MEMBER NEWS: Fresno State and UC Merced awarded Seal of Excelencia
Two CVHEC members earn Seal of Excelencia recertification
for their efforts to advance Latino success
Excelencia in Education, the nation’s premier authority on efforts to accelerate Latino student success in higher education, announced last month that Fresno State and UC Merced have earned the prestigious Seal of Excelencia recertification for their efforts to advance Latino success.
Both universities, which first earned this national certification in 2021 for institutions that strive to go beyond enrollment and more intentionally serve Latino students, are members of the Central Valley Higher Education Consortium and are designated as Hispanic Serving Institutions.
The Seal of Excelencia framework represents a rigorous assessment of certified institutions’ intentionality and impact in improving outcomes such as retention, financial support and degree completion for Latino students by aligning efforts across data, practice and leadership. Ultimately, this process strengthens efforts to serve all students. Seal certification remains valid for three years, after which institutions have the opportunity to recertify progress.
This year’s cohort of newly certified and recertified institutions belongs to a collective of 46 colleges and universities that have earned the seal. Together, they represent less than 1% of all institutions but enroll 17% and graduate 19% of all Latino students nationwide.
The Seal is not a ranking, nor an award. It is a rigorous verification process that culminates with certification. It is part of Excelencia’s tactical and systemic approach to:
- Closing the education equity gap.
- Meeting a goal of 6.2 million Latino students attaining college degrees by 2030.
- Supporting America’s civic and workforce needs by effectively preparing Latinos, now the nation’s second-largest ethnic population.
“Being recertified is an accomplishment that we are very proud of and is a testament to the work that continues to be done by staff, faculty and campus leadership,” said UC Merced Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz in a university press release. “It illustrates our ongoing commitment to impact the lives of our Latino/a students and is a direct result of intentional, collaborative work across departments that see diversity as a strength and inclusion as a priority.”
The universities were honored during an event in Washington, D.C. Oct. 1.
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