2021 Virtual Policy Summit & Community College Futures Assembly

CRITERIA FOR 2021 VIRTUAL BELLWETHER AWARDS

The content in the application should address the following elements (selection weights are shown in parentheses):

1. An identified critical issue (15%)
2. The application criteria (85%) as described below:

• Identify the issue or challenge that this leading-edge program or activity was designed to address. (20%)
• Describe the process, timeline, participants, and resources required to implement the program or activity. (20%)
• Specify the results and/or impact and opportunity for scalability. (25%)
• Elaborate on lessons learned for colleges considering a replication of this initiative. (20%)
• Optional Video Clip (required for 30 Bellwether Finalists)

We encourage applicants to submit a video clip that is no longer than 60 seconds, addressing the selection criteria above. The video clip must be uploaded on YouTube (as public or unlisted) in the appropriate field in the application.

• Step One – Announcement and Call for Nominations and/or Applications
  • The portal to accept Community College Futures Assembly Nominations and/or Applications opens Thursday, May 7. This is an open call to all public community colleges in the United States and its territories.

• Step Two – Applications and Nominations for Bellwether Finalists
  • To be considered for the Bellwether Awards, a formal application form must be completed and received by the Community College Futures Assembly no later than September 28, 2020. Applications MUST be submitted ELECTRONICALLY via the ONLINE form. The Program Summary portion of the application should not exceed 500 words. The applicants do NOT need to submit any supplemental material at this stage.
    
    Attention: Submission Deadline was extended to Monday, September 28 at 11:59 PM (CT)

• Step 3 – National Panel of Judges Reviews All Applications
  • All applications will be sent to the national panel of judges, and they will determine 10 finalists in each category on the basis of the selection criteria.
    
    
• Step Four – Announcement of 30 Finalists
  • The 30 Bellwether Finalists will be notified no later than November 2, 2020. Finalists will be invited to join the Bellwether College Consortium and register at a discounted rate for the 2021 Virtual BCC Policy Summit and Community College Futures Assembly held January 22 and January 25-26, 2021.

• Step Five – Attendance Confirmation and Presentation Preparation
  • College finalists must confirm their attendance and register all attendees and speakers by the stated deadline. College representatives (e.g. trustees, chancellor, presidents) and business and industry partners are strong to attend strongly encouraged to provide institutional support for their respective college.
  • A Bellwether Finalist Preparatory webinar will be held Friday, November 6 at 11:00 am CDT to address pre-recording finalists’ preparations,  digital binder submissions, and registration. A Q& A session will follow. The event will be recorded and shared on the BCC website should a finalist not be able to attend the scheduled webinar. No registration is required.

• Step Six – Bellwether Awards Presentation and Award Announcement
  • The finalists will compete for the Bellwether Award in their respective categories on Monday, January 25^th at the 2021 Virtual Community College Futures Assembly.
  • A distinguished panel of anonymous judges will be present at the signature events. The panel will review their assigned submission materials and judge the quality of presentations during the Assembly. The 2021 Bellwether Awards will be presented to the winner in each category after the keynote address by Jamie Merisotis, President and CEO for the Lumina Foundation on Monday, January 25, 2021.

These dates may change, so check back periodically.

Timeline for the 2021 Community College Futures Assembly

July 28 – Bellwether Award Submission Webinar

September 28, 2020 — Deadline for Completed Application

October 1-29 —  Judges review Applications (Round One)

November 2 —  30 Bellwether Finalists Announced

November 3  - Public announcement of 30 Bellwether Finalists

November 6 — Bellwether Finalist Webinar

TBD — Deadline for Finalists to Register for 2021 virtual events

TBD — Non-Finalist Registration Deadline

TBD — Digital Binder Submission Deadline

January 22 — Virtual BCC Policy Summit

January 25 – 26  — Virtual Community College Futures Assembly

January 25 — Presentations by 30 Bellwether Finalists (Round Two)

January 26 — 2021 Bellwether Award Ceremony