Aspire program wins ODHE Chancellor's Award for outstanding student performance

The Patton College of Education's Stevens Literacy Center received the 2023 Chancellor's Award for outstanding student performance from the Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE) for their OHIO Career Ready Campus's Aspire program.

Aspire provides free instruction for adult learners in Athens and Hocking counties. The program offers workforce and skill development through job training, employability and computer literacy, GED preparation classes, and correctional education. The programs are offered both in person and online.

When the Stevens Literacy Center first received the Aspire grant in 2018, it made OHIO the first four-year institution to obtain such funding. Medea Loibl, the director of the Aspire program, said receiving the Chancellor’s Award was gratifying.

“My team and I were thrilled to receive recognition from the Ohio Department of Higher Education for our Aspire program,” Loibl said. “The Chancellor's award for outstanding student performance honors our students' hard work and underscores our commitment to a student-centered approach.”

Loibl said the award reveals the positive impact the program has had on the adult learners and the local community.

“The award acknowledges our success with regard to learning outcomes, increases our visibility, and opens doors to valuable partnerships and networking opportunities across Southeast Ohio.”

When Loibl and her team attended the Ohio Association for Adult and Continuing Education (OAACE) conference in Columbus, the organization’s state director highlighted their work in correctional education during her opening remarks to the assembly.

Since its inception, the program’s integrated education and training component has seen an increase of almost 175%; the post school education and training category increased by 642%.

“Last year, we met our enrollment target and were placed third for measurable skill gains out of all Aspire programs in Ohio,” Loibl said.

Loibl said the Aspire program plans to continue improving in the assistance of adult learners and students.

“Knowing that our work is having such a meaningful impact on workforce development and creating academic pipelines inspires us to keep pushing boundaries for excellence and moving the OHIO community forward,” Loibl said.