Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence
On April 2, 2019, 帕洛阿尔托学院被评为2019年阿斯彭社区学院卓越奖的新星, 这个国家对美国社区大学的高成就和表现的标志性认可.
What is the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence?
Awarded every two years since 2011, 阿斯彭卓越社区学院奖旨在表彰那些取得优异成绩并不断提高学生成绩的机构, selected from over 1,000 community colleges nationwide. Focused solely on student access and success, the Aspen Prize recognizes community colleges with exceptional achievements in four areas: student learning; certificate and degree completion while in community college and after transferring to a four-year institution; employment and earnings rates after graduation; and access for and success of minority and limited-income students.
Why did we win?
帕洛阿尔托学院因建立了清晰的学位和转学途径而获得荣誉, exceptional student advising, and strong partnerships with K-12 systems, 在过去的四年里，哪些因素使毕业率和转学率有了显著的提高, from 28 percent to 47 percent.
Joshua Wyner, 阿斯彭研究所大学卓越项目执行主任, stated, “帕洛阿尔托学院在过去几年里进行了一系列令人印象深刻的结构改革，重点是建立清晰的转移和重组咨询途径. These reforms, 哪些学院已经扩展到高中学生的工作中, have enabled Palo Alto to improve student success rapidly, 为越来越多的学生提供他们想要和需要的东西:一个有价值的学位."
Our Journey
作为帕洛阿尔托学院追求卓越表现的一部分, 我们寻求机会，如德克萨斯州卓越绩效奖和马尔科姆·鲍德里奇国家质量奖，以努力保持我们的组织优势和改进的机会. 作为德克萨斯州仅有的15所有资格获得阿斯彭奖的前150名社区大学之一, 帕洛阿尔托学院于2017年11月提交了一份申请，进入了下一轮比赛. 该申请经过严格的评估，然后被宣布为2019年阿斯彭社区大学卓越奖的十名决赛选手之一.
A distinguished Prize jury of education, business, 民权专家对每所入围学校进行了为期数天的实地考察. 优胜者是经过严格审查程序选出的，其中包括审查有关表现和学习进步的大量数据, graduation, workforce, and equitable outcomes.
Site Visit and Four Areas of Exceptional Performance
| Aspen Institute’s Four Areas of Student Success | Palo Alto College’s Exceptional Achievement Areas |
| Learning | Student Learning |
| Completion | Certificate/Degree Completion and Transfer |
| Labor Market | Employment and Earnings after Gradution |
| Equity | Success for Minority and Limited-Income Students |
Highlighted Initiatives at Palo Alto College
Learning Communities: Catch The Next-Ascender
这个学习社区面向服务不足的第一次上大学的学生(FTICs)，结合了跨学科的严格的基于素养和文化相关的课程, individualized advising and personal counseling, leadership development, and community outreach.
Developmental Education: Mathematics Redesign
帕洛阿尔托学院重组的发展数学序列创建了定义良好的, accelerated pathways to and through College Algebra, 旨在增加第一年完成入门数学课程的学生人数.
Partnerships: Early College High School & Dual Credit
通过学院的双学分和早期大学高中(ECHS)计划, approximately 3,每年，在收入有限和主要是西班牙裔社区，有1000名当地高中生在完成高中文凭要求的同时获得大学学分.
Student Resource Initiative: Advocacy
The S.H.A.R.E. (Student Health, Advocacy, 资源和参与)中心通过提供一个中心校园位置，提供按需服务，如衣橱，解决了我们的学生面临的挑战, food pantry, financial wellness, health screenings, and referrals to additional supportive services. 该中心的捐助者资助的紧急援助计划也提供短期财政援助，使学生保持注册，并朝着实现他们的学位或证书的轨道.
Academic Advising: AlamoADVISE
This unique, 综合咨询模式侧重于案例管理和积极主动的外展，以支持学生实现他们的教育目标.
Aspen Dollar Allocation
On August 20, 2019年帕洛阿尔托学院社区的成员参加了阿斯彭美元活动，以庆祝我们被指定为阿斯彭新星. 与会者还有机会就投资这100美元的最佳方式提供意见,000 cash prize associated with the award.