Chula Vista – Southwestern College (SWC) has been awarded $10,000 by the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH) as a part of its latest Catalyst Fund Awards. SWC is among 32 recipients receiving funding totaling $220,000, supporting institutions within California’s public higher education systems. This funding round focused on initiatives aimed at removing cost as a barrier to college through innovative practices that enhance affordability and support equitable access to higher education.
NASH sought out programs and initiatives at institutions within the California State University system, University of California system, and California Community Colleges system that demonstrated innovative practices with potential for replication and scale. The Catalyst Fund focuses on discovering innovative ideas to share with NASH’s extensive network of systems nationwide, helping advance all students.
“NASH’s Catalyst Fund empowers our colleges to implement groundbreaking solutions that address the financial challenges some students face,” said Sonya Christian, Chancellor of the California Community Colleges. “By enhancing affordability and accessibility, we can ensure that higher education is within reach for everyone. This collaboration highlights the power of collective efforts in transforming lives and communities across California.”
At the heart of our institution is a deep commitment to the well-being and success of our students. Our SWC Cares Office is designed to provide comprehensive support, addressing both academic and personal challenges. Whether they need academic tutoring, mental health resources, or assistance with housing and food security, we are here to help. We believe in fostering a supportive community where every student can succeed.
“In the 2022-23 academic year, with the help of the Hope Center, we administered a Basic Needs Survey– we found out that 66% of SWC respondents reported they experienced food insecurity, housing insecurity, or homelessness in the past 12 months”, Basic Needs Coordinator, Trina Eros explained, “No one should have to decide between purchasing food for their family or buying a textbook. Basic needs are a human right.”
“The SWC Cares program has helped me continue in school since the aid helped me so that I could have what I needed to keep my children safe and transportation to get to my classes,” a SWC student expressed, “I also want to mention that in this department I mattered, they treated me like a student who is important.”
We are committed to providing an enriching and supportive environment where all students can thrive. Our faculty and staff are here to guide our students, and we encourage them to take full advantage of the resources and opportunities available to them.
“We are thrilled to recognize innovative initiatives across all three of California’s public higher education systems. With NASH’s support these institutions are breaking down financial barriers, making higher education more accessible and affordable for all students,” said Jessica Todman, Executive Vice President at NASH. “This investment is a testament to our commitment to fostering student success and sharing best practices across our extensive network through the Power of Systems. We hope the insights gained from this work will enable us to scale evidence-based interventions beyond California, as the collective efforts of all our systems aim to advance prosperity for the nation.”
The additional awarded institutions and system offices presented a number of initiatives focused on areas such as making college accessible and affordable for low-income students by addressing financial needs not covered by traditional aid, and reducing net tuition through various means such as reduced rates, fee waivers, scholarships, and microgrants for basic needs. Some also emphasized improving the communication and transparency of cost and financial aid information, providing comprehensive support services like daycare, transportation, food banks, and affordable housing, and implementing strategies to decrease time to degree for low-income, traditionally underrepresented, and non-traditional students.
[System/Campus Boilerplate]
About the NASH Catalyst Fund
The NASH Catalyst Fund encourages broad engagement of member systems in sharing promising practices that are leading to equitable student success outcomes scalable to fellow systems. Its impact will be far-reaching, but the concept is simple: through pooled philanthropic support, NASH can recognize and incentivize the development of our members’ big ideas that, once proven to work, have the potential to be scaled not only across a single system but amongst peers around the country.
The first round of the NASH Catalyst Fund included $275,000 to recognize hotspots of best practices that demonstrate interventions that are already underway and proving to be successful with the potential to have a catalytic impact in meeting NASH’s measurable goals. More information can be found here.
About the National Association of Higher Education Systems
Founded in 1979, the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH) works to advance the role of multi-campus systems and the concept of systemness to create a more vibrant and sustainable higher education sector. NASH systems are comprised of more than 700 campuses and serve more than 7.5 million students in nearly every state in the United States. To learn more about NASH and its national transformation agenda, the Power of Systems, visit www.nash.edu.
