This paper describes the methodology utilized to bring the 1993/1996 Katsinas-Lacey 2 year college classification system into the 21st century. The methodology involved using data from the 2000 United States Census and the National Center for Education Statistic's Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System surveys for the 2000-2001 and 2001-2002 academic years. The primary purpose of this work was to create an empirically supported, valid tool that can be used by researchers to create useful descriptive portraits of the universe of 2 year, publicly controlled institutions that primarily offer the associate's degree. The study concludes with recommendations for further research. These include using the new Katsinas, Lacey, and Hardy 2005 Classification System to describe and discern similarities and differences within this particular institutional population by class and subclass within the model. This would be achieved through its application to existing national datasets, to researcher-designed surveys, and other research protocols.