working with Ascendium, the states, the institutions, and partners like CCRC,” said ATD President and CEO Dr. Karen A. Stout. “We know that compressing time to degree and optimizing the delivery of our schedules, based on student needs, is essential as the field moves from completion to student economic and social mobility as our north star. By working with states and institutions already leading this change, we can scale structures that help students — especially adults and working learners — build momentum and achieve their goals.
“I am most excited about the learning that will come from the evaluation led by the Community College Research Center that will offer us a stronger understanding of which students benefit most from shortened term formats, what conditions enable successful implementation, including professional learning for faculty and staff, and how to sustain these models over time. Collectively, ATD, CCRC, and Ascendium are ensuring that this work not only drives student success but also deepens the learning and evidence base needed to inform lasting fieldwide change.”
“Accelerated term scheduling is a compelling innovation,” said Ascendium President and CEO Keith Witham, “but colleges need to approach it strategically, equipped with evidence about how and for whom it works. We applaud ATD and CCRC in partnering to build that evidence.”
To learn more about the Scaling Shortened Academic Terms initiative, visit https://achievingthedream.org/innovation/scaling-shortened-academic-terms/