Dana College ranks in Top Tier of U.S. News & World Report’s annual America’s Best Colleges

For the second year in a row, Dana College in Blair, Neb., earned a spot in the “Top Tier” of the “Best Baccalaureate Colleges - Midwest” in the 2009 edition of “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S.News & World Report released Friday. The rankings are published in the magazine’s Aug. 26 issue, available now online at www.usnews.com/colleges and on newsstands.

Dana College President Janet Philipp says she is pleased that Dana College has again earned a rank among the best in the Midwest. Dana’s rank of 38th is 10 positions higher than last year’s mark.

“ This ranking is a significant indicator of the quality and value of the educational experience for students enrolled at Dana College,” Philipp said.

The schools ranked in the “Best Baccalaureate Colleges” list focus on undergraduate education and offer a range of degree programs—in the liberal arts, which account for fewer than half of their bachelor’s degrees, and in professional fields such as business, nursing, and education. There are 319 baccalaureate colleges within four regions: North, South, Midwest, and West.

The Midwest region includes Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.

Using a proprietary methodology, the annual U.S.News & World Report rankings examine how schools stack up based on a set of indicators of excellence including peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving.

A complete summary of the methodology used to rank each school can be found online at www.usnews.com/colleges.