Florida Architects congratulates Indian River State College and IRSC President, Dr. Edwin Massey, on winning the 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence! The Aspen Prize, awarded every two years since 2011, is the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among America’s community colleges.

The Aspen Prize recognizes outstanding institutions selected from an original pool of more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide. With a singular focus on student success, the Aspen Prize assesses institutional performance in four areas: student learning, certificate and degree completion, success after graduation in the labor market and in transfer to four-year institutions, and equity in access and success for students of color and low-income students.

An Aspen Prize finalist in 2015 and a Finalist-with-Distinction in 2017, IRSC has proven its ability to sustainably improve student success rates at scale and has developed a student-focused culture that makes it likely that it will continue to build upon its successes and address challenges. Strong outcomes are the result of two strategic efforts at IRSC. The first is to provide strong guidance so that students develop academic plans clearly mapping a path to transfer without losing time or credits. The second is IRSC’s bold decision to build 17 of its own bachelor’s degree programs. IRSC leaders recognized the need—very real in the semirural location on Florida’s eastern coast more than 60 miles from a four-year university—to create educational opportunities beyond the two-year degree. The result: large numbers of students transfer “internally,” including many who may not have otherwise considered pursuing a four-year degree.

Florida Architects is truly honored to work with such an outstanding college on many IRSC building projects, including the Brown Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Kight Center for Emerging Technologies, the Treasure Coast Public Safety Training Complex, the Tomeu Center and the Health Science Center among other projects that are currently in progress. Florida Architects and IRSC have a common goal to develop student-focused learning environments and it has been a pleasure to partner with them for many years.

Congratulations again to IRSC President, Dr. Edwin Massey and all the people of Indian River State College!