This essay reports the results of the latest Transfer Assembly Project examining the transfer behavior of students entering community colleges in 1995 and moving on to public in-state senior institutions by 1999. The essay also addresses the strengths and weaknesses of the Centers transfer rate definition and the reasons underlying differences in transfer rates. Since this study took twelve years to complete, the study's methodologies and findings are presented in a historical and comparative perspective. The study found that the national rate of transfer was 25.2% which indicates that the transfer function of American community colleges in intact. Community colleges provide an important avenue of educational progress for a large portion of the population. It should be noted that the lowest transfer rate was 15.3% for black students followed by 16.9% for Hispanic students. The study concludes that the increase in transfer rate reported from the 1999 and 2001 Transfer Assemblies might be the first signs of such a trend. Furthermore, future administrations of the survey using the same definition will be able to further document changes in the community college transfer function. (Contains 18 references and 3 tables.) (MZ)