Allocating Resources to Enhance Equitable Student Outcomes at Alamo Colleges District
Impact at a Glance
Applied an equity lens to strategic budgeting
Prioritized resources for targeted case management advising
Used disaggregated data to guide funding decisions
Invested an additional $2M in targeted advising support
Built a data-informed cycle to continuously refine resource allocation
The Challenge
Alamo Colleges District (ACD), a five-college system serving approximately 72,000 students, has a longstanding commitment to improving student outcomes.
- 81% attend part time
- 67% are Hispanic
- 60% are women
- 70% receive financial aid
ACD already used student performance targets to guide resource allocation. Leaders saw an opportunity to make those decisions more precise and equity-informed, particularly for students from low-income households and historically marginalized populations.
They wanted to better understand:
- Whether budget practices could contribute to persistent inequities
- How resources could better support historically underserved students
- How to apply an explicit equity lens to funding decisions
- How disaggregated data could strengthen resource allocation
ACD selected its districtwide Case Management Advising Program, AlamoADVISE, to pilot a more intentional, equity-informed funding approach.
The Action
ACD used NACUBO's Budget Equity Blueprint to examine its budget practices and apply an equity lens to resource allocation for AlamoADVISE.
Using the Blueprint, leaders:
- Examined existing budget and allocation practices
- Used disaggregated data to evaluate advising touchpoints and activities
- Gathered perspectives from stakeholders
- Reconsidered how resources were distributed across student populations
- Explored how funding levels could differ based on student and service needs
The process helped ACD move from broad student success targets toward more intentional decisions about where resources could have the greatest impact.
The Results
Immediate Impact
- $2 million in additional funding allocated to a new advising approach
- Advising duties redistributed to provide more targeted support
- Highly skilled certified advisors focused on students who could benefit from additional assistance
- Stronger alignment between budgeting and ACD's Aspen and Achieving the Dream initiatives
Process Improvements
- More data-informed budget planning
- Expanded use of disaggregated student data
- Increased awareness of how financial decisions affect equity outcomes
- Institutional commitment to assessing impact through multiple funding cycles
Ongoing Momentum
- Collect and analyze equity-gap closure data
- Refine allocation formulas
- Apply equity-informed budgeting to additional funding streams
“This project helped us take an award-winning initiative to the next level and helped us to better understand how to allocate funding to serve all of our students while closing equity gaps so they can all thrive.”
Dr. Diane SnyderFormer Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration