The University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville has earned the highest level of certification in a national program that helps college students feel welcome, connected, and supported.
UACCB received Gold Caring Campus certification Sept. 14 from the Institute for Evidence-Based Change, according to a release from the college. The college is only the second institution to earn the Gold designation since its introduction, the release said.
The Gold certification recognizes colleges that have incorporated Caring Campus principles into their daily operations and established policies and practices to sustain them.
“UACCB has always been a ‘caring campus,’” Provost Zach Perrine said. “Our faculty and staff welcome students and support their success. That is a part of the fabric of our college.”
Perrine said working with the Institute for Evidence-Based Change has allowed UACCB to expand its efforts to support students.
At UACCB, those efforts include faculty and staff learning students’ names, checking in with them early in the semester and helping connect them with the appropriate campus resources.
The college also offers free food and snacks across campus to help address food insecurity. Open House and Welcome Week activities connect students with campus resources, while free mental health counseling and expanded technology support hours provide additional assistance during the semester.
Through a partnership with White River Health, UACCB faculty and staff also receive QPR — Question, Persuade, Refer — suicide prevention training designed to help them recognize warning signs and connect students with professional assistance.
The college has also introduced HyFlex courses, allowing students to attend classes in person, participate live online, or complete coursework on their own schedule.
UACCB said the flexibility is designed to help students balance college with work and family responsibilities. The college also has a record number of students on campus this fall, its highest enrollment since 2019.
UACCB began its Caring Campus work in 2021 and made caring one of its core values in its 2024 strategic plan. Caring Campus responsibilities are included in employee job descriptions and job postings and are reinforced through orientation, ongoing training, and the hiring process, the release said.
A Caring Campus Task Force coordinates the college’s continuing efforts.
“Achieving this gold standard certification validates the diligent work of our task force and proves the amazing, caring spirit that every individual at UACCB exemplifies daily,” said Rhonda Loper, director of institutional research and chair of the Caring Campus Task Force.
The Gold designation reflects UACCB’s broader purpose of improving lives by helping students find the people and resources they need to pursue their educational goals, the release said.
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