University of Central Arkansas receives 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement Classification

Renewal signals university's deep commitment to community engagement

The University of Central Arkansas has received the 2026 Carnegie Community Engagement (CE) Classification, an elective designation awarded by the American Council on Education (ACE) and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching that highlights an institution's commitment to community engagement. UCA was first awarded the Carnegie CE Classification in 2020, and this renewal is valid until 2032.

"At UCA, community engagement is deeply integrated into our teaching, research and service," Provost and Executive Vice President Michael Hargis said. "This recognition reflects the intentional work of our campus to connect academic experience with community need so that our students see the practical impact of what they are learning.

"Through these collaborative partnerships, students gain transformative learning experiences while our communities benefit from the expertise and innovation of our faculty, staff and students."

UCA's renewal application documented excellent alignment among campus mission, culture, leadership, resources, and practices that support dynamic and noteworthy community engagement.

"Actively partnering with our communities is part of UCA's fabric as an institution," Dr. Lesley Graybeal, executive director of Outreach and Community Engagement, said. "This classification recognizes the collaborative culture that so many UCA faculty, staff, students and community members have worked to build, and we look forward to seeing these partnerships and their impacts continue to grow in the future."

The CE Classification is awarded following a process of self-study by each institution, which also includes feedback submitted by community partners. The classification has been the leading framework for institutional assessment and recognition of community engagement in U.S. higher education for the past 19 years with classification cycles in 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015, 2020, 2024 and now 2026. The 2029 cycle will be for first-time applicants.

In the 2026 cycle, 239 institutions earned the CE Classification, joining the 40 institutions classified in 2024 for a total of 279 institutions that currently hold the designation. Of the institutions recognized in 2026, 48 are receiving the classification for the first time, while 191 have previously held it. The 2026 cohort includes a diverse range of institutions, with 158 public institutions, 81 private colleges and universities, and 82 Minority Serving Institutions represented among the recipients.

"The institutions receiving the 2026 Community Engagement Classification exemplify American higher education's commitment to the greater good," ACE President Ted Mitchell said. "The beneficiaries of this unflagging dedication to public purpose missions are their students, their teaching and research enterprises, and their wider communities."

A listing of all the institutions that currently hold the classification endorsement can be found here.

About the Carnegie Classifications

The Carnegie Classifications are the nation's leading framework for categorizing and describing colleges and universities in the United States. Utilized frequently by policymakers, funders, and researchers, the Classifications are a critical benchmarking tool for postsecondary institutions. ACE and the Carnegie Foundation announced a partnership in February 2022 to reimagine the Classifications to better reflect the diversity of postsecondary institutions and more completely characterize the impact that today's institutions have in society.

About ACE

ACE is a membership organization that leads higher education with a united vision for the future, galvanizing our members to make change and collaborating across the sector to design solutions for today's challenges, serve the needs of a diverse student population, and shape effective public policy. As the major coordinating body for the nation's colleges and universities, our strength lies in our diverse membership of nearly 1,600 colleges and universities, related associations, and other organizations in America and abroad. ACE is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities. For more information, please visit www.acenet.edu or follow ACE on X @ACEducation and LinkedIn.

About the Carnegie Foundation

The mission of the Carnegie Foundation is to catalyze transformational change in education so that every student has the opportunity to live a healthy, dignified, and fulfilling life. Enacted by an act of Congress in 1906, the Foundation has a rich history of driving transformational change in the education sector, including the establishment of TIAA-CREF and the creation of the Education Testing Service, the GRE, Pell Grants, and the Carnegie Classifications for Higher Education. Today, the Foundation is dedicated to the transformation of the American high school and making the postsecondary sector a more vital engine for economic mobility.