SANTA MONICA—Santa Monica College has been awarded the 2017 Andrew Heiskell Award for Innovation in International Education from the Institute of International Education. The awards will be presented at a ceremony in Miami, Florida on March 14.

The award was granted to SMC for its Global Citizenship Initiative that funded $75,000 in student scholarships for study abroad programs, on-campus global lecture series and global council meetings. The award was given to SMC along with Virginia Union University, as the only two colleges to receive the award in the Internationalizing the Minority Serving Institution category, a first-ever category.

“Santa Monica College is thrilled to receive this distinction,” said SMC Superintendent/President Dr. Kathryn E. Jeffery in a statement. “The College’s forward-looking Global Citizenship initiative, championed by President Emeritus Chui L. Tsang, established a culture in which SMC students are actively aware of both the opportunities and responsibilities of living in a global, interconnected society. From Santa Monica College, students can literally go anywhere.”

CEO Dr. Allan E. Goodman and Institute of International Education President said in a statement that the campuses the institute recognize are ones that have developed new approaches for study abroad opportunities that enhance the campus experience.

“We recommend these programs as models, and hope they will offer inspiration as well as guidance to professionals on other campuses who share the goal of preparing their students to live and work in today’s global environment,” said Goodman.

The Institute of International Education is an independent, non-profit that presents awards every year for initiatives in higher education with a membership association of more than 1,300 colleges and universities. More information about SMC’s Global Citizenship initiative is available at www.smc.edu/globalcitizenship.