ISSUE: U.S. News & World Report college rankings
OUR VIEW: Don't let the critics fool you, top ratings remain something to cherish
The headlines ahead of the release of U.S. News & World Report rankings focused on dissatisfaction with the annual report on the nation's best colleges and universities.
Yet as the Associated Press reported: "But for all the complaints that the rankings warp college admissions and distract colleges from educating students, U.S. News still has the upper hand. Colleges are having a hard time quitting the magazine's annual beauty contest.'' Even some of the schools that pledged not to use the rankings to advertise themselves are doing so anyway.
And with good reason. The magazine's annual survey is accepted by the public as a measure of school quality and progress.
Which is precisely why a university such as Claflin in Orangeburg is anxious to see the ratings come out each year. For 10 years, Claflin has been ranked in the top tier in the USNWR survey known as "America's Best Colleges.''
This year, the university earned the No. 10 ranking among "Best Baccalaureate Colleges" in the South. Claflin also ranked nationally in categories for retention and alumni giving. The university's alumni giving ranking is in first place in the South and placed fourth among all regions.
Claflin's retention rate earned the university a second-place tie and a third-place ranking for "Highest Graduation Rate," regionally. Claflin also increased its score in the category of peer assessment.
President Henry N. Tisdale said the rankings make a statement.
"Through academic excellence, Claflin University has become one of only a few institutions of higher education in the state of South Carolina to have consistently attained a ranking over the past 10 years," Tisdale said. "Claflin can be extremely proud of this outstanding accomplishment, which reflects the vision, dedication and aptitude of the university's faculty and staff in offering our students one of the best undergraduate educational experiences."
But there is more than the magazine's rankings giving Tisdale reason to be confident.
This past year, Claflin received other national rankings:
* In June, Consumers Digest listed the university number three nationally in its "Top 5 Best Value" category for "Private Colleges and Universities."
* The Chronicle of Higher Education in its March 23, 2007 issue ranked Claflin second among "Very Selective HBCUs" (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) in graduation rates.
* The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education Winter 2006-2007 publication also ranked Claflin second in graduation rates among HBCUs.
With a continuing emphasis on improving campus facilities to enhance academic and athletic programs, Claflin is maintaining its focus on improvement and excellence. Progress is evident.
As Tisdale told faculty and staff in the wake of the latest USNWR rankings: "With our consistent rankings in the top tier of U.S.News & World Report and the additional national ratings this year from the Chronicle of Higher Education, Consumers Digest and The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, Claflin University can claim to have taken a significant step forward in our goal of becoming one of the premier liberal arts institutions in America.''
Claflin and Orangeburg have reason to be very proud.