For the second consecutive year, Broward College has been ranked in the top 10 percent of community colleges nationally, and as such, is eligible to compete for a share of the 2013 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, according to an April 23 announcement by the Washington, D.C.- based Aspen Institute.
Broward was named among the 120 community colleges eligible to compete for the second annual $1 million Aspen Prize. The bar for the Aspen Prize was intentionally set high in order to identify institutions that had demonstrated high levels of student success.
The Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program seeks to identify and replicate campus-wide practices that significantly improve college student outcomes. Through the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the New College Leadership Project and other initiatives, the program works to improve colleges’ understanding and capacity to teach and graduate students, especially the growing population of low-income and minority students on American campuses.
In a comprehensive review of publicly available data, the 120 two-year institutions—from 31 states—demonstrated strong outcomes considering three areas of student success: 1) student success in persistence, completion, and transfer; 2) consistent improvement in outcomes over time, and 3) equity in outcomes for students of all racial/ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
In Round 2 of the tripartite competition, a finalist selection committee of former community college presidents and faculty, along with researchers and policy experts, will identify a group of institutions that deliver the most exceptional student outcomes in four areas: completion outcomes, labor market outcomes, learning outcomes and equitable outcomes.
A site visit will be made in September to each finalist college. A panel of judges will award points based on how much students learn, how many complete their programs on time, and how well students do in the job market after graduating. The grand prize winner will be awarded up to $700,000 and three runners-up will be awarded $100,000 each.
“We are pleased and honored for the second consecutive year to be named one of the 120 to community colleges in the U.S.” said Broward College President J. David Armstrong, Jr. “Seven million students across the spectrum of age and culture enroll in community colleges annually in the United States. We’re honored to again be ranked in this prestigious group. Competitions such as these help us better understand how well we’re doing in meeting their needs and those of the communities we serve.”
“The success of our nation’s community colleges is more important than ever before,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. “At a time when a college degree is essential to entering the middle class, community colleges offer the most promising path to education and employment for literally millions of Americans.
“This competition spotlights excellence and helps raise the bar for all community colleges to improve student achievement and better prepare the next generation for the job market after college.”
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Broward College is the first and largest institution of higher education in Broward County, providing residents with certificate programs, two-year university-transfer degrees, two-year career degrees and baccalaureate degrees in selected programs. Broward College has the second-largest enrollment among the 28 members of the Florida College System, serving more than 67,000 students annually. The mission of the college is to provide high-quality educational programs and services that are affordable and accessible to a diverse community of learners. For more information, visit www.broward.edu.
The Aspen College Excellence Program aims to identify and replicate campus-wide practices that significantly improve college student outcomes. Through the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, projects targeting a new generation of college leaders, and other initiatives, the College Excellence Program works to improve colleges’ understanding and capacity to teach and graduate students, especially the growing population of low-income and minority students on American campuses. For more information, visit www.AspenCCPrize.org and
http://www.aspeninstitute.org