At Irvine Valley College, we believe this is the moment not just to improve student success — but to transform student success. Our commitment is clear: post-completion outcomes are not an afterthought — they are intentional, institutional, and a strategic priority. Economic and social mobility are at the center of our new strategic plan — Inspire 2035, signaling that our mission extends far beyond credential completion. Success means economic mobility, social capital, and agency, especially for students who have historically been underserved by higher education.
We continue to elevate Career Education (CE) programs, fueled by Strong Workforce Program (SWP) investments, robust labor market data, and cross-sector partnerships. Our CE programs are tied to high-wage, high-demand fields; our pathways extend from middle school to middle-class careers; and our infrastructure, which incorporates integral initiatives such as employer engagements and English as a Second Language (ESL) bridge programs, is built to support working learners and returning adults.
IVC was recently ranked among California’s top-performing institutions for return on investment (ROI), pacing 13th out of 327 community and certificate — granting colleges statewide, according to a groundbreaking new study by College Futures Foundation and The HEA Group. The Golden Returns: A Regional Look at the Return on Investment (ROI) of California’s Community and Career Colleges report analyzes how quickly students are able to recoup their net costs after attending college, based on data from more than 1.2 million students. IVC was one of only 25 institutions statewide — 23 of which are California Community Colleges—where students can recoup their costs in six months or less.
Independently sourced data on wage growth and average post-graduation earnings confirms that our students are gaining meaningful economic value from their education. This validation inspires us to meet the demands of tomorrow’s workforce. However, we realize that progress is not permanent. Our current efforts — while promising—need deeper integration, broader faculty and staff engagement, and stronger cross-functional coordination to fully scale this work with intentionality across programs, departments, and student populations.
To that end, we are launching Future-Ready IVC, a new cross-functional Community of Practice (CoP) grounded in the principles of Community College 3.0 to co-create strategies that center post-graduation outcomes. Through a series of workshops, this CoP builds upon the conversations started in Dr. Kimberly Lowry’s Spring 2025 keynote address during the President's Opening session, and to learn and reflect upon how each of our roles contributes to student success through the lens of Community College 3.0.
From experience we know true transformation doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens in networks, in partnerships, and in shared purpose. Which is why I strongly encourage you to participate in this CoP to help us move from initiative to institution, from innovation to infrastructure. This CoP will offer a space to explore how student success is being redefined to include post-graduation outcomes such as transfer effectiveness, wage gains, and social mobility. Through this effort, we hope to test and refine strategies and sharpen the connection between what students’ study and what they gain after leaving us.
IVC is ready — ready to accelerate, to scale, and to lead. We all have a role to play and through your contributions we will shape a future-ready institution—one that lifts and transforms every student.
Best,
John