U.S. News and World Report’s America’s Best Colleges publication ranks ECSU #3

Marsha McLean
August 22, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—America’s Best Colleges 2005 report ranks Elizabeth City State University #3 among its peer institutions of Top Public Comprehensive Colleges in the south. America’s Best Colleges is published by the U.S. News &amp World Report Magazine.

Each year, America’s Best Colleges describes its Best Comprehensive Colleges as those &quotinstitutions [that] 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 324 comprehensive colleges ranked within four regions: North, South, Midwest and West.&quot

From that selection of private and public comprehensive colleges, the organization narrows its scope to identify its top public comprehensive colleges. It is in this category, Top Public Comprehensive Colleges, ECSU is ranked third in the South!

The Top Public Comprehensive Colleges are those public institutions which have achieved outstanding feats in the following categories: peer assessment, average freshman retention, average graduation rate, percent of classes with fewer than 20 students, percent of classes with 50 or more students, student-faculty ratio, percent of faculty who are full-time, SAT/ACT scores within the 25th – 75th percentile, freshmen in the top 25% of their 2004 high school class, acceptance rate as of 2004 and the average alumni giving rate.

ECSU Chancellor Mickey L. Burnim was pleased with the outcome of U.S. News &amp World Report’s data analysis.

&quotElizabeth City State University is an outstanding institution of higher education both in the state of North Carolina and among its peer institutions in the south. Our faculty, staff, students, and alumni deserve credit for earning this national recognition. In pursuit of our mission, we continue to strive for academic excellence and a student-centered focus. We believe that our emphasis in these areas serves us well as indicated by this recognition by U.S. News and World Report as well as our recent national recognition for our graduation rate by the Education Trust.&quot

For more information, visit the U.S. News &amp World Report website at www.usnews.com. The publication will be on news stands beginning August 22, 2005.