The 2008 U.S.News & World Report annual rankings of colleges puts Taylor University first and Huntington University seventh among the Best Baccalaureate Colleges in the Midwest.
For more than a decade, U.S.News & World Report has consistently ranked Huntington among the Midwest’s best colleges. The 2007 US News rankings, for example, ranked Taylor 3rd and Huntington 16th in the Midewest.
Huntington's Vice-President and Dean, Dr. Norris Friesen commented:
There is a great deal of controversy swirling around the U.S.News & World Report rankings, but it has served as a good benchmark for us. I am pleased that we have surpassed our ranking from the previous year by nine places. These rankings reflect our commitment to providing an outstanding, Christ-centered, liberal arts education. We are excited to see the new programs we have launched mature and are looking forward to offering new majors in nursing and Spanish this fall.
In addition to Taylor University and Huntington University, other Indiana instititutions were also also honored: Manchester College Franklin College, St. Mary’s-of-the-Woods College, Bethel College, Grace College and Seminary, St. Joseph’s College and Tri-State University were listed.
We have such highly ranked private colleges, but the state legislature continues to throw money at IU and Purdue. Are they trying to force great private educational institutions out like these of business? Why not allow more money to follow the students and support the great private higher education opportunities in this state (and help to increase the contribution that these coleges make to the small town economies that they are located.)
And why not support private education as a means of reducing the amount of students dependents of the state funded education bureaucracy. This would eventually reduce the higher education liability portion on the state budget.
And maybe, due to the fact that many small school students are local and wish to stay close to home after graduation, Indiana could reverse the brain drain.
...For the life of me, I can't understand why the IN legislature is so hostel to private enterprise in education and so eager to waste tax dollars on a state funded educational system that is wasteful and bloated, and doesn’t even produce the results of retaining students in-state, or even maintain an affordable tuition for in-state students.
Posted by: C. Edward Eckert | August 20, 2007 at 10:20 AM