According to the 2012 Critical Success Factors report produced by the North Carolina Community College System, College of The Albemarle is recognized for achieving Exceptional Institutional Performance. This recognition is only given to colleges that successfully meet all of the state’s performance standards, maintain passing rates on licensure exams above 70%, and whose transfer students perform equal to or higher than the native UNC four-year students. This year COA is one of only 16 colleges in the system earning this exceptional recognition!

Every year, the NCCCS measures specific performance indicators from the 58 community colleges. These measures serve as the system’s public accountability for institutional progress. Here are the highlights of the college’s performance in comparison to all other community colleges in North Carolina, based on data from the 2010-2011 year:

• 88% of all licensure and certification exam test-takers passed their exam on their first attempt.  The NCCCS standard is 80%. COA’s highest exam passing rates were in BLET (100%),  registered nursing (97%), and practical nursing (94%).
• 91% of students who completed 24 or more semester hours at COA and then transferred to a  University of North Carolina institution maintained at least a 2.0 gpa for two semesters at their  new university. The system standard is 83%. A higher percentage of COA students maintained  at least a C average at UNC institutions than the sophomores and juniors at the universities  who started their education on the university level. For this measure, COA was ranked 15th  among the 58 community colleges!
• 79% of COA students completing developmental courses in English, reading, or math earned  at least a “C.” The NCCS standard is 75%.
• 94% of COA students who completed a developmental course in English or math  subsequently completed a college-level course in the same area with at least a “D” grade. The  NCCCS standard is 80%. COA ranks #5 out of the 58 community colleges in the state on this  measure!
• 95% of College of The Albemarle students who graduated or left before finishing their program  expressed that they are satisfied or very satisfied with their COA education. The standard for  community colleges is 90%.
• Two-thirds (67%) of credential seeking students who enrolled during fall 2009 had either  graduated, continued at COA, or transferred to another institution one year later. The NCCCS  standard is 65%.
• 91% of clients who received some form of specialized training through our Workforce  Development and Continuing Education programs (Small Business Center and Customized  Training) report that their learning experience was either excellent or very good. The system  standard is 90%.

Joseph Turner, Interim Vice President of Learning stated, “This is evidence College of The Albemarle means what it says when we say we are ‘Striving Toward Excellence.’  These numbers are significant not only because they are very positive statistics and make the college look good.  They are important because it means faculty at COA are training our students to meet real-world challenges and preparing them to be successful in their chosen fields.”

The complete report is available at http://www.nccommunitycolleges.edu/Publications/docs/Publications/csf2012.pdf

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