Office of Public Relations:                                           For more information, contact: Stephen E. Snyder

(229) 931-2028                                                                         (229) 931-2037 ssnyder@canes.gsw.edu

(229) 931-2072 fax

____________________________________________________________________________

Aug. 18, 2010

Georgia Southwestern ranks #46 among

public universities in the South

         

AMERICUS – For the first time, Georgia Southwestern State University has made the rankings in U.S. News and World Report's list of the South’s top regional universities - appearing at #46 of the top public universities and #87 among the top 100 public and private schools in the South - in the 2011 edition of Best Colleges by U.S. News Media Group.

The exclusive rankings, which include rankings of more than 1,400 schools nationwide, are available today at www.usnews.com/colleges, and will also be published in the September issue of U.S. News & World Report, on newsstands starting August 31.

Over the past two decades, the U.S. News college rankings, which group schools based on categories created by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, has grown to be the most comprehensive research tool for students and parents considering higher education opportunities.

“One of the advantages of having served in and worked with as many colleges and universities as I have over the years is that you develop a perspective that allows you to recognize quality when you see it,” said President Kendall A. Blanchard. “I have known for some time that Georgia Southwestern was an outstanding institution that ranks with the best.  So I am not surprised that U.S. News has come to the same conclusion. This only adds to my pride in this University and in my many colleagues whose outstanding work makes Georgia Southwestern deserving of recognitions like this.”

The 2011 Best Colleges package provides the most thorough examination of how more than 1,400 accredited four-year schools compare on a set of up to 16 widely accepted indicators of excellence. Among the many factors weighed in determining the rankings, the key measures of quality are: peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, alumni giving, and, for National Universities and National Liberal Art Colleges, "graduation rate performance" and high school counselor ratings of colleges.

Founded in 1906, Georgia Southwestern is a member of the University System of Georgia and is the alma mater of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former First lady Rosalynn Carter, and the late U.S. Attorney General Griffin Bell.

Georgia Southwestern offers more than 40 majors, as well as pre-professional, master's, and specialists programs and has an enrollment of more than 3,000 students. Southwestern’s 325-acre campus, located in Americus, includes an 18-hole golf course that houses the states only Professional Golf Management Program. The university provides bachelor’s degrees on almost every two-year state college campus.

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