2026 Award Categories
Marketing & Promotion
Within this category, we recognize partners who have made great strides in marketing and promoting their programs to students and across campus. There are 2 awards, Best Branding and Most Creative Marketing Strategy.
The Best Branding award is presented to those partners who have created a memorable and exciting branding campaign to engage students and impress stakeholders. Branding is what your program will be remembered for, and these partners have left a lasting impression.
This award recognizes those programs that demonstrate exceptional innovation, originality, and effectiveness in their marketing strategy. These programs have a unique perspective on marketing that captures a student’s eye and draws great interest in their Suitable program.
Key Contributors
Within this category, we recognize partners who have seen great success in the critical pillars of our ecosystem: Career Readiness, The Hub, and Guided Pathways. These partners go beyond basic usage, employing tried-and-true methodologies to drive high activity completion and deep student involvement. They serve as models for the community, consistently contributing ideas and best practices based on their ever-expanding knowledge base.
The Career Ready Excellence Award is presented to partners who have demonstrated a superior commitment to integrating core career competencies into their programming through the NACE Ready product. By prioritizing this framework, these partners ensure students are equipped not just with knowledge, but with the essential career-readiness skills that employers value most.
The Hub Excellence Award is presented to our standout Student Organization partners who have maximized their presence and impact within The Hub platform. These organizations have leveraged the system to its fullest potential, fostering vibrant communities and creating meaningful, accessible opportunities for student involvement and leadership development.
The Guided Pathways High-Impact Engagement Award is presented to the partners achieving the highest standard of student participation, measured by superior activity completion rates per student, consistent engagement levels, and excellent achievement completion. This award recognizes that true impact is found in consistency, celebrating the programs where students are not just enrolled, but are actively advancing through their pathway journey.
Collaboration & Community
Within this category, we celebrate the partners and individuals who foster a thriving, interconnected ecosystem. These awards recognize the power of partnership - from the advocates championing student voices to the innovators driving program growth and embodying the spirit of our mission. These recipients demonstrate that our collective success is built on collaboration, advocacy, and a shared commitment to expanding opportunities for students.
The Suitable Collaborator of the Year award is presented to the partners who serve as the heartbeat of our community. These individuals have demonstrated exceptional engagement by actively participating in the Suitable Insider pathway, attending the highest volume of webinars, and representing Suitable on the big stage at conferences or in virtual events. We count on these partners to be our community champions - always ready to share their experiences, offer peer support, and elevate the conversation for the benefit of all partners.
The Momentum Award is presented to the partner that has demonstrated a surge in engagement and a remarkable upward trajectory over the past year. Success in a pathway is a marathon, not a sprint, and these partners have shown unwavering dedication to refining their strategy and driving adoption. Through persistence and hard work, they have accelerated their program’s impact and are now operating at a high velocity of student success.
The Suitable Spirit Award recognizes programs that embody the values of Suitable, including teamwork, creativity, excellence, diversity, integrity, persistence, and grit. These programs go the extra mile to ensure that all students have the opportunity to succeed, and they do it with enthusiasm, dedication, and a sense of fun.
The Student Success Innovator Award is presented to partners who have used Suitable to design truly pioneering co-curricular learning programs. These recipients demonstrate ingenuity and fearlessness to try new things, transforming the standard student experience into something extraordinary. Their innovative strategies prove that a commitment to student success often requires the courage to push boundaries and reimagine what a pathway can achieve.
The Student Advocate Award recognizes partners who have harnessed the power of Suitable to make a lasting impact on their students. These advocates have gone above and beyond, designing and implementing activities and programs that address critical needs and empower students to thrive. Through their dedication and innovative approach, they have become catalysts for positive change, creating a culture that prioritizes engagement, support, and opportunity for every student.
Best in Class
Within this category, we recognize the partners and programs that define excellence in our community. Whether honoring an individual leader or a comprehensive program, these awards celebrate those who have set the gold standard for success. These recipients are the models of excellence we look to for inspiration, demonstrating the highest caliber of achievement.
The Outstanding New Program award recognizes new programs that launched in the past academic year and have made a significant impact on student engagement. The award is given to programs that have hit the ground running, built a strong foundation, and have a dedicated team supporting their success.
The Distinguished Program award recognizes programs that have demonstrated the highest level of excellence in using Suitable to best serve their student population. These programs do more than just use the platform; they align it seamlessly with their institutional mission and vision. This award honors those who have gone above and beyond standard implementation to cultivate a thriving ecosystem, making a significant, lasting impact on student engagement.
The Dr. Audrey Murrell Award is our top award, bestowed upon partners who have made a significant contribution to student success. This award recognizes individuals who have developed and implemented innovative programs and initiatives that have had a positive impact on student engagement and success. They have demonstrated a commitment to continuous improvement, a willingness to share their ideas with others, and have served as role models in the field of student success. These award winners inspire others to think creatively about how to improve student outcomes.
