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A-B Tech Community College earns exceptional rating
A-B Tech Community College is one of 16 community colleges in the state to be recognized for exceptional performance for the 2010-11 school year by the North Carolina Community College System.
“We’re very proud to be among an elite group of colleges earning an exceptional rating on the state’s performance standards,” A-B Tech President Hank Dunn said. “With A-B Tech’s quality and affordability, we have become the college of choice for more than 27,000 students each year and the trainer of choice for hundreds of local businesses. This rating assures them that the training and education they receive from us not only meets but in some cases exceeds the highest state standards.”
The N.C. Community College System evaluates the performance of each of its 58 colleges in seven core areas. Those areas are the passing rates on licensing and certification exams, the performance of college transfer students, the passing rates of students in developmental courses, the success rate of developmental students in subsequent college-level courses, curriculum student retention, graduation and transfer; the satisfaction rate of graduates and early leavers, and client satisfaction with Small Business Center services.
To obtain Exceptional status, colleges must meet or exceed all eight standards.
They must also meet or exceed the performance rates of students who began in, rather than transferred to, the UNC System and achieve at least a 70 percent first-time passing rate on all state licensure and certification exams.
Any college not achieving any of the standards is required to submit an action plan for improving performance to the State Board of Community Colleges.
A-B Tech students had the second-highest passing rates in the state on licensing and certification exams, at 95 percent. Three programs, Radiography, Veterinary Medical Technology and the Cosmetology Esthetician, posted 100 percent passing rates. A-B Tech also had the fourth-highest student persistence rate in the state, meaning more students graduated, transferred or returned the following semester.
Other highlights of A-B Tech’s performance measures include:
• 92 percent of students who transferred to a public North Carolina university performed as well or better than students native to the four-year institutions.
• 97 percent of graduates and early leavers said they were satisfied with the quality of the College’s programs and services.
• 95 percent of the businesses and industries surveyed reported satisfaction with the services provided by the College.
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