February 5, 2021 | Issue # 180
Last week, AACC held its annual Workforce Development Institute. Though the event occurred virtually this year, the sessions were engaging and the speakers were very open when discussing the challenges of delivering workforce education safely during a pandemic. I have heard from many of you about how much you enjoyed and appreciated the conference.
Many speakers emphasized this point: We are living in a moment where we can make real, lasting, and positive changes to higher education that ensure we are meeting the needs of all students, now and in the future. I’m heartened to hear that so many of you are seizing this moment.
Kudos to Senior Vice President of Workforce and Economic Development Jen Worth and our workforce development staff for coordinating this virtual event.
In 2020, we announced the Equity Transfer Initiative (ETI), which AACC will lead in partnership with American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. ETI aims to increase transfer rates for African American, Hispanic, adult, and first-generation learners. In late January, we announced that 16 partnerships from 13 states representing 17 community colleges and 19 universities were selected to participate. See the list of participants here.
Preliminary Schedule Available for AACC Live & Digital
The preliminary agenda for AACC Live can be found online here. AACC Live will take place in Nashville, Tennessee, April 11-14. You can view the preliminary agenda for AACC Digital, which will happen Thursdays in May, here.
2021 Outstanding Alumni Award Recipients
We’re excited to announce the three people chosen to receive the 2021 Outstanding Alumni Award. Find out who the award recipients are here. We’ll be honoring them on April 13 at AACC Live. Thank you to the Committee on Community College Advancement for reviewing the nominations and selecting the honorees.
We’ve posted the 2021 Fast Facts, which will give you a snapshot of community colleges and the students served. Download Fast Facts here.
There are dozens of exciting, informative sessions in May as part of AACC Digital. You can view the whole schedule online now. Don’t miss out on this monthlong professional development opportunity—register now!
Congrats to the Awards of Excellence Finalists
This week, we announced the finalists for the AACC Awards of Excellence. Check out the full list here. Winners will be announced May 27 as part of AACC Digital.
Register for AACC Live and AACC Digital
Don’t miss out on this year’s biggest professional development opportunity. Registration is now open for both AACC Live and AACC Digital. You can register for one or both events.
Vote in the AACC Board Election
On Monday, we sent information to AACC member CEOs about voting in the AACC Board of Directors election. The email, which includes voting credentials, came from aacc@simplyvoting.com. If you didn’t get the email, please contact Dr. Angel Royal. Voting ends February 26 at 5:00 p.m. (ET).
On February 1, I was pleased to join AACC Chair William Serrata and members of the AACC Executive Committee for the AACC and ACCT Joint Executive Committees Meeting, where each of our organizations share information on our initiatives and priorities.