El Camino has been dropped from the running to win a $1 million prize for community college excellence, according to the list of finalists from the Aspen Institute.
In January, EC was announced as one of the 150 finalists to potentially win the $1 million, but the school has been dropped from the list of 10 finalists of 2016.
The Aspen Institute aims to award a community college the prize money based on “improvements in learning, graduation, workforce outcomes, and equitable outcomes for all students, focusing on those in traditionally underserved racial/ethnic groups,” according to its website.
There are three rounds that colleges must go through in order to win the award, beginning with widdling down the numbers from 1,000 plus community colleges to 150, according to the Aspen Institute website.
From there, round two is finished by choosing 10 finalists to potentially win the award.
Of those 10 finalists for this year’s award are two southern California community colleges:
- Anoka-Ramsey Community College (Coon Rapids, MN)
- Broward College (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
- Chaffey College (Rancho Cucamonga, CA)
- Indian River State College (Fort Pierce, FL)
- Lake Area Technical Institute (Watertown, SD)
- Northeast Community College (Norfolk, NE)
- Odessa College (Odessa, TX)
- Pasadena City College (Pasadena, CA)
- San Jacinto College (Pasadena, TX)
- West Kentucky Community and Technical College (Paducah, KY)
The winner will be chosen by a committee of former community college presidents, researchers and policy experts, according to the website. The winner will also, of course, receive the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.
