2 November ICC named one of nation's top 150 community colleges November 2, 2021 By Thomas, Donna S. General 0 Today, the Aspen Institute named Itawamba Community College one of the 150 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among America’s community colleges. Those 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. The 150 eligible colleges have been invited to submit data and narratives as the next steps in an intensive data and practice review process, culminating in the announcement of the Prize winner in spring 2023. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation and to be afforded the opportunity to compete for the significant Aspen Prize,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College, its continuing status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty and staff, without whom it would not be possible.” The 2023 selection for Itawamba Community College is its fifth in a row. The Aspen Prize spotlights exemplary community colleges in order to elevate the sector, drive attention to colleges doing the best work and discover and share highly-effective student success and equity strategies. Since 2010, Aspen has chosen to focus intensively on community colleges because they are – as First Lady Dr. Jill Biden stated at the 2021 Aspen Prize ceremony – “a powerful engine of prosperity.” Student outcomes vary enormously among community colleges, and improving those outcomes is essential to securing the nation’s economic future, strengthening communities and ensuring that diverse populations experience economic mobility and prosperity. With these goals in mind, the Aspen Prize honors colleges with outstanding achievement in five critical areas: teaching and learning, certificate and degree completion, transfer and bachelor’s attainment, workforce success and equity for students of color and those from low-income backgrounds. “In an era of persistent inequity and workforce talent gaps, our nation’s best community colleges are stepping up to deliver more degrees to increasingly diverse students so they are prepared for the good jobs waiting to be filled,” said Josh Wyner, executive director for the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. “Leaders of exceptional community colleges understand that achieving excellence requires expanding college access and increasing degree completion, but it doesn’t stop there. They are committed to ensuring that all students – including students of color and those from low-income backgrounds – graduate with the skills needed to secure a job with family-sustaining wages or successfully transfer to and graduate from a university. The same commitment that stands at the center of the Aspen Prize: to advance the goals of social mobility and equitable talent development.” The eligible colleges represent the diversity and depth of the community college sector. Located in urban, rural and suburban areas across 34 states, these colleges serve as few as 230 students and as many as 57,000. In the first round, eligibility for the Aspen Prize is based on publicly available data. Eligible colleges must show strong and improving student outcomes in key areas such as retention, completion, transfer and equity. Nationwide, 15 percent of community colleges (150 of the approximately 1,000 public two-year colleges nationwide assessed for the Prize) have been invited to apply. The next steps in the process include: Selection of the top 10 finalists by an expert panel of 15 experts in community colleges, higher education and workforce training, which will be announced in the 2022 spring semester. Fall 2022 site visits to each of the 10 finalists, during which the Aspen Institute and partners will collect additional information, including employment and earnings data and insights about promising practices. A distinguished jury will meet and make award decisions in the first quarter of early 2021 and Announcement of the Aspen Prize in late spring 2023. A full list of the top 150 eligible institutions is available at www.highered.aspeninstitute.org/aspen-prize. Related Articles Itawamba Community College receives $100,000 and joins 41 other schools across the US as All Within My Hands' Metallica Scholars Initiative expands in year five Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands, continues its multimillion-dollar investment in critical workforce programs at community colleges nationwide. Among the schools, Itawamba Community College was selected from a competitive pool of applicants to receive $100,000 to transform the futures of students in the community. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the recipients of the prestigious All Within My Hands grant, which will significantly impact our career education programs, providing funding for students to pursue a pathway and their best start,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College and reinforcement of the mission that students and their success are our top priority.” The Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI) was launched in 2019 by Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands (AWMH), in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The workforce initiative marks its fifth year with an ambitious expansion into new curricula. MSI now directly supports 42 community colleges across 33 states, and by the end of this year, it will have helped ... Aspen Institute names ICC as one of nation's top 150 and eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence Today, the Aspen Institute named Itawamba Community College as one of the 150 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among two-year colleges. The institutions selected for this honor stand out among more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide as having high improving levels of student success as well as equitable outcomes for Black and Hispanic students and those from lower-income backgrounds. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation and to afforded the opportunity to compete for the significant Aspen Prize,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College, its continuing status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty and staff, without whom it would not be possible.” ICC was selected as a top community college in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021 and as a semifinalist in 2023. The Aspen Prize spotlights exemplary community ... ICC's Guntharp represents all 15 community colleges during significant C Spire MissiON announcement Itawamba Community College Systems Engineer Jason Guntharp of Fulton represented all 15 Mississippi public two-year institutions during a press briefing Thursday to announce their addition to a statewide science, engineering and technology research and development consortium called the Mississippi Optical Network (MissiON). Guntharp served as chair of the subcommittee, which assisted with the addition of Mississippi’s community colleges to the C Spire initiative. Additional speakers for the virtual press conference included Hu Meena, president and CEO of C Spire; Dr. Andrea Mayfield, executive director of the Mississippi Community College Board; David Sliman, CIO of the University of Southern Mississippi; and Jim Richmond, vice president of marketing for C Spire. They discussed the addition of community colleges to the network, the boost for distance learning, efforts to train and equip students for future jobs in Mississippi employers and benefits for the state’s economy through the MissiON network. “As Mississippi’s leading broadband communications provider, C Spire is proud to provide innovative, leading-edge technology and the latest fiber optic infrastructure to help expand the size of ... ICC's Guntharp named Mississippi Community College Connectivity Consortium chairman Jason Guntharp of Fulton, system engineer/project manager at Itawamba Community College, has been recently named chairman of the Mississippi Community College Connectivity Consortium (MC4). MC4 is the evolution of the state’s Computer Center Director’s Association, now known as MJCCCDA, which was formed on Dec. 10, 1986. Its purpose is to collaborate and share solutions to problems that affected all colleges as well as the catalyst for a computer network to connect all of the two-year colleges. The Strategic Planning Council, which was the first IT technical group, evolved into MC4. Today, the organization represents community colleges from across the state and confronts the technology challenges that affect every community college, Guntharp said. “It is an honor to lead and be part of a group with such a rich history in the state. We are in a synergistic position whose projects will help all community colleges across the state.” MC4 has quarterly meetings with input from vendors on various technologies that could benefit the state’s community colleges, Guntharp noted. “We have a group with ... BestColleges.com recognizes ICC as best in Mississippi and among nation's top 10 Itawamba Community College has been recognized as the best online community college in Mississippi and among the top 10 in the nation by BestColleges.com, a leading online resource for college planning and advice. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected the best in the state and among the best in the nation by BestColleges.com,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “Exceptional recognitions such as this are indications of the success of the College, its continuing status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty and staff, without whom it would not be possible. Success breeds success, and our students and alumni are proof that the BEST start here.” This year, BestColleges.com revised its approach to school rankings, focusing on the most important factors that students consider in their college-decision making process,” according to information from Nicholas Linden, senior communications manager. The metrics were taken directly from its College Choice and Admission survey, reflecting the top preferences and priorities of students from across the country. In the 2023 College Choice and ... Aspen Institute names ICC as a Top 150 U.S. Community College Aspen Institute Names Itawamba Community College as a Top 150 U.S. Community College Eligible for 2021 Aspen Prize $1 Million Prize Recognizes Excellence in Equitable Outcomes for Students in and After College The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program today named Itawamba Community College as one of 150 community colleges eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among America's community colleges. Based on strong and improving in student outcomes—including in learning, completion rates, employment rates and earnings and equity—15 percent of community colleges nationwide have been invited to apply for the Aspen Prize. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation and the opportunity to compete for the significant Aspen Prize,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College, its status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty and staff.” The 150 community colleges named today as eligible to compete for the ... Comments are closed.