Montgomery College Among National Finalists in Awards of Excellence Honors Program
Montgomery College is a finalist for an award in a prestigious new awards program designed to recognize innovation and promising practices at two-year colleges nationwide. Montgomery College is one of five finalists in the Exemplary CEO/Board category in the inaugural Awards of Excellence, sponsored by the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC).
“Being named a finalist by the American Association of Community Colleges is an honor and a testament to the work of the Montgomery College Board of Trustees, which is a driving force behind the success of our institution, our employees, and our students,” Montgomery College President DeRionne P. Pollard said. “Our trustees serve our College with a deep devotion to empowering our students to change their lives and to enrich the lives of our community.”
The national winners in each of the five award categories will be named April 23 in San Francisco during the AACC annual convention, an event that attracts close to 2,000 educators, policymakers, corporate and foundation representatives each year. In addition to the Exemplary CEO/Board category, the Awards of Excellence features Emerging Leadership, Student Success, Advancing Diversity, and Outstanding College/Corporate Partnership categories. For a full list of finalists see www.aacc.nche.edu.
“On behalf of the trustees, we are truly humbled by this recognition,” said Stephen Z. Kauffman, chair of the Board of Trustees at Montgomery College. “We all are committed deeply to our College’s students and employees, as well as our community, and are honored to be part of such a life-changing institution.”
The Awards of Excellence are designed to reward innovative practices in areas that relate to the recommendations of the 21st-Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges, a national, blue-ribbon group of education experts that issued its report last spring. In the report, members of the commission described a redesigned community college of tomorrow, one that would “reinvent the student experience” and help “reclaim the American dream.”
“Over an 18-month period, the 21st-Century Commission provided a bold and forward-thinking blueprint for the community college of the future,” said Marie Gnage, chair of the AACC Board of Directors. “With these new awards, AACC intends to elevate community colleges that are in the vanguard of progressive practices. The awardees will receive national visibility, but the spotlight on their exemplary practices will ultimately benefit all community colleges.”
Finalists for the AACC Awards of Excellence were chosen by a specially-appointed committee of the association’s board of directors, based on specific criteria.
About Montgomery CollegeMontgomery College is a public, open admissions community college with campuses in Germantown, Rockville, and Takoma Park/Silver Spring, plus workforce development/continuing education centers and off-site programs throughout Montgomery County, Md. The College serves nearly 60,000 students a year, through both credit and noncredit programs, in more than 130 areas of study.
About AACCThe American Association of Community Colleges is a national organization representing the nation’s over 1,100 community, junior and technical colleges and their 13.5 million students. Community colleges are the largest sector of higher education, enrolling almost half of all U.S. undergraduates. For more information about AACC and community colleges, see www.aacc.nche.edu .
