Overview
Achieving the Dream’s Incorporating Dual Enrollment into Strategic Enrollment Management Planning initiative, supported by Lumina Foundation, engages five Network colleges in a robust, 18-month cohort-based program designed to more fully integrate dual enrollment into institutional strategic enrollment management (SEM) plans. Participating colleges will receive individualized coaching from ATD experts, funding support, and exposure to evidence-based strategies to expand equitable access, improve matriculation rates, and strengthen pathways from high school to college programs that promote social and economic mobility.
Through this initiative, colleges will examine institutional, community, and school district data to identify priority populations, assess challenges in dual enrollment access and retention, and craft or enhance SEM plans tailored to their local context. The initiative aims to elevate dual enrollment as more than a short-term enrollment source; it ensures that the model is implemented with intention, increasing matriculation rates while supporting pathways to postsecondary education for historically underserved learners.
Incorporating Dual Enrollment Into Strategic Enrollment Management Planning Grant
Achieving the Dream (ATD) is excited to launch a cohort-based initiative aimed at more fully integrating dual enrollment strategies into Strategic Enrollment Management plans to expand equitable access and improve community college matriculation rates in programs that lead to social and economic mobility. The project will engage five ATD Leader Colleges/Leader College of Distinction in a robust strategic coaching program designed to further their knowledge and develop concrete strategic enrollment management plans for dual enrollment.
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Why It Matters
Dual enrollment programs are a critical driver of community college enrollment and a key strategy for promoting postsecondary access. Yet access remains inequitable, and many colleges struggle to retain students after high school graduation. Programs are often influenced more by external factors, such as school district demand and teacher availability, than by intentional, strategic planning, leaving gaps in outreach, enrollment, and matriculation.
By purposefully integrating dual enrollment into SEM plans, colleges can ensure coordinated, college-wide approaches to recruitment, advising, and student support. This initiative also strengthens institutional partnerships with local school districts and equips colleges with strategies to foster long-term social and economic mobility for high school students entering college.
Goals and Outcomes
Through this initiative, participating colleges will
- Work with an ATD coach with expertise in strategic enrollment management to develop a dual enrollment–focused SEM plan tailored to their local communities
- Identify 2–3 priority strategies from the SEM plan to begin implementing
- Cultivate a wider circle of dual enrollment champions equipped with the latest national research to advocate for this population within their institution, community, and beyond
- Share their processes and practices with the field through case studies and professional learning opportunities
ATD will also disseminate lessons learned and new strategies through the ATD Strategy Hub, providing tools and examples for colleges seeking to enhance dual enrollment pathways.
Stories & Case Studies
Thinking & Advocacy