Chancellor King Celebrates Nation-Leading ASAP|ACE College Completion Initiatives During Student Success Summit
June 23, 2026
Summit Included More Than 100 Attendees from 44 Participating SUNY Campuses to Discuss Evidence-Based Practices that Enhance Student Retention and College Completion
ASAP and ACE Help Students Gain and Maintain Academic Momentum so They Can Graduate on Time – SUNY to Reach 10,000 Students Across the Two Programs in Fall 2026
Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today celebrated the success of SUNY's Advancing Success in Associate Pathways (ASAP) and Advancing Completion through Engagement (ACE) completion models during the annual Student Success Summit hosted at the SUNY System Administration Building in Albany. Chancellor King was joined by SUNY Board Trustee Camille Varlack. The summit convened more than 100 stakeholders from 44 SUNY ASAP|ACE partner campuses, including senior leaders, program staff, and students, to discuss the importance of the program in enhancing student retention, completion, and academic momentum.
"SUNY's ASAP|ACE programs have transformed the lives of students throughout New York State by ensuring they can complete their degrees on time, achieve their dreams, and move forward on a path to upward mobility and success," said SUNY Chancellor King. "Through the strong support of Governor Kathy Hochul, the State Legislature, and the SUNY Board of Trustees, we have been able to invest in this proven, evidence-based strategy, and will reach 10,000 students across 44 SUNY campuses this fall. I thank all of the dedicated leaders from throughout the SUNY System for coming together to discuss how we can continue our efforts to support our students through these vital programs."
The SUNY Board of Trustees said, "Thanks to the support of Governor Hochul and the State Legislature, SUNY has been able to support students during their academic journeys through the evidence-based ASAP|ACE college completion initiatives. Now, through the expansion of these programs, many more students will be supported so they can successfully complete their degrees and thrive after graduation."
Advancing Success in Associate Pathways (ASAP) supports associate students, and Advancing Completion through Engagement (ACE) supports baccalaureate students. Both programs provide students access to a wide variety of resources and support to help them overcome barriers that can prevent them from obtaining a degree, including comprehensive personalized advisement, academic support, career development activities, as well as funding to cover textbooks, groceries, transportation, and other costs of attendance.
Early findings continue to show strong results for SUNY ASAP|ACE students. Compared to similar students, ASAP|ACE participants are attempting and earning more credits and are more likely to remain enrolled or complete a degree in the semesters following their entry into the program. ASAP students are earning up to 1.4 more credits than matched comparison students in their first semester, with retention rates increasing over time and reaching 12.3 percentage points higher than matched comparison students by the fourth semester. ACE students are earning up to 1.7 more credits than matched comparison students by their third semester, with retention rates reaching 8.6 percentage points higher than matched comparison students by the fourth semester. These positive outcomes are consistent across semesters and student groups, underscoring the program's early impact on academic momentum and timely degree completion. For more information on ASAP|ACE, visit: https://www.suny.edu/asap-ace/.
State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee, said, "ASAP and ACE are built around the fact that a degree changes a life only when a student finishes the degree. The programs keep students from the first semester through the last, helping to clear the obstacles that too often end a college career early. Expanding them was one of the clearest choices in this year's budget. I thank Chancellor King and the SUNY Board of Trustees for expanding these models, and the campus teams and students who prove they work."
State Assemblymember Alicia L. Hyndman, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, said, "I am proud to support SUNY's Advancing Success in Associate Pathways (ASAP) and Advancing Completion through Engagement (ACE) initiatives. In the fall, SUNY is expected to reach 10,000 students at 44 campuses across the two programs. I'm especially looking forward to existing programs expanding capacity at 16 partner campuses and to ASAP growing its reach at six more community colleges, which is a result of the Enacted 2026-27 State Budget and the work of SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr., the SUNY Board of Trustees, Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie, and my fellow members of the State Legislature."
Last week, SUNY announced the expansion of SUNY ASAP|ACE — the nation's leading college retention and completion models — to serve 10,000 students and 44 SUNY campuses by the Fall 2026 semester. ASAP will expand to six more community colleges, including SUNY Adirondack, Columbia-Greene Community College, Fulton-Montgomery Community College, SUNY Niagara, North Country Community College, and SUNY Sullivan County Community College. ACE will expand to four more State-operated campuses, including Alfred State College, SUNY Brockport, SUNY Cortland, and SUNY Geneseo.
Additionally, 16 partner campuses with existing programs will expand their capacity to serve additional students. Six community college campuses with ASAP programs in place will also expand their capacity to serve additional students, including Hudson Valley Community College, Nassau Community College, Rockland Community College, SUNY Schenectady Community College, Suffolk County Community College, and Westchester Community College. Ten State-operated campuses with ACE programs in place will also expand their capacity to serve additional students, including the State University of New York at Albany, Buffalo State University, SUNY Delhi, Farmingdale State College, SUNY Fredonia, SUNY Oneonta, SUNY Oswego, SUNY Potsdam, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, and SUNY Old Westbury.
The expansion of ASAP|ACE is a result of the Enacted 2026-27 State Budget and is part of SUNY's 2026 State of the University Agenda, which describes how the programs have transformed the lives of students throughout the SUNY System. The expansion also advances SUNY's Academic Momentum Campaign, which provides SUNY campuses with financial support and technical assistance to strengthen student retention and completion rates. While SUNY's current completion rates exceed the national averages for public institutions awarding on time bachelor's and associate degrees, SUNY seeks to help all students who start their degrees have the supports they need to finish. Chancellor King's 2026 State of the University Agenda includes additional initiatives to continue strengthening academic momentum so more students make it to, and through the SUNY campus of their choice.
About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.
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