Victor Valley College (VVC) President Dr. Dan Walden credits Caring Campus and the Caring Campus Academy (CCA) with helping transform the college’s culture and fueling its emergence as the fastest growing college in California.
The CCA offers tailored sessions for higher education staff, faculty, and administrators to learn about the Caring Campus behaviors designed to strengthen student belonging and success.
“The Caring Campus Academy was the real turnaround for our college,” Walden said. “The employees we sent came back completely inspired and became champions of this Caring Campus work. They loved it immediately and that has just continued to grow.”
VVC’s Call Center is a shining example of care in action, ensuring every caller connects with a real person rather than an automated system. Last year, the Call Center handled over 200,000 calls, with an 80-85 percent first-call resolution rate.
The college’s caring culture has coincided with remarkable institutional growth and improved student outcomes. Over the last four years, VVC has experienced a 78 percent increase in unduplicated headcount and achieved its highest-ever course completion rate in 2024-25.
“As a student here on campus, one of the things I like about Caring Campus is the fact that we tend to break stereotypes,” VVC Associated Student Body president Hailey Reyes said in a VVC-produced Caring Campus video. “We are able to meet with our faculty, staff, and administration and build those campus connections early on, and know that we have someone there supporting our journey.”
The spring CCA cohort begins the week of April 13 and is open to institutions nationwide.
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