Leveraging the coalition of the willing for student success in Michigan

This chapter reflects on how the Michigan Center for Student Success (MCSS) has leveraged its position within a membership organization for community college presidents and trustees to engage in statewide student success efforts in a state with a unique higher education governance structure. With no formal higher education governing body to set policy or coordinate initiatives, the MCSS has relied on individual leaders and practitioners within institutions to create a coalition of the willing who have worked to move the student success agenda forward. The article provides a political and historical context for the center's founding, explores the center's accomplishments, and concludes by discussing considerations for coalition leaders in other states.