Miami Dade College Receives Chancellor’s Best Practice Award for Innovative STEM Program
Dr. Will Holcombe, Chancellor of The Florida College System, present Best Practice Award to MDC Professor Dr. Maria I. Garcia
Miami, December 13, 2010 - Dr. Will Holcombe, Chancellor of The Florida College System, recently awarded Miami Dade College (MDC) a prestigious Chancellor’s Best Practice Award at the 61st Annual Florida Association of Community Colleges (FACC) Convention held in Jacksonville. MDC received one of only three awards, in the academic affairs category, for its innovative Project V-Coach Summer STEM Academy. This is the third year in a row that the Florida Department of Education honors MDC with this award.
Led by Dr. Maria I. Garcia, the Project V-Coach Summer STEM Academy at MDC aims to awaken students’ interest science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields and increase their passing scores. The project was made possible with a grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
“This year’s winners exemplify the importance our colleges have placed on training students in the math and sciences. STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education plays a critical role in enabling the U.S. to remain the economic and technological leader of the global marketplace for the 21st century,” said Chancellor Holcombe. “The Best Practice Awards give much-deserved recognition to these exceptional programs and allow each of our colleges to learn from proven strategies that will raise the level of performance for the entire college system.”
About The Florida College System
Florida’s colleges remain the primary point of access to higher education in Florida, with 66 percent of the state’s high school graduates pursuing postsecondary education beginning at a Florida college, and 81 percent of freshman and sophomore minority students in public higher education attending one of Florida’s 28 colleges. To learn more about The Florida College System, visit http://www.fldoe.org/cc/.
About Miami Dade College
With an enrollment of more than 170,000 students, MDC is the largest institution of higher education in the country and is a national model for many of its programs. The college’s eight campuses and outreach centers offer more than 300 distinct degree programs including baccalaureate, associate in arts and science degrees and numerous career training certificates leading to in-demand jobs. MDC has served nearly 2,000,000 students since it opened its doors in 1960.
Media-only contacts:
Juan Mendieta, 305-237-7611, jmendiet@mdc.edu, MDC communications director
Sue Arrowsmith, 305-237-3710, sue.arrowsmith@mdc.edu, media specialist
Tere Estorino, 305-237-3949, testorin@mdc.edu, MDC media relations director
Tarnell Carroll, 305-237-3359, tcarroll@mdc.edu, media specialist
Alejandro Rios, 305-237-7482, arios1@mdc.edu