Social Determinants of Student Success

Basic Needs Campus Designation

About the Designation

The Basic Needs Campus Designation recognizes Colorado institutions of higher education that demonstrate a sustained, equity-centered commitment to addressing the non-academic barriers that affect student persistence and completion. The designation is offered at two levels and is valid for three years. Institutions that do not currently hold a designation may apply in any year.

CORNERSTONE CAMPUS

Celebrates institutions that have established core infrastructure and commitment to student basic needs across six foundational categories: food security, mental health & counseling, housing support, emergency financial assistance, financial wellness & literacy, and student-facing information & navigation.

COMPREHENSIVE CAMPUS

Celebrates institutions that go further — demonstrating breadth of support and responsiveness to diverse student needs. Requires all Cornerstone criteria plus demonstrated commitment in at least three additional areas: transportation, childcare & eldercare, technology access, physical health, legal services, and employment & career support.

Apply for the Designation

Institutions interested in applying for a Basic Needs Campus Designation should review the criteria and complete the institution application. The designation is valid for three years. Institutions without a current designation may apply in any year.

• Institution Application
• Application Instructions
• Application Deadline: noon on May 13, 2026
• Announcement: the week of June 1, 2026

Colleges and universities have a responsibility to support student success beyond the classroom. Social determinants including food security, housing stability, mental health, financial wellness, transportation, childcare, legal support, and technology access, shape whether students can fully participate in their education.

The Colorado Department of Higher Education recognizes institutions that take a comprehensive, equity-centered approach to meeting student basic needs through the Basic Needs Campus Designation program. CDHE offers two designation levels: Cornerstone and Comprehensive to celebrate institutions at different stages of their basic needs journey, honoring both foundational commitments and institutions that have built expansive, student-centered support ecosystems. The Basic Needs Campus Designation is a three-year designation, and institutions without a current designation may apply in any year.

Honoring What Came Before

For years, Colorado institutions rose to the challenge of student basic needs through two pioneering designations: the Hunger Free Campus and Healthy Minds Campus designations. These programs broke ground,  naming food insecurity and mental health as institutional responsibilities, not just student struggles. They recognized those colleges and universities that stepped up.
Both were offered as one-year designations, and every institution that earned one did exactly what was asked: they committed, they demonstrated, and they delivered. The list of previously designated schools is a testament to that commitment.

That work didn't end. It grew.

Informed by what our institutions built under Hunger Free and Healthy Minds, CDHE has expanded its recognition framework to reflect the full range of factors that shape whether a student can succeed. Housing, transportation, childcare, legal support, financial wellness, and technology access. These are not peripheral concerns. They are the conditions of learning. The Basic Needs Campus Designation with its Cornerstone and Comprehensive levels carries forward the spirit of what came before while honoring the broader reality our students live every day. Institutions that previously earned a Hunger Free or Healthy Minds designation helped lay the foundation for this expansion. We see you, and we're grateful.

CONTACT

For specific questions or comments, please contact Dr. Gillian McKnight-Tutein, Chief Educational Impact Officer,
Office of Educational Equity, Workforce and Social Mobility
Colorado Department of Higher Education at gillian.mcknighttutein@dhe.state.co.us.