The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program today named Mitchell Technical Institute and Southeast Technical Institute among the nation’s top 150 community colleges eligible to compete for the 2021 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence and $1 million in prize funds, as well as the Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award. Based on strong and improving student outcomes—including in learning, completion rates, employment rates and earnings, and equity—15% of community colleges nationwide have been invited to apply for the Aspen Prize.
Southeast Tech President Robert Griggs and MTI President Mark Wilson issued a joint statement: “We are honored to once again be nominated for recognition by the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. South Dakota has one of the finest technical education systems in the nation and our state’s technical institutes are achieving their primary goal every day of preparing a skilled workforce for South Dakota. Students can be confident that their education prepares them for in-demand technical careers. Business and industry can be assured that graduates are ready to take on the challenges of the modern workplace.”
The 150 community colleges named today as eligible to compete for the 2021 Aspen Prize were selected from a pool of nearly 1,000 public two-year colleges nationwide using publicly available data on student outcomes. Located in 39 states in urban, rural, and suburban areas, serving as few as 500 students and as many as 75,000 students, these colleges represent the diversity and depth of the community college sector.
Data show that over the last two years, student retention, graduation rates, and degree completion have improved at the top tier of 150 Aspen Prize-eligible colleges.
The top ten finalists for the 2021 Aspen Prize will be named in May 2020. The Aspen Institute will then conduct site visits to each of the finalists and collect additional quantitative data, including employment and earnings data. A distinguished jury will make award decisions in spring 2021.
Lake Area Technical Institute in Watertown won the Aspen Prize in 2017. MTI was a Top Ten Finalist in 2019.