LVC NUMBER THREE in "Great Schools, Great Prices" According to U.S. News & World Report

LVC Also Moves up to Number Six Overall among Comparable Institutions

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Students study in LVC's Peace Garden

ANNVILLE, PA (09/13/2011)(readMedia)-- For the fifth consecutive year, Lebanon Valley College is ranked among the top three (#3) in the North in the "Great Schools, Great Prices" category among "Best Regional Colleges" in the U.S. News & World Report's 2012 edition of the book America's Best Colleges. LVC has been among the top 10 colleges in its category for all eight years the list has been compiled. In addition, LVC moved up to #6 overall among the 74 comparable institutions in its regional category.

U.S. News & World Report publishes the best known ratings of the nation's colleges and universities. The "Great Schools, Great Prices" ranking is based on a calculation that takes into account a school's academic quality, as indicated by its 2012 U.S. News ranking, and the 2010–2011 net cost of attendance for a student who receives the average level of need-based financial aid. The higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the result is for students.

Last month, The Princeton Review recognized LVC as "A Best in the Northeast" college and Forbes named LVC on its list of "America's Top Colleges."

Among the 371 institutions nationwide in the U.S. News "Best Regional Colleges" category, the College is ranked in the top 2 percent for enrolling freshmen from the top 25 percent of their high school class and in the top 3 percent for average freshman retention rate (meaning the students return for their sophomore years). LVC's average graduation rate of 72 percent puts the College among the top 2 percent of all 371 colleges and universities in the country for "Best Regional Colleges." Only seven institutions had a higher graduation rate including the U.S. Coast Guard and Merchant Marine academies.

Dr. Stephen C. MacDonald, LVC president, said, "While we appreciate these recognitions, it is vital that families look at the individual numbers. It is more important to us to see that recent efforts at retaining and graduating students are paying dividends. This fall, we enrolled the largest incoming class in the history of the College, 510 new students, but we are just as proud of the fact that 86 percent of our sophomores returned, a three percent increase from 2010."

Dr. Michael Green, LVC vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty, added, "With 1,631 full-time undergraduate students on campus this fall, we remain committed to providing resources for all of our students to succeed. The 86 percent retention rate for our current sophomores is indicative of these efforts; a rate that is surpassed by only three institutions of the 371 on this year's list."

Lebanon Valley College is a four-year, private liberal arts and pre-professional school in Annville, Pa., offering 34 undergraduate majors and graduate programs in business, music education, physical therapy, and science education. With 1,631 full-time undergraduate students and 58 full-time graduate students, the College opened the fall 2011 semester with its largest enrollment in history.