The Chronicle of Higher Education has once again recognized Salina Area Technical College for having among the highest graduation rates among two-year colleges in the United States.

The Chronicle’s annual Almanac edition ranked Salina Tech second in the nation among two-year colleges for its graduation rate of 72.6 percent.

In all, 847 two-year colleges were included in the rankings, and the average graduation rate nationwide was just 25.1 percent. Of the top 25 colleges in the ranking, five were technical colleges in Kansas.

This is the third time in recent years that Salina Tech has ranked in the top ten in the Chronicle’s graduation rate statistics; two years ago Salina Tech was ranked ninth in the nation, and last year it was ranked fifth.

Salina Tech President Greg Nichols was pleased with the ranking, and said it validates the focus faculty and staff have put into helping ensure students succeed.
Among those initiatives is an early alert system, in which faculty can identify students who are starting to fall behind and help them with the additional learning resources, tutoring or counseling they need to be successful.

Colleges are measured by numerous metrics, Nichols said, but “this is the one this college is about – getting students graduated and out earning a living.”
Salina Tech has also recently been recognized by The Aspen Institute as one of the top 150 two-year colleges in the nation, by Forbes magazine as the eighth-best two-year college in the nation, and by the Kansas Board of Regents for having the highest student success rate in Kansas.