Chronicle of Higher Education: Aspen Prize Is Awarded to 2 Florida Colleges

The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Indian River State College (Fort Pierce, Florida) and Miami Dade College (Miami) are the winners of the 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among America’s community colleges.

The annual prize once described by Barack Obama as “basically the Oscars for great community colleges” was awarded on Tuesday to two Florida institutions: Indian River State College and Miami Dade College.
Florida has a history of winning the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. The first Aspen Prize was given to Valencia Community College, in Orlando, in 2011; the third went to Santa Fe College, in Gainesville. And this year Broward College, in Fort Lauderdale, was also a finalist. The winners will receive $350,000 each, and the finalists $100,000 each.