Models of College Excellence

Every project at the Aspen College Excellence Program (Aspen) is informed by student outcomes. Our research begins with analyses of data on which colleges have achieved high and improving levels of access and success for all students. Even after controlling for the student population, geographic location, credentials offered, and other factors, we find that some colleges achieve much better student outcomes than others.

Those excellent colleges are reflected in the content on this website page. Click on the links below to learn more about these models of excellence and to understand what has been proven possible at US community colleges and four-year colleges and universities.

Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence |    American Talent Initiative High Fliers  |    Models of Transfer Excellence  |    Other Models of College Excellence

Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence: Winners and Finalists

Every two years, finalists and winners are named for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Informed by intensive data analysis and qualitative research, independent selection committees choose community colleges with outstanding achievements in six student outcome areas: teaching and learning, certificate and degree completion, transfer and bachelor’s attainment, workforce success, access, and equitable outcomes.

Watch a Recording of the 2025 Aspen Prize Ceremony, held April 17, 2025 in Washington, D.C.

Attention community colleges: we need your help to strengthen the data we use to pick the Aspen Prize winner! Please join over 600 colleges that have granted Aspen access to their National Student Clearinghouse data by signing the Adobe e-form and confirming your email address when prompted. Learn more here.

Winners and Finalists by Year

American Talent Initiative High Fliers

Aspen and its partners in the American Talent Initiative (ATI) designate member institutions as “high fliers” when they demonstrate high levels of success in expanding access and outcomes for talented students from low- and moderate-income backgrounds. These colleges—public and private, large and small, of varying endowment sizes—demonstrate what is possible when leaders prioritize ATI’s central goal: expanding talent development among socioeconomically diverse students.

View ATI Progress Metrics

Models of Transfer Excellence Among Four-Year Colleges/ Universities and Community Colleges

National surveys show that 80 percent of entering community college students aspire to earn a bachelor’s degree; Aspen’s research shows that only 16 percent achieve that goal within six years. Since 2015, Aspen has been identifying four-year colleges and universities and community colleges that achieve excellent and increasing levels of bachelor’s attainment for students who start in community college, and synthesizing research about those institutions in multiple publications. Our Playbooks and other publications below will provide access to lists of colleges that have achieved strong transfer outcomes and synthesis of the practices leading to those results.

Models of Excellence in Dual Enrollment, Community College Workforce Education, and Rural Community Colleges

Aspen has produced multiple publications that provide comprehensive guidance to community colleges about achieving excellent student outcomes in specific domains. Four of those publications are featured below, each containing lists of colleges that serve as models of excellence. The Workforce Playbook lists and synthesizes the practices of community colleges nationally that have achieved strong results for students in both graduation and workforce outcomes, and Excellence and Equity in STEM Education features colleges achieving strong STEM outcomes in workforce programs in four sectors tied to good jobs. The Dual Enrollment playbook features community colleges and their K12 partners in three states (FL, OH, WA) that have achieved high and equitable levels of student access and success in dual enrollment. The rural report features the practices of community colleges that have achieved strong student outcomes for students in rural communities. Each community college featured in these publications has demonstrated quantitative evidence of strong student outcomes.