2026 Education Writers Association National Seminar | Understanding the Highs and Lows of the College Transfer Journey

The 79th Education Writers Association (EWA) National Seminar takes place June 2-5, 2025, in Baltimore, Maryland, bringing together journalists, policymakers, researchers, students, and education leaders to discuss the most pressing issues shaping education today.

The Campaign for College Opportunity is proud to participate in these critical conversations. Our President, Jessie Ryan, is featured as a panelist in Understanding the Highs and Lows of the College Transfer Journey, a session examining the barriers and opportunities that shape students’ pathways from community college to a bachelor’s degree.

While transfer is intended to be a primary route to a four-year degree, too many students encounter obstacles along the way, including difficulty transferring credits, complex application processes, and affordability challenges. As a result, fewer than one in five community college students successfully transfer and earn the bachelor’s degree they set out to pursue. Improving transfer pathways is critical to increasing educational attainment, advancing equity, and ensuring more students can achieve their academic and career goals.

Explore the resources below to learn more about The Campaign’s research, policy solutions, and advocacy efforts to strengthen transfer pathways, improve bachelor’s degree attainment, and expand college opportunity for California students.

Concurrent Session Information

Understanding the Highs and Lows of the College Transfer Journey

79th Education Writers Association National Seminar
June 5, 2025
Key Ballroom 12

• Jessie Ryan, Campaign for College Opportunity
• Rebekah Ramsey, Morgan State University
• Josh Wyner, Aspen College Excellence Program
• Patrick O’Donnell, The 74 (moderator)

Resources on Community College Transfer & Bachelor’s Degree Attainment

1. A roadmap of policy strategies to increase college completion, strengthen transfer pathways, and help California meet its postsecondary attainment goals: Set Up to Succeed: Meeting California’s Postsecondary Education Attainment Goal | The Campaign for College Opportunity
2. A snapshot of California’s transfer landscape, highlighting barriers, opportunities, and recommendations to improve student outcomes: Chutes or Ladders? Strengthening California Community College Transfer So More Students Earn the Degrees They Seek | The Campaign for College Opportunity 
3. An examination of how transfer reform can close equity gaps in bachelor’s degree attainment, particularly for students from historically underserved communities who disproportionately begin at community colleges: Advancing Equity With Effective Community College Transfer Pathways | The Campaign for College Opportunity
4. Research and recommendations for improving transfer pathways between California community colleges and the CSU system: Improving Transfer from Community College to the California State University – Public Policy Institute of California
5. The Transfer Playbook 2.0: https://highered.aspeninstitute.org/playbooks/transfer-playbook-20-practical-guide-achieving-excellence-transfer-and-bachelors
6. Tracking Transfer: Community College and Four-Year Institutional Effectiveness in Broadening Bachelor’s Degree Attainment: https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/publications/tracking-transfer-community-college-and-four-year-institutional-effectiveness-in-broadening-bachelors-degree-attainment.html
7. Tracking Transfer: Entering Community College Cohort Dashboard 2018: https://nscresearchcenter.org/tracking-transfer-entering-cc-cohort-dashboard-2018/
8. Tracking Transfer: State by State Outcomes – Community College and Four-Year Institutional Effectiveness in Broadening Bachelor’s Degree Attainment: https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/dashboard/tracking-transfer-state-outcomes.html
9. An exploration of how states have used funding formulas and financial incentives to improve student success, equity, and transfer outcomes: Financing Futures – YouTube

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