Faculty, staff and students filled the Great Hall on Monday to toast the new rankings by U.S. News, which named ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ a top-100 National University.
ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ President Connie Ledoux Book on Monday offered a toast in the Great Hall to celebrate the faculty, staff and students who have paved the way to a new national recognition for the university.
The celebration came as ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ for the first time was ranked as a top-100 National University in the U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” guide. ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ debuted as #84 among the nation’s best universities, with a #2 ranking in undergraduate teaching.
“What a day for ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ,” Book told the crowd, eliciting a cheer. “We could not have been more proud to see ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ recognized among this list of prestigious institutions. These rankings recognize the hard work for more than 50 years of the faculty and staff at ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ, and our powerful student experience.”
Book said she was most proud of the #2 ranking in undergraduate teaching, which she said recognizes the power of the teacher-student-mentor model at ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ. She noted that ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ was ranked #11 nationally for innovation, among institutions such as Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
“It’s powerful that the rest of the country recognizes that itch to be the very best we can be,” Book said.
Executive Vice President Steven House recounted the progress that ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ has made during the past 25 years to become a leader in engaged and experiential learning. In 1996, U.S. News & World Report ranked ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ #39 among universities in the South Region at time when ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ’s four-year graduation rate hovered below 50 percent. Since then ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ has refined and expanded its educational model by focusing on high-impact practices that can lead to student success, House said.
The university was selected to shelter a Phi Beta Kappa chapter in 2010 while its schools achieved top accreditations in their disciplines, he said. For the past six years, ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ has been the #1 school among universities in the South Region, but this year was moved into the National University category based upon its reclassification as a professional/doctoral university.
ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ has consistently been recognized as a national leader in eight high-impact practices that lead to student success, and this year again was the only school to be recognized in all eight, House noted.
“You all should be incredibly proud of what you’ve done,” House told the crowd. “You created an institution that transforms the lives of young men and women.”
Now that ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ has moved into the National University category, it is being compared to some of the country’s most well-funded and high profile institutions, Book said. But there is something that sets ºÚÁϲ»´òìÈ apart, something that has enabled the university to enjoy the reputation as a national leader, Book said.
“It’s absolutely the people that make the difference,” Book said.