Dr. Hubert Benítez was appointed president of American International College, in Springfield, just about six months ago. In that time, Dr. Benítez is expanding the academic culture at the college, a recognized foundational pillar of the Pioneer Valley. Among the developments are the expansion of AIC’s academic portfolio:

• Becoming a year-round campus community for living and learning opportunities;
• and growing as a leader in the community that serves the needs of the Western Mass workforce and business community. Some stats put together by Denise Vozella, the college’s Public Relations and Communications Manager:
• 24% of current undergraduate students identify as Hispanic/Latino.  AIC expects that number to go up to 25% very soon, with the goal of receiving a Hispanic-Serving Institution designation.
• 23% of the current undergrads identify as Black
• 32% of students are first-generation students
• 49% received Pell Grants this semester
• 45% of students are in AIC athletics programs

The college embarked on a five-year strategic plan that offers a new vision statement, and affirms the college’s commitment to access opportunity, diversity, belonging, and community as core values.

AIC is living up to its name with the recent signing of two international cooperation agreements with universities in El Salvador and the Philippines, with more to come soon in other countries. This is an intentional internationalization strategy, with the goals of promoting cooperation in academic research and education, with opportunities for intercultural immersion programming, student exchange programs, and the sharing of ideas on research, lectures, and speaking engagements. AIC has recently joined the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, which is a group of American college and university leaders dedicated to increasing public understanding of how immigration policies and practices impact students, campuses, and communities. AIC has been recognized as a top performer for social mobility by the 2022-23 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings. AIC’s ranking tied for #69, placing the college second in Massachusetts in the report’s National College category, behind only UMass Boston. From my press release: Economically disadvantaged students are less likely to finish college, according to U.S. News & World Report.

However, some institutions, such as AIC, have shown an intentional commitment to increasing access to education, and as a result, are showing progress in advancing social mobility. This is done, in part, by enrolling and graduating large proportions of disadvantaged students who have been awarded federal Pell Grants as part of their financial aid packages. Most of these federal grants are awarded to students whose adjusted gross family incomes are under $50,000. Of the 1,168 undergraduate students enrolled at AIC for the Fall 2022 semester, nearly half received a Pell Grant. More information about American International College here: https://www.aicreimagined.org