Insights & Research Hub

CIC would like to highlight a sampling of member institutions that shared with us that they are celebrating a milestone in their institution’s history.

CIC would like to highlight a sampling of member institutions that shared with us that they are launching new programs, majors, or scholarships.

In Spring 2025, new Carnegie Classifications were released. Read more about the updated framework and implications for CIC members.

Every three years, CIC administers a survey to member presidents to better understand their needs and how CIC can best support them. The latest survey was conducted in Spring 2025.

In response to CIC member data and requests for more information about ongoing topics in the sector, CIC hosted one webinar to meet the moment since the Winter 2025 Independent newsletter publication.

CIC’s Solution Center marketplace is built to assist CIC member institutions in finding the best vendors to fit their needs.

CIC’s Corporate Affiliate Program negotiates a variety of specially discounted services for member institutions. Learn more about our corporate affiliate partners.

CIC’s Legacies of American Slavery: Reckoning with the Past website includes links to curated resources and reflections from faculty members and administrators at member institutions.

CIC’s report, Humanities Research for the Public Good, highlights the partnerships and public-facing humanities work on member campuses.

This spring, CIC published Hiring and Supporting a Pioneering President, a resource for governing boards, presidents, and presidential candidates at independent colleges and universities.

The 2025 State Councils Annual Conference took place in April in Seattle, Washington. CIC awarded nearly $150,000 in Meeting the Moment grants to 15 state-based associations to support efforts to respond to the federal policy landscape.

CIC's Work-Based Learning Consortium has facilitated numerous events and programs aimed at enhancing career readiness for students and fostering collaboration between faculty members.

CIC is excited to share a few mid-year updates for the CIC Online Course Sharing Consortium (CIC-OCSC) community.

CIC’s Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE) offers multiple summer seminars for faculty members and staff at member institutions provides high-quality professional development.

Year two of CIC’s AI Ready network has 151 unique CIC members. Learn more about this year's programming.

CIC’s Campus Free Expression Project supports CIC member institutions in creating respectful environments for open inquiry, free expression, and civil discourse, and offers resources, programming, and consultations to support these efforts.

CIC recently launched a new initiative to support first-time college and university leaders: Presidential Coaching Circles, offered in partnership with Academic Search.

CIC recently announced the Alliance for Strategic Innovation (ASI) to coordinate member collaboration efforts to strengthen independent higher education.

Several of CIC’s international members are offering a solution for students whose plans to study abroad in Fall 2025 have been disrupted.

CIC offers several annual professional development programs and seminars for leadership at member institutions including Executive Leadership and Senior Leadership Academy, Workshops for Department and Division Chairs, Presidential Vocation and Institutional Mission Program, Presidential Renewal Program, and Teaching Interfaith Understanding seminar. Read more about highlights from Summer 2025 programs.

The Constructive Dialogue Institute and the Council of Independent Colleges have launched a new partnership with a cohort of eight independent liberal arts colleges and universities to advance civil discourse and strengthen student engagement at their campuses during the 2025-26 academic year.

BoodleBox is the leading collaborative AI platform purpose-built for higher education. Serving educators and students across more than 1,300 colleges and universities, we provide secure and affordable access to premium AI tools within a centralized ecosystem. BoodleBox empowers educators and students to build judgment, preserve rigor, and expand human learning—preparing tomorrow’s workforce for an AI-enabled […]

The prestigious Executive Leadership Academy (ELA) kicks off today to prepare seasoned leaders for their next senior administrative role in higher education. The first of two in-person seminars in the yearlong program runs June 16–17 in Washington, DC, and will be led by current and former college presidents along with experts in critical areas pertinent to higher education.

The American Council of Education took leadership of the Carnegie Classifications in 2022, and they released new classifications built on a new framework in Spring 2025. This summary is provided as a resource to members of the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) members.

The Board of Directors of the Council of Independent Colleges is pleased to announce the extension of Marjorie Hass’ contract as president through June 30, 2030.