From Cohort to Catalyst

The path to a college degree is rarely a straight line. Students frequently gain college-level knowledge through a variety of sources and formats, such as exams, dual-credit high school courses, military service, workforce certifications, and other experiences. Millions of students begin their higher education journey at a community college, and surveys indicate that 80 percent of these students have plans to transfer to another institution to complete a bachelor’s degree. Recent data from the National Student Clearinghouse shows that only 18 percent of students who began higher education at a community college in Fall 2018 had earned a bachelor’s degree after six years. Following a similar pattern, access to academic credit for learning that occurs outside of a college classroom (credit for prior learning) is still underutilized and, when it is awarded, often does not transfer between institutions of higher education. When prior learning is not recognized and applied to a degree, it wastes students’ time and money and can have negative impacts on degree completion. It also squanders investments made by states and systems to improve access to education through dual enrollment, college promise programs, and access to workforce training opportunities.

Despite this clear mandate to support learning mobility, higher education institutions have struggled to adapt and keep up with increasingly mobile students and diverse learning sources. To support systems and institutions in developing scalable and sustainable solutions to support mobile learners, Ithaka S+R developed the holistic credit mobility conceptual framework. Holistic credit mobility centers students by recognizing validated learning regardless of its source, thereby helping students chart the shortest route to the credential they seek. It calls for a shift away from the traditional gatekeeper mindset and pushes institutions to create transparent, responsive systems that consistently recognize and apply student learning toward credentials of value.

The holistic credit mobility acceleration cohort convening

Earlier this year, Ithaka S+R hosted 40 members of the holistic credit mobility acceleration cohort in New York City for a final convening celebrating progress and impact. The holistic credit mobility acceleration cohort consists of leaders from 12 higher education systems and consortia from across the country. Throughout 2025, cohort members worked with Ithaka S+R and Complete College America to identify and implement strategies to enhance credit mobility, creating a seamless path for students to transfer earned credits and ultimately achieve their educational goals.

The holistic credit mobility acceleration cohort created a structured, supportive space for members to collaborate with national peers and experts while advancing changes to policies, processes, and technology. Over the course of the year-long engagement, members attended six virtual convenings and workshops and six technical assistance sessions to boost progress towards their goals.

The learning agenda centered on themes of technology and data sharing; non-credit-to-credit pathways and prior learning assessment; cross-sector strategic collaboration and partnerships; communication strategies for stakeholders; and, integrating efforts holistically and sustainability planning. Ithaka S+R published a series of blog posts describing these activities in more detail.

At the in-person final convening, each cohort team shared a short presentation about their progress towards their goals and discussed common challenges and solutions. Several reached significant milestones during their work. The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) implemented a statewide credit for prior learning (CPL) policy in 2025 and is working with institutions to understand the current state of CPL equivalencies and champion standard practices and data improvement. The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) held a statewide convening to bring together colleges, universities, and policymakers to enhance pathways and design a statewide credit mobility plan. The Louisiana Board of Regents is in the process of finalizing their launch of a digital credentialing backpack for their Universal Transfer Pathways (UTP) and Cyber Academy programs through targeted technical support from Canvas Instructure.

The final convening also featured a keynote address from Dr. Janet Marling, founder of Collective Thriving LLC and co-founder of the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students (NISTS),  who challenged cohort members to continue to evolve their work and plan for sustainability of their partnerships and initiatives. In her remarks, Dr. Marling described how efforts to support learning mobility have evolved over time—from initially focusing on making transfer students visible to now navigating the complexities of systems and technologies that are interconnected yet still operate in silos.

Workshops throughout the day focused on case-making, collaboration, AI and credit mobility, and policy development. Convening participants participated in two brainstorming sessions focused on revising the holistic credit mobility conceptual framework and creating tools and resources that would benefit practitioners.

One of the most important outcomes of the acceleration cohort is the deep connection and collaboration between cohort teams. Participants learned actively with and from each other, and many have continued their collaboration past the conclusion of formal convenings.

In spring 2026, acceleration cohort members are completing their project work and participating in a final self-assessment of their holistic credit mobility strategies and policies. Success stories and learnings from cohort members will be featured in Ithaka S+R’s Holistic Credit Mobility Playbook and Toolkit which will be published in summer 2026.

Lastly, we would like to thank the Ascendium Education Group for their generous support of this work and participation in the holistic credit mobility acceleration cohort final convening.