Guide to Green Colleges
The Princeton Review’s 2012 “Guide to 322 Green Colleges” has recognized SUNY Oneonta for its commitment to sustainability. The Princeton Review assesses academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities and career preparation at hundreds of campuses nationwide and in Canada to determine which colleges merit recognition.
SUNY Oneonta has been selected for inclusion in the Guide every year since its inception in 2010. SUNY Oneonta’s sustainability efforts include ongoing energy conservation initiatives, adherence to green construction standards, academic majors offered at the Biological Field Station in Cooperstown, and the recycling and sustainability programs of Oneonta Auxiliary Services.
The 232-page book—the only free, comprehensive, annually updated guide to green colleges—can be downloaded at www.princetonreview.com/green-guide.
U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges
SUNY Oneonta is among the top 50 colleges in the Northeast, according to the U.S. News and World Report's 2013 ranking of “Best Colleges,” released Sept. 12. The college sits at No. 47 in the “Best Regional Universities—North” category, which includes institutions in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and all of New England that offer a full range of undergraduate and master's degrees, but few if any doctoral programs.
SUNY Oneonta also was one of only five regional universities in the North to earn a spot on this year's U.S. News "Least Debt" list, which highlights institutions whose 2011 graduates had the lightest debt loads. A quarter of the Class of 2011 at SUNY Oneonta had no debt at graduation, and the average amount of debt for those who had received student loans was $13,700. By comparison, students from comparable schools on the U.S. News “Most Debt” list carried an average debt of $42,000-$45,000.
U.S. News surveyed nearly 1,400 colleges and universities nationwide to compile the 2013 list. Rankings are based on several factors, including data from each school and secondary sources, such as the American Association of University Professors, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Council for Aid to Education, and the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics. The opinions of high school counselors, graduation and freshman retention rates, and peer reviews by officers of other colleges also are considered.
A complete explanation of theU.S. News college ranking methodology is available here.
Kiplinger’s Top 100 Public Colleges
Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine named SUNY Oneonta to its list of “100 Best Values in Public Colleges” for the sixth consecutive year in 2012. The annual rankings identify “four-year schools that combine outstanding education with economic value,” according to a Kiplinger's news release.
Kiplinger's selects colleges and universities for its Top 100 Best Values list based on measures of academic quality, such as admission, retention and graduation rates, and also factors in costs and financial aid. In a prepared statement, Kiplinger's Senior Editor Jane Bennett Clark said the word “value” is “more significant than ever” as states cut funding for higher education and tuition continues to climb. “This year’s top 100 public schools deliver strong academics at reasonable prices. We applaud these institutions for tightening their belts without compromising quality,” she said.
More information on the rankings is available at www.kiplinger.com/links/college.
President’s Honor Roll for Education and Community Service
SUNY Oneonta has been named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll every year since the Honor Roll’s inception in 2006. Administered by the by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the Honor Roll annually acknowledges colleges and universities for exceptional community service.
SUNY Oneonta students contribute more than 50,000 hours of community service every year through the college’s Center for Social Responsibility and Community. About one-fifth of the student body is engaged in volunteer opportunities ranging from monthly blood drives to Habitat for Humanity projects.
CNCS is a federal agency that engages more than five million Americans in service through its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs. In overseeing the Honor Roll, CNCS assesses the scope and innovation of applicant institutions’ service projects, the integration of service-learning into their curricula, and the quality, longevity and productivity of their collaborative town/gown efforts. For a full list of recipients and descriptions of their service, visit www.nationalservice.gov/honorroll
