Dartmouth Ranked #1 at Undergraduate Teaching

Monday, August 24, 2009

The 2010 US News and World Report rankings are out with Dartmouth at an overall #11. However, this year they added a feature on the top 20 "national universities" that have the best undergraduate teaching. Dartmouth ranked first, followed by Princeton, Yale and Stanford.

http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-ut-rank

Since Dartmouth's core mission is undergraduate teaching, this reflects quite well on our faculty and administration.

Here is the entire list:

Best Colleges: Undergraduate Teaching at National Universities
Best Undergraduate Teaching

Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH
Rank 1
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
Rank 2
Yale University
New Haven, CT
Rank 3
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
Rank 4
University of Maryland--Baltimore County
Baltimore, MD
Rank 4
Brown University
Providence, RI
Rank 6
College of William and Mary
Williamsburg, VA
Rank 6
Duke University
Durham, NC
Rank 8
Miami University--Oxford
Oxford, OH
Rank 8
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN
Rank 8
Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, OH
Rank 11
Howard University
Washington, DC
Rank 11
Rice University
Houston, TX
Rank 11
University of California--Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
Rank 11
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
Rank 11
University of Michigan--Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI
Rank 11
University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
Rank 11
University of St. Thomas
St. Paul, MN
Rank 11
Wake Forest University
Winston-Salem, NC
Rank 11

John Mathias

6 Comments:

This was an expected recognition. Dartmouth was like other Ivies a Christianizing school, so its commitment to undergraduate teaching illuminates its appeal as a small college. This school has high student satisfaction.

By Abhishek Gangulee, at 9/08/2009 12:34 AM
I think footnote 28 on pages 20 and 21 of the Hanover Institute's/plaintiffs' response to Dartmouth's motion is misleading. First, the response severely botches the quotation. According to Exhibit FF, "The Committee's opinion was" should be "Your Committee were of the opinion"; the words "College," "Board," and "Trustee" should not be capitalized; and the phrase "too uncertain contingent, and remote a right" obviously should have a comma. If this quotation is not trustworthy, one is left to wonder where else the plaintiffs might be rewriting history.

Second, the actual content of the quoted document doesn't support the assertion for which the memo is trying to use it. The committee reports that it wanted the listed characteristics, but we know they didn't get everything they wanted. The original document goes on to describe how the committee asked the Trustees to adopt a charter amendment that would give the alumni legal rights to seat five trustees. The Trustees rejected that amendment, and then the compromise of the 1891 agreement came about.

Third, the original report was a political document meant to soothe angry alumni who wanted direct election of some or all trustees. If today's EC put out a similar statement, no one would read the description of lofty initial goals as evidence that the EC had achieved those goals.

I wonder whether the response really needed to try so hard. Perhaps the conspiratorial mind relishes the use of ALL CAPS, excessive footnoting, and underlining in the same document with italics. Not pretty.

By Scott, at 9/08/2009 8:29 PM
A different topic -- is anyone else struck by the possibility that this document, published at Dartblog, may contain information that the Board of Trustees considers confidential?

I believe both of the paper's authors have worked for T.J. Rodgers, but they do not indicate their source for their descriptions of Board deliberations.

By Scott, at 9/09/2009 3:51 PM
Scott:

Thank you for making available to alumni the details of the current legal debate, especially the many documents contained in Exhibit FF.

Two questions for you:

1. Do you think it contradictory that the current AoA leadership accuses their predecessors of being controlled by the Hanover Institute, because that organization covered the Association's legal expenses, yet the current group also claims they are not being controlled by the College even though the latter organization is now paying for Association legal costs?

2. Can you explain the notes of plans for the AoA's executive committee (or a six person majority) to negotiate with the trustees to end parity, not restore it... "negotiate away the 1891 agreement" "end parity forever"? What is the "JM role" in this?

By Tim Dreisbach '71, at 9/11/2009 9:30 AM
The Dartmouth says Silvergate was the drafter of the Zywicki brief that is posted at the Hanover Institute's website.

The brief (like Silvergate's Dartlog article) goes on about fiduciary duties (1) as if the requirement that the Trustees represent Dartmouth positively (and other resolutions/bylaws) were necessarily fiduciary in nature rather than merely contractual, and (2) as if any of these duties were relevant to a motion that presents only two grounds for judgment: res judicata and lack of standing.

The brief seems opportunistic, a way to vent about losing votes or elections in the Board rather than a presentation of an accurate or relevant argument.

By Scott, at 9/14/2009 10:32 AM
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

By Research Writer, at 2/04/2010 4:55 AM

Monday, August 24, 2009

Dartmouth Ranked #1 at Undergraduate Teaching

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