Ellucian is proud to showcase the winners of this year's Experience Idol! Customers and partners were announced on the main stage at Ellucian Live, the industry's premier global technology conference. The 2026 Ellucian Experience Idol competition builds on last year's success, showcasing best-in-class customer innovations using the Ellucian Platform and leveraging capabilities such as central workspace, data orchestration, and business process automation. We also recognized innovative uses of AI leveraging technology like the AI Writing Assistant and Student Retention Dashboards.
The Ellucian Experience Idol competition invited higher education institutions to customize the Ellucian Platform for today's students and staff. Judging focused on three categories: dashboard, use case, and use of AI. Finalist institutions were voted on by peer institution leaders and presented on the mainstage at Ellucian Live 2026.
The 2026 Ellucian Experience Idol winners and finalists include:
Best Use Case
Institutions in the Best Use Case category demonstrated how Ellucian technologies can be applied to solve high-friction operational challenges while improving the experience for both administrators and end users.
Winner: University of the Fraser Valley
The University of the Fraser Valley earned top honors for building a centralized emergency communication system within Ellucian's central workspace that allows staff to issue fast, consistent messaging across multiple channels from a single point of control. By replacing a fragmented process that required updates across several disconnected systems, the institution can now simultaneously deliver communications through email, SMS, workspace notifications, and additional outreach tools. With a unified dashboard providing visibility into active and past alerts, the university has dramatically improved coordination, reduced confusion, and strengthened trust during time-sensitive campus incidents.
Finalist: SUNY Upstate Medical University
SUNY Upstate Medical University was recognized for modernizing the creation of critical academic documents through an automated workflow built with Ellucian business process automation and low-code integrations. Students are guided through structured tasks with pre-populated data, while faculty reviewers manage submissions, approvals, and routing within a centralized system. Automated document generation eliminates manual formatting and version control issues, reducing a process that once took up to 14 weeks to approximately three while improving confidence and consistency for all stakeholders.
Finalist: Three Rivers College
Three Rivers College reimagined its scholarship application experience by replacing fragmented email-based outreach with a persistent, student-centered scholarship workflow powered by Ellucian's central workspace and business process automation. Students now maintain a continuously updated profile that can be accessed at any time, while automated tasks and multi-channel notifications drive stronger participation and engagement. On the administrative side, standardized reporting has transformed committee preparation from a multi-day manual lift into a far more efficient and scalable process.
Best Use of AI
The Best Use of AI category recognized institutions that leveraged artificial intelligence to improve decision-making, reduce manual burden, and create smarter, more responsive campus operations.
Winner: Anne Arundel Community College
Anne Arundel Community College received this year's Best Use of AI award for its innovative use of Ellucian's business process automation and AI Writing Assistant to enhance a high-volume faculty contract workflow. By using AI to generate precise, role-specific instructions and consistent communications at each approval stage, the institution significantly reduced ambiguity, rework cycles, and approval delays. The result is a more transparent, efficient, and reliable contract process that maintains human oversight while removing much of the friction that previously burdened faculty and administrative teams.
Finalist: Spartanburg Methodist College
Spartanburg Methodist College leveraged Ellucian's Student Retention Models to take a more proactive, data-driven approach to student persistence. By analyzing institutional data and surfacing the variables most strongly tied to retention risk, the college can now identify students who need intervention earlier and with greater precision. Advisors can pair predictive insights with additional academic indicators inside integrated dashboards, replacing manual judgment with actionable intelligence that strengthens outreach and long-term retention planning.
Best Overall Dashboard
This category honored institutions that created cohesive, intuitive digital front doors that make it easier for campus communities to access the information, resources, and actions they need most.
Winner: Jacksonville University
Jacksonville University earned recognition for transforming its campus portal from a fragmented SharePoint environment into a unified, mobile-friendly dashboard built within Ellucian's central workspace. Through a consistent design system spanning 24 cards, the university created a cohesive branded experience that gives students, faculty, and staff seamless access to critical resources from one centralized location. Features such as consolidated financial aid information, one-tap campus security access, and a powerful search function for commonly used forms have significantly reduced help desk calls while creating a more intuitive and modern campus front door.
Finalist: Kaskaskia College
Kaskaskia College streamlined advising and registration by introducing a pair of integrated cards within Ellucian's central workspace that improve visibility and reduce administrative bottlenecks for both advisors and students. Faculty advisors can instantly identify registration holds, remove restrictions, and communicate with assigned students without relying on manual email chains, while students receive clearer access to advisor details, office hours, and direct messaging. Real-time notifications ensure students know when holds are lifted, helping them move to registration faster and stay on track academically.
Congratulations to all of the 2026 Ellucian Experience Idol winners and finalists for their commitment to innovation, operational excellence, and student-centered transformation across higher education.
Get Notified When 2027 Sign-Up Opens
Sign-ups to participate open each year for a limited time. Now is the time to explore ideas, align your team, and begin building. Whether you're just getting started or expanding an existing implementation, Experience Idol is an opportunity to share your work and learn from others.
