Reflecting, Celebrating, and Looking Ahead

President's Message

Dear Caring Campus Community,

As the 2024-25 academic year comes to a close, we celebrate a year marked by meaningful progress, with more colleges and universities joining the Caring Campus family to foster environments where students feel supported, seen, and set up for success. Thank you for the invaluable role each and every one of you plays in advancing this work.

We are incredibly proud of Paris Junior College in Texas, where Caring Campus – launched as “PJC Cares” in fall 2022 – has contributed to remarkable student success outcomes. One class, which had a 53.4 percent course success rate in fall 2021, saw an increase to over 75 percent course success in fall 2024 following the implementation of Caring Campus strategies. PJC has also seen significant increases in both full-time and part-time student persistence rates. Although not the only changes made, Caring Campus strategies played a large part in redesigning the nature of the course.

The Paris Junior College baseball team volunteered at the college's Pyro’s Market, a food pantry and clothing closet designed to provide care and support for the PJC community.

As we move into the summer, I hope faculty, staff, and administrators across our Caring Campuses take well-deserved time to rest and reflect on the lasting impact you’ve left on students this year.

This summer, Caring Campus will continue offering opportunities for colleges and universities to shine. One such opportunity is certification. Applications to become one of the first Caring Campus Certified institutions are due by Saturday, May 31. This national recognition will not only honor your institution’s Caring Campus efforts, but will also signal to students, employees, and stakeholders that care is central to your institution.

We are also actively seeking presentation proposals for our inaugural Caring Campus Conference: Building a National Culture of Care, happening November 12–14 in San Diego. We are looking for approximately 35 presenters to share their experiences, best practices, and actionable strategies they have seen support a culture of care at their institution. Proposals are due by Saturday, August 30 – learn more and submit your proposals here.

And don’t forget to secure your conference spot today!

We are thrilled to welcome a new partner in our Caring Campus mission – the Trellis Foundation! Thanks to their generous support, Caring Campus will expand to four additional community colleges in Texas, further strengthening our impact across the state.

We also look ahead to growing our statewide approach, bringing institutions together under a shared state commitment to student success. In California and Texas, we’ve seen tremendous momentum as more and more colleges align with Caring Campus. We hope to soon see a future where institutions across entire states are united in cultivating caring, student-centered environments.

Thank you for your continued dedication to student success and Caring Campus. Connect with us today to learn more about how we can help your campus continue to build and nurture a culture of care.

Sincerely,

Brad Phillips, Ph.D.

IEBC President/CEO

Contact IEBC at [email protected], see our website, or call us at

562-688-5721 for more information.

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