Benchmarking Institute
The National Community College Benchmark Project (NCCBP) is the main project that was developed by the National Higher Education Benchmarking Institute at Johnson County Community College. In 2017, one of the Benchmarking Institute's other projects, called Non-credit Education and Workforce Training Benchmark Project was incorporated as a module of the NCCBP. This will allow colleges to benchmark their entire set of programs, both credit and non-credit within the same project with over 150 credit and 100 non-credit benchmarks.
Since 2004, over 400 two-year institutions have participated in the data-collection and reporting process for the Benchmarking Institute’s projects. These projects and that level of participation make the Benchmarking Institute the first and largest provider of community college benchmarking and peer comparison services in the nation.
Benchmark Beginnings
The Benchmarking Institute’s foundation was laid more than 11 years ago. Initial funding was received from the U.S. Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE).
This funding established "The Kansas Study,” which we now call the Cost and Productivity Project. At the same time, the National Community College Benchmark Project (NCCBP) was conceived to take a “balanced scorecard” approach to community college benchmarking.
The Non-credit and Workforce Training Benchmark Project was developed in 2012 when the Benchmarking Institute worked with the National Council for Continuing Education and Training (NCCET) and over 20 community colleges to develop the non-credit benchmark project. The project was developed based on the NCCBP model with on-line data entry and reporting. So the projects were combined into research that gives colleges a complete picture of their programs.
Learn more about our other projects
National Benchmarking Conference
The Benchmarking Institute hosts an annual conference in May, devoted to benchmarking and best practices in Overland Park, Kansas. The conference offers great networking opportunities, excellent keynote speakers and panel discussions, a variety of useful workshops, and break-out sessions centered around three tracks: benchmarking student success, workforce training, and benchmarking community college costs.