The Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education are launching a national series to highlight a cross-section of Opportunity Colleges and Universities (OCUs) to share their inspiring stories and the practices they have underway to advance student success. Through this series, we uncover some of the leadership decisions and practices at OCUs that are driving economic opportunity for their students. We hope these stories are useful for a wide range of stakeholders, as we work for broader access and stronger outcomes for students nationwide. We begin the series with the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC).
As both an R1 research institution and an OCU, UIC demonstrates that world-class research, broad access and long-term student success can go hand-in-hand. At UIC, Chancellor Marie Lynn Miranda and her faculty are focused on providing the highest levels of educational and research excellence to the communities they serve.
Currently, 478 institutions across the country—serving 2.75 million students—have been identified by the Carnegie Classifications as Opportunity Colleges and Universities. These schools serve as powerful drivers of the American Dream, demonstrating that broad access and strong student outcomes can coexist at a wide range of institutions, from large, urban research universities to rural and community colleges. The OCU designation is part of the new Student Access & Earnings Classification (SAEC) we introduced last year, which measures student success by how well an institution reflects its community and how effectively it positions students for competitive earnings. To achieve OCU status, an institution must meet a dual threshold: providing both strong student access for the communities it serves and ensuring competitive earnings for its students.
Read the full University of Illinois Chicago profile to learn more about the strategies and leadership driving student success—and share it with your networks to help amplify what’s working across higher education.
