An international think tank has named Forsyth Tech among the top 25 community colleges in the U.S. The school is up for the Aspen Institute’s top prize.
The judges were looking for community colleges that deliver positive outcomes for their students. FTCC President Janet Spriggs says they checked all the boxes: doubling the graduation rate over five years — tripling it for minority students — and growing the enrollment to the highest it’s been in more than a decade, and providing pathways to stable jobs.
Spriggs first credits the school’s faculty, who teach a diverse population of students ranging in age from 16 to 79. She says the college is also tackling barriers faced by many adult learners.
"They have daycare challenges, being able to afford daycare," she says. "They have transportation challenges and food insecurity. We've done a lot of work to expand and enhance the way we teach in the class, the way we schedule our classes, but we've also done a lot of work on the non-academic side, providing support services to keep students moving forward."
Forsyth Tech is one of 25 semifinalists vying for a $1 million prize. Spriggs says by mid-June, 10 finalists will be named. A panel of judges will then visit each campus in person. The winner will be announced in April of next year.