The story of Excelencia in Education is one of intentionality and positive change. For 18 years, we have partnered with other trendsetting leaders across the country to accelerate Latino student success. We are now at a critical moment in history. Supporting and serving Latino students is crucial as a key to ensuring America’s future over the next decade. Cultivating Confianza: Excelencia in Education’s Trust-Based Approach to Latino Student Success frames how we can all work together to be more student-centered and achieve equity with a Latino lens.

As elected officials and institutional leaders seek culturally relevant, high-impact practices that can be tailored to their students and communities, Excelencia brings to a national audience 21 programs - Examples of Excelencia finalists selected through a rigorous process - that have clearly shown their ability to serve Latino and other post-traditional students. We believe these programs are the foundation for student-centered transformation at their institutions and organizations. 

Excelencia in Education conducted an environmental scan of Puerto Rico to better understand the community and context of higher education, as colleges and universities transform to better serve their Latino students. This environmental scan identifies and includes a profile of the community overall, the socio-economic profile and educational pipeline, and the condition of institutions of higher education over the past several years. Learn more about the current context with which colleges and universities in Puerto Rico are having to manage their resilience and efforts to serve their students.

Excelencia in Education hosted a national briefing with members of congress, college and university leaders a virtual discussion about the critical role of HSIs, Emerging HSIs, and the road ahead for Latino student success in higher education.

Presented in cooperation with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

During these challenging times, Excelencia in Education remains committed to Ensuring America’s Future by increasing Latino college completion. Excelencia’s most recent analysis of public data on enrollment, degree completion, and degree attainment show that Latino student enrollment and degree completion continues to increase. Yet to close the equity gap in degree completion, the United States requires a tactical plan to reach the Latino degree attainment goal of 6.2 million degrees earned by 2030. This plan must include strategies to help Latinos accelerate degree completion while supporting increased attainment for all students.

To close the national equity gap in degree attainment, Latinos will need to earn 6.2 million more degrees by 2030. Excelencia will help reach this goal by:

• Working with institutions to raise Latinos' degree attainment
• Informing and influencing educators and decision makers to increase Latinos' degree attainment
• Advancing evidence-based practices that support the success of Latino and other students