College Lift wins Heisman of Community Colleges
Our College Lift program achieved national acclaim this year by winning the 2025 Bellwether Award for Instructional Programs and Services. This prestigious award recognizes innovative and scalable community college initiatives that address critical challenges in education.
Launched in 2017, College Lift is a seven-year enrichment program guiding first-generation, underserved students from middle school through high school with comprehensive academic and social support. Since its inception, the program has expanded from one middle school to four and now serves nearly 300 students in partnership with Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. The Bellwether Award highlights College Lift as a national model for transforming educational outcomes and underscores the transformative impact of its early-intervention approach.
The impact of College Lift is most evident in the success of its students. The first cohort of College Lift scholars graduated high school in 2024 with every single student enrolling in college, and the second graduating class, in 2025, did the same. The vast majority of these graduates will be the first in their families to attend college, affirming the program’s mission to break generational barriers.
Truliant Federal Credit Union once again provided generous support to the program, reaffirming the community’s investment in expanding educational opportunities for local youth. Such support, combined with the dedication of students, families and staff, has enabled College Lift to change trajectories one student at a time, helping ensure that education truly opens doors to brighter futures.