Antelope Valley College has been selected as one of 10 colleges to participate in Achieving the Dream’s three-year Accelerating Equitable Outcomes cohort, college officials announced today.

Achieving the Dream (ATD) will provide AV College with resources and support as it implements comprehensive strategies to help more students, especially Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and students of color from high-poverty backgrounds. The goal is to help these students earn postsecondary credentials, including occupational certificates and degrees, and create pathways to jobs with competitive wages, benefits, and potential upward mobility.

“Antelope Valley College is at a critical point in transforming our culture and improving its outcomes for our students,” said Dr. Jennifer Zellet, Superintendent/President of Antelope Valley College. “We are coming together as a campus to serve our students with more care. Working with Achieving the Dream, we will examine and address practices that have held us back, and adopt best practices to provide students with the specialized support they need to achieve their dreams of completing certificates and degrees in order to transition into sustainable and high-paying careers that can dramatically improve their social and economic mobility.”

As part of the cohort, AV College will receive coaching, resources, and professional learning support to improve academic outcomes, build pathways to sustainable careers, and spark economic and social advancement for students.

To be eligible, institutions had to demonstrate that they serve a minimum of 45 percent of Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and students of color and 20 percent Pell-eligible students.

“Achieving the Dream colleges are distinct,” said Dr. Karen Stout, President and CEO of Achieving the Dream. “They choose transformation over tradition, curiosity over inaction, and innovation over the status quo.”

Funding for the initiative comes, in part, from an unrestricted $20 million grant from MacKenzie Scott, which ATD is using to support its focus on building vibrant communities by accelerating the economic and social mobility of community college students.