A Community College Research Center study surveyed students who stopped out and found financial hardship, academic struggles and psychological stress as leading reasons for attrition, with most surveyed students citing multiple overlapping barriers. The analysis highlights how institutional supports, advising and emergency aid could reduce stopout rates and improve completion. Complementing that evidence, a replicated belonging intervention in the California community college system improved persistence and narrowed equity gaps in GPA for underrepresented students. Higher education leaders are being asked to scale early‑impact, low‑cost interventions while addressing structural financial barriers that push students to pause or leave their studies.