For the second year in a row, Santa Barbara has been the only school in California to qualify as a top ten finalist for The Aspen Institute’s College Excellence award.
Staring Sept. 11, interviews will be held with staff and faculty, data will be collected and the Aspen Institute panel will summarize all the information. The number one finalist will be awarded $750,000; the runners up will split the remaining $250,000 prize.
Dr. Jack Friedlander, executive vice president of educational programs, said that there are a number of factors that make City College special.
“We have a long tradition of being in the front of innovation and we have a culture that encourages and supports faculty, staff and students,” Friedlander said. “Everybody is coming up with good ideas and we are willing to take risks to support those ideas.”
On Wednesday Sept. 5, The Aspen Institute officially recognized the top ten community colleges in the nation. After announcing the top ten percent of 1200 community colleges in June.
The Aspen Institute looks for the college with the best outcome data, transfers, grades, completion certificates and degrees. They look at graduates who went from City College into the actual jobs in their field of study and how well students are doing with basic learning skills.
According to a Sept. 5 press release, after revealing the top ten finalists, Josh Wyner, executive director of the Aspen Institute’s College Excellence Program said, “Santa Barbara City College is doing an excellent job of providing students with the knowledge and skill sets they need for success. It’s particularly impressive to see SBCC maintaining its innovative approaches at a time of continuing state education budget cuts.”
The Aspen Institute looks for student diversity and high grades. Based on the location and reputation of City College, it has become a melting pot of students of different cultures and backgrounds.
“Students go to their community college based on where they went to high school, here is quite the opposite,” said Friedlander. “Our students get the best of a university experience for a very low cost.”
The winner will be announced in March 2013.
Infograph by: Øystein Grønvold, Photo Editor
