Amarillo College President Russell Lowery-Hart has a tradition at every graduation ceremony for the college: taking a group selfie with all the graduates at some point.
While there was not a graduation Tuesday, after the college hosted its two ceremonies at Hodgetown last Friday, Lowery-Hart was in a celebratory mood as the college was announced as the Rising Star winner from the Aspen Institute. This prompted Lowery-Hart to gather faculty, staff, students, community leaders and supporters for a selfie.
After more than a year-long process, and being named as a Top 10 finalist for the 2021 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, AC was recognized as one of the top five community colleges in the nation, being honored with the institute’s Rising Star award and gaining a $100,000 prize.
Breathtaking and surreal - San Antonio College wins Aspen Prize as top U.S. community college
May 18, 2021
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Christopher Romero, 36, hugs his wife JoAnn Romero, 30, as he celebrates his graduation from San Antonio College in a parade through campus Nov. 21. The Aspen Institute on Tuesday named SAC the top community college in the country.Matthew Busch /For The San Antonio Express-News
San Antonio College was awarded the Aspen Prize on Tuesday and named the top community college in the country, a testament to its demonstrated success in supporting a diverse student body, officials said.
“What this says is that our faculty, staff and students are best in class in the United States, and that San Antonio, Bexar County and our region have the best community college in our nation,” said Mike Flores, chancellor of the Alamo Colleges District.
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San Antonio College has won this year’s top prize for community college excellence from the Aspen Institute. It was selected out of the more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide for the 2021 Aspen Prize.
“Pinch me, I think I’m dreaming,” SAC President Robert Vela said when he first heard the news. “Did I really wake up this morning?”
Vela said the Aspen Prize is the culmination of six years of effort to improve outcomes for students. He said the award will inspire the SAC student body to also shoot for excellence.
“This award will validate that for them, to say, ‘You will not settle for anything. You will receive the best when you attend San Antonio College or any one of the Alamo Colleges.’ That’s transformational for a first-time-in-college student that never had in their minds or thought that higher ed was for them,” he said.