Case Study: Allan Hancock College closes equity gaps and auto-awards 2,849 credentials with Ellucian Banner and Degree Works

Allan Hancock College closes equity gaps with degree automation

Allan Hancock College, a public two‑year college in Santa Maria serving about 12,000 students—primarily Hispanic and with 50% first‑generation students—faced an equity challenge: many learners accumulated excess credits but did not graduate because they lacked accessible, navigable pathways to completion. To address this, the college partnered with Ellucian and used Ellucian Banner and Degree Works to identify and remove hidden barriers to credentialing.

Ellucian helped Allan Hancock College implement the “Credit Where Credit’s Due” automation program, scaling an algorithm to include alternative academic experience and automatically awarding credentials to eligible students. As a result, 2,849 degrees and certificates have been auto‑awarded since launch, total degree‑earners rose 22% in the first year, and degrees awarded to first‑generation students increased 31%.

Allan Hancock College