Brookdale Community College has been named a 2026 Bellwether Award finalist in the Instructional Programs and Services category, placing the College among the nation’s leading community colleges recognized for innovative approaches to teaching and student success.
The announcement was made by the Bellwether College Consortium, which selected 30 finalists nationwide to compete at the 32nd Annual Community College Futures Assembly (CCFA), to be held February 22–24, 2026, in San Antonio, Texas. Brookdale is one of only 29 community colleges from 20 states invited to present in the final round of the prestigious national competition.
Finalists in the Instructional Programs and Services category are recognized for designing and implementing programs that foster teaching excellence and improving learning outcomes. Other colleges selected in this category include Bergen Community College, Cerritos College, Dallas College, Florida Gateway College, Isothermal Community College, Joliet Junior College, Odessa College, Springfield Technical Community College, and SUNY Orange.
Brookdale’s finalist submission highlights its institution-wide approach to poverty-informed practice, grounded in a simple but transformative belief: when colleges intentionally design systems to support students facing the most significant barriers, the learning experience improves for everyone.
“Being named a Bellwether finalist affirms what we see every day at Brookdale that when we design instruction and support systems around the realities of our students’ lives, they will thrive,” said Katie Lynch, Ph.D., provost and vice president of Academic Affairs at Brookdale Community College. “Our poverty-informed approach is not about lowering expectations; it’s about removing barriers, so every student has a genuine opportunity to succeed.”
Brookdale’s model focuses on removing obstacles to learning, simplifying financial aid processes, offering flexible scheduling, providing emergency micro-grants, expanding food and transportation supports, and embedding barrier-aware advising and just-in-time reminders across the student experience. While rooted in an understanding of poverty, the approach benefits all students by making college more navigable, humane, and responsive.
Guided by the principle “We Must Maslow Before We Bloom,” Brookdale has embedded poverty-informed practice across academic affairs, student services, governance, facilities, human resources, and fundraising. This work has evolved into a cohesive institutional framework that aligns the College’s values, mission, and strategic planning around student well-being and success.
Brookdale’s work reflects a broader truth facing higher education: students cannot thrive academically if their basic needs are unmet. Nationally, 40–50% of community college students experience at least one form of basic needs of insecurity. At Brookdale, institutional data mirrors those trends and demonstrates that addressing basic needs leads to measurable gains in persistence, engagement, and student success.
“A Bellwether finalist represents the very best of community college innovation,” said Rose Martinez, Ph.D., director of the Bellwether College Consortium. “This year’s submissions reflect the extraordinary impact community colleges are having in their communities and across the nation.”
Bellwether finalists earned the highest scores in the first round of a competitive national review. They were invited to present their work before a jury of anonymous judges, community college practitioners, and CEOs. Three Bellwether Award recipients, one in each category, will be named at the conclusion of the Futures Assembly.
The Bellwether Awards honor excellence in three categories:
- Instructional Programs and Services
- Workforce Development
- Planning, Governance, and Finance
The Community College Futures Assembly serves as a national think tank for innovation, highlighting scalable solutions to critical challenges facing community colleges.
For more information about the Bellwether College Consortium, visit bellwethercollegeconsortium.com.