Cerritos College was again ranked in the top 20 of the state’s degree granting community colleges, according to the June 24 issue of the Community College Week.

Cerritos College is also 37th of the 100 institutions in the United States that award degrees to Asian American graduates in all disciplines along with being named 13th of the 100 overall and 5th in the state for the number of associate’s degrees awarded to Hispanics in all disciplines.

“Cerritos College is proud of the ranking as reported by recent statistics produced in the Community College Week,” states Interim President John Grindel.

“We feel that through these results, Cerritos has been given proper recognition in our obvious areas of excellence, which include the Asian American, Hispanic and other minority degree awarding programs.”

According to Community College Week, the 2000-2001 survey shows that there has been a 13 percent increase since 1992-1993 in the number of Associate’s degrees produced for community colleges.

Included in the analysis were institutions accredited at the college level by an agency or association recognized by the U.S. Department of Education Secretary and that operate within the 50 states or the District of Columbia. In addition, this year’s analysis was expanded to include all institutions eligible for federal financial aid funds under Title IV legislation.

The data for the study came from the United States Department of Education. It is collected through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) program completers survey conducted by the National Center for Educational Statistics. The survey requests data on the number of degrees and other formal awards conferred in academic, vocational, and continuing professional education programs.