Big Bend eligible for $1M Aspen prize

MOSES LAKE — Big Bend Community College announced Thursday that the Aspen Institute named Big Bend as one of 150 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.

The announcement called the award the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among two-year colleges. According to the statement, the institutions are selected for having high and improving levels of student success as well as equitable outcomes for Black and Hispanic students and those from lower-income backgrounds.

“I am proud that Big Bend Community College is being recognized as an Aspen Top 150 College and this honor is a testament to our faculty, staff and administration’s innovative spirit as well as commitment and dedication to our students,” Big Bend President Sara Thompson Tweedy said in the statement. “Lives are transformed every day by the love, care and support that they give our students. Everyone works so hard to ensure that every person who walks into our classrooms has the opportunity and support to be successful.”

According to the statement, the 150 eligible colleges have been invited to submit student success data and narratives about strategies to achieve better and more equitable student outcomes as the next step in an intensive review process that culminates in the naming of the Aspen Prize winner in spring 2025. 

“These 150 colleges have achieved high and improving levels of student success for all students, including those who are often failed by our institutions,” said Josh Wyner, executive director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. “We’re excited to learn over the coming months how they achieved that success so we can share the most impressive practices with others in the field.” 

The statement said that student outcomes vary substantially among institutions and that the Aspen Institute measures those variances using multiple data sources and honors colleges with outstanding achievement.

“As community colleges face enrollment variations, enroll students with pandemic-related learning loss, and graduate students into a rapidly changing labor market, it is easy to lose track of what matters most,” Wyner said. “The best community colleges are continuing to focus on advancing the core mission: making sure as many students as possible graduate with credentials that lead to fulfilling careers and reflect the development of diverse talent that communities, states, and our nation need.”

For more information and a full list of eligible colleges, visit bit.ly/AspenPrize2025.