Mattoon, IL-(Effingham Radio)- The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program named Lake Land College as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation. This is the sixth time Lake Land College has received this recognition. The institutions selected for this honor stand out among more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide as having high and improving levels of student success as well as equitable outcomes for Black and Hispanic students and those from lower-income backgrounds.
“I am so proud of our Lake Land College community for receiving this incredible honor from the Aspen Institute,” Lake Land College President Josh Bullock said. “As we progress in implementing our Growing the Laker Advantage Strategic Plan, it is remarkable to know that our commitment to student success has garnered national recognition. The fact that this is our college’s sixth consecutive nomination is a testament to the collective dedication of our faculty, staff and trustees in upholding a student-first culture throughout our campus.”
The Aspen Prize spotlights exemplary community colleges in order to drive attention to colleges achieving post-graduate success for all students, and is a central way Aspen researches highly effective student success strategies that are shared with the field.
“The Aspen Prize is rooted first and foremost in an assessment of whether colleges are walking the walk,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. “As community colleges face enrollment variations, enroll students with pandemic-related learning loss, and graduate students into a rapidly changing labor market, it is easy to lose track of what matters most. The best community colleges are continuing to focus on advancing the core mission: making sure as many students as possible graduate with credentials that lead to fulfilling careers and reflect the development of diverse talent that communities, states, and our nation need.”
While community colleges are an essential contributor to our nation’s success, student outcomes vary substantially among institutions. Aspen measures those variances using multiple data sources and honors colleges with outstanding achievement in six critical areas: teaching and learning, certificate and degree completion, transfer and bachelor’s attainment, workforce success, equitable access to the college, and equitable outcomes for students of color and students from low-income backgrounds.
“These 150 colleges have achieved high and improving levels of student success for all students, including those who are often failed by our institutions,” Wyner said. “We’re excited to learn over the coming months how they achieved that success so we can share the most impressive practices with others in the field.”
For more information, visit aspeninstitute.org.
To learn more about Lake Land College, visit lakelandcollege.edu.
Lake Land College District 517, located in Mattoon, Illinois, serves the second largest community college district in the state, with a total population of 189,869. The Lake Land College district comprises all or part of 15 counties and 31 public school districts in rural east central Illinois. Counties served by Lake Land College include: Christian, Clark, Clay, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, Macon, Montgomery, Moultrie and Shelby.
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