Chattanooga State earns top honor for dedication to student success

Chattanooga State Community College received the Leah Meyer Austin Award from Achieving the Dream for the college's dedication to improving student success. 

ChattState President Dr. Rebecca Ashford said the award exemplifies the work the college has done to create a student-focused culture, improve student outcomes, and reduce success gaps between student groups. Dr. Ashford accepted the award on behalf of the entire college Feb. 18 during Achieving the Dream's annual DREAM Conference. 

“We are deeply honored to receive the Leah Meyer Austin Award from Achieving the Dream. This recognition is a testament to the bold, innovative work our faculty and staff have done to remove barriers and create real opportunities for students to thrive. Receiving the Leah Meyer Austin Award will only strengthen Chattanooga State’s commitment to ensuring every student has the support they need to reach their full potential and to improve their lives,” Ashford said.

Achieving the Dream President and CEO Dr. Karen A. Stout said ChattState was one of only two community colleges nationwide selected to receive the award. Southwestern Oregon Community College was also honored as a recipient at the 2025 DREAM Conference in Philadelphia. 

“Selection for the Leah Meyer Austin Award is a highly competitive process,” Dr. Stout said. “Winners of this award do not just demonstrate pockets of excellence; they employ a holistic approach to student success that permeates their entire institution and results in whole-college transformation.” 

In selecting ChattState as an award recipient, Achieving the Dream considered ChattState’s Vision 2027, a long-term plan to improve student outcomes by implementing seven-week terms, wrap-around student support services, and affordable learning resources. These efforts raised student retention by 7.1 percent between 2019 and 2022. Further, between 2020 and 2023, credit completion rose by 11.8 percentage points. 

ChattState’s dedication to transfer agreements also raised the percentage of students who continue to a four-year university and earn a baccalaureate degree by 8.2 points between 2015 and 2018. 

Adopting a co-requisite learning model that offers students additional support in gateway English and math courses—alongside other academic support services including embedded and online tutors—raised gateway math completion by 11 percentage points and gateway English by 17.2 percentage points. 

“Chattanooga State and Southwestern Oregon community colleges have the bold leadership and the across-the-board commitment of faculty and staff that make them true standouts in their student success efforts,” Stout said. “I congratulate them wholeheartedly on their achievements.” 

ChattState has been a member of the Achieving the Dream Network since 2016. In 2019, it received the Network’s Leader College status, and in 2023 it became a Leader College of Distinction. 

The Leah Meyer Austin Award was established in 2008 to recognize outstanding achievement in supporting and promoting student success through the creation of a culture of evidence, continuous improvement, systemic institutional change, broad engagement of stakeholders, and equity. The annual prize is given in honor of Leah Meyer Austin, former senior vice president for program development and organizational learning at the Lumina Foundation and emerita director of the ATD Board of Directors, whose visionary leadership shaped the development of Achieving the Dream. Chattanooga State Community College and Southwestern Oregon Community College are the 23rd and 24th ATD Network Colleges, respectively, to receive the award. A complete list of past winners can be found here.   

Achieving the Dream is a partner and champion of more than 300 community colleges across the country. Drawing on expert coaches, groundbreaking programs, and a national peer network, it provides institutions with integrated, tailored support for every aspect of their work — from foundational capacities such as leadership and data to intentional strategies for supporting students holistically, building K–12 partnerships, and more.  

Achieving the Dream’s vision is for every college to be a catalyst for equitable and economically vibrant communities so all students can access life-changing learning that propels them into community-changing careers.