Lynchburg area colleges score big again in review

By Christa Desrets
Lynchburg News & Advance
Published: July 30, 2008

Sweet Briar College’s campus remains beautiful, Randolph College diverse, and Lynchburg College “tight-knit” this year, according to The Princeton Review’s annual ranking of the top 368 colleges in North America.

All three local schools are on the list, and Randolph and Sweet Briar also took several top-20 rankings for specific areas of academics and campus life.

“We are a pretty lucky community to have this many good schools,” said Randolph spokeswoman Brenda Edson.

Randolph took rankings for its diverse student population, good race and class interaction, and students’ happiness with financial aid, according to the official rankings Web site.

The school also ranked for a lack of participation in intramural sports.

The ratings are based on 80-question surveys completed by 120,000 students who attend the 368 designated top colleges.

“Those are things that make our campus unique,” Edson said. “But we also take (rankings) with a grain of salt. You can’t just rely on rankings.”

Sweet Briar College also ranked on several of the lists, but dropped this year from most beautiful campus to second-most beautiful campus, trailing only Princeton University.

The school also ranked for its good job placement services, encouragement of class discussions, and accessible professors.

“That’s what people pay to go to college for,” said Dean Jonathan Green. “They may pick a college because it’s pretty, but ultimately what’s truly valuable in an educational experience is being able to interact with quality professors.”

He said he was glad to hear that the student surveys didn’t place the school on any of the less-positive rankings.

“They have as many negative lists,” he said.

Although Lynchburg College didn’t rank on any of the top-20 lists — either positive or negative — the official Web site provided insight on what LC students said about their school in the survey.

Students called the college “tight-knit,” with a “pretty little campus and a (pretty) good academic setting,” that helps “to prepare them for life.”

“It’s nice to be listed there,” said LC President Kenneth Garren. “I think it’s important information, and (rankings) do mean something.”

Garren can use information from the student surveys to improve the college, he said.

Under a section on campus life, for example, LC students reported “not a whole lot to do in Lynchburg” other than “go to Walmart, the dollar theater, and eat.”

“It really is telling me that we have to do more about letting our students know all the great things to do in Lynchburg,” Garren said, “because it is a good place to live.”

The Princeton Review’s annual college guide, “The Best 368 Colleges,” went on sale Tuesday. Ranking lists and school profiles also are posted on the official Web site, PrincetonReview.com.

The Princeton Review is a New York-based education services company that is not affiliated with Princeton University.