PERSONALIZED ATTENTION EARNS DANA COLLEGE HIGH RANKING

Dana placed in the second tier of
Midwestern colleges in U.S. News rankings

Overall excellence puts Dana College high in U.S. News and World Report’s most recent ranking of the nation’s colleges and universities. College officials say Dana’s commitment to personalized attention for students sets the institution apart from similar schools.

Dana was listed in the second tier of Midwestern comprehensive colleges that offer bachelor’s degrees, meaning the school placed in the Top 60. The ranking is determined by compiling academic and institutional data and comparing it to similar colleges. The results are published each year in U.S. News and World Report and are the most prominent of higher education rankings.

Dana did well in almost all of the categories, and pulled in extra points for the emphasis placed on personalized teaching, said Dana Provost Brian Viets.

“At Dana we do not make decisions about our students and faculty based on how it will look in rankings. But our traditional efforts to maintain a low student-to-teacher ratio and small classes do show up when compared to our peers,” he said.

Dana has the lowest student-to-teacher ratio of all the Top 60 schools, at 10 students to each faculty member. The college also had favorable comparisons in terms of class size with 68 percent of classes having 20 or fewer students.

“We pride ourselves on creating an environment where learning prospers, where every student participates and is valued, and where each student has one or more mentors among faculty and staff,” said Myrvin Christopherson, president of Dana College.”

Dana College is a private, liberal arts institution that currently enrolls approximately 600 students. The campus is located on 150 acres overlooking the Missouri River Valley in Blair, Neb. Dana grants bachelor’s degrees in more than 20 liberal arts, business, education and pre-professional programs, with an emphasis on personalized teaching from experienced and dedicated faculty. Dana is a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and its athletic teams compete in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.

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For more information contact:
Sarah Cavanah
Communications Coordinator
Dana College
(402) 426-7216
scavanah@fs1.dana.edu

Brian Viets
Provost and Dean of the College
Dana College
(402) 426-7202
bviets@fs1.dana.edu