Student Success
Aspen Institute Names Wake Tech as Top 200 Community College
WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 28, 2025) – When it comes to student success, Wake Tech is among the very best at delivering results.
The Aspen Institute has named Wake Tech as one of the 200 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation's premier recognition of high achievement and performance among two-year colleges. The 200 colleges were selected based on their student outcomes data, including retention, completion, transfer and bachelor's degree attainment rates.
"Wake Tech is deeply honored to be recognized by the Aspen Institute," said Wake Tech President Dr. Scott Ralls. "This distinction affirms our commitment to reaching students across Wake County and rallying around them with the support they need – not only to succeed academically, but to thrive in their careers and lives beyond graduation."
Wake Tech recently completed its 2021-2025 Reach and Rally Strategic Plan, which focused the college on the strategic emphases of economic mobility and access by helping students complete credentials, transfer and move on to jobs with labor market value in a timely manner. Since initiating the strategic plan, Wake Tech has reached a significantly higher percentage of students from economically disadvantaged communities, achieved the highest retention rates in the college's history and established numerous employer and university partnerships, including more than 160 apprenticeship partnerships with Wake County employers.
Wake Tech recently initiated the second phase of its plan, Reach and Rally 2.0, to go even further in fostering student success and economic mobility, with multiple planning sessions taking place with students, faculty, staff and board members.
"The Aspen Prize rewards colleges that achieve the kind of outcomes that actually matter to students – completing college degree programs that, in turn, lead to lifelong success," said Josh Wyner, executive director of the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program. "Aspen Prize winners offer a powerful message: Community colleges can deliver the kind of life-changing education that makes the American Dream real."
Community colleges educate nearly 6 million students across the country. Yet, community college student outcomes often fall short in terms of graduation rates and the percentage of students who achieve success after graduation. The Aspen Prize process identifies and celebrates community colleges that demonstrate that achieving stronger outcomes is possible, providing a roadmap of effective practices and strategies for other colleges to follow.
The 200 eligible colleges have been invited to submit an application and participate in a rigorous review process that will culminate in the naming of the Aspen Prize winner in spring 2027. Over the coming 20 months, the colleges that apply for the Aspen Prize will be assessed based on student outcomes data, ranging from student transfer and completion rates to employment and wages after graduation, and whether they have engaged in scaled practices that led to high and improving student outcomes.
"Among these 200 colleges are some really special places that deliver strong and improving outcomes for students across the board," Wyner said. "Our job over the coming 20 months is to gather a lot more data and work with a deep bench of field experts to assess which of these 200 stand out so we can not only honor them with a monetary award, but drive attention to the most effective field practices that other colleges can replicate."
This year, in addition to publicly available federal data, more than 600 colleges authorized the use of National Student Clearinghouse data on their institution's degree completion, transfer and bachelor's attainment rates for full- and part-time students.
Started in 2010, this is the ninth cycle of the Aspen Prize. The full list of colleges and details of the selection process can be found on the Aspen Prize homepage.
Wake Tech is North Carolina's largest community college, serving more than 72,000 adults annually, with seven campuses, a workforce training center, multiple community sites across Wake County and a comprehensive array of online learning options.
