(OXFORD, Miss.) – The generous support of alumni and friends is making a dramatic impact on the University of Mississippi’s mission to engage minds, transform lives and serve others as a premier American public university. A second consecutive year of record freshman class enrollment and University-wide enrollment (more than 20,800) provides solid evidence of what most of us have known for some time: Ole Miss is unique.
Private support helps define our margin of excellence, and our growth and achievements are being noted around the country. Among recent accolades given Ole Miss:
• The highest-ranked public university in the five-state, mid-South region of Forbes’ listing of “America’s Best Colleges.” In fact, among Southeastern Conference schools, only Vanderbilt University, University of Georgia and University of Florida received a higher ranking than Ole Miss.
• Inclusion in Forbes’ “Top 20 Best College Buys.” Ole Miss and Florida were the only SEC members to receive this prestigious designation.
• The only Mississippi university to make the prestigious Fiske Guide to Colleges 2012, a selective, subjective and systematic review of institutions of higher learning
• Inclusion in a recent Reader’s Digest feature interview with two professors who — after a three-year study of higher education — named UM’s Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College as one of the three best in the nation at a public university
• Listing on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for engaging our students, faculty and staff in meaningful service with measurable results
• Mentioned in a Washington Post article as a large research university that provides residential colleges as a housing option for students. UM continues to be the only Mississippi university to build residential colleges, where students benefit from faculty mentors in a learning environment modeled on Oxford and Cambridge universities.
• Naming as “Most Beautiful” campus and student body by Newsweek magazine
• Selected as one of six higher education institutions to participate in the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Green Campus Network, a classroom-to-workplace program that involves students, faculty, administrators and campus support staff in cutting energy use on college campuses
• Recognition by the respected journal Poets and Writers as having one of the top 50 creative writing master’s programs in the nation
• Top 10 ranking for the third consecutive year as a “Great College to Work For” by the Chronicle of Higher Education
• Inclusion of the University of Mississippi Medical Center among U.S. News and World Report “Best Hospitals” rankings for the specialties of cancer, nephrology, and orthopedics
• The top ranking for our Medical Center in adult patient satisfaction among the more than 100 academic medical center members of the University Health System Consortium. The same organization rated University Hospitals the cleanest among its peers.
• An excellent accreditation review earned by the UM Medical Center by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools for the overall institution, as well as for the School of Dentistry and programs in cytotechnology and physical therapy.
Please continue investing in the University and building a lasting legacy that provides extraordinary educational opportunities to young people — our next generation of citizens, professionals, leaders, and agents for change.
We deeply appreciate your support and thank you for entrusting your gifts to The University of Mississippi Foundation’s management. If you have any questions or suggestions, we would welcome the opportunity to visit with you. Please contact foundation representatives at 800-240-9542 or umf@olemiss.edu, or go to “Make a Gift” on this Web site.