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Winona State University has been ranked #1 among public universities in the Minnesota State System according to the most recent US News report.
Kenneth Janz, interim president at WSU, offered his thoughts on the ranking and why Winona is the best university in the state system.
“It ties back to our mission statement, a community of learners improving our world,” Janz said. “I think our sense of community and making people feel belonged in that community is important.”
Adhering to this mission statement, and providing the resources to support students as well, leads to higher graduation rates, better learning, and more preparedness for the future. All of these aspects were reviewed by US news and used to accredit the university.
Nolan Koski, a fourth-year student here at WSU weighed in his opinion on the ranking.
“I think it goes hand in hand with my experience I’ve had here at WSU,” Kolski said. “The university has a good balance when it comes to size – it doesn’t feel too small or too big.”
Not only was WSU ranked number one in the public system, but out of all colleges in Minnesota it ranked fourth. This is especially surprising because private institutions have a much different funding structure and much less government oversight than public universities do. Oftentimes this allows private universities to vastly outstrip public ones.
In addition, Winona’s relatively small size is another factor to con- sider in the ranking. Larger schools typically get more funding because the cost per person is less than smaller schools. With Winona’s smaller size, the ability to spread funding around and offer so many student support services is even more incredible.
Janz, and many of the other faculty members here at Winona are all in.
“My daughter went to school here and she got to where she is in this world,” Janz said. “I always feel that if you’re a parent comfortable enough to send your son or daughter to the place you work, that says something about the quality of the institution.”
Janz also highlighted the amazing work that faculty has done to support student success like the TRIO and tutoring services offered. The impact of these services cannot be undersold, on average, the students who utilize tutoring services receive a whole letter grade higher than those who don’t. Koski also feels like the people working at WSU are fantastic.
“I think the professors and staff at WSU are excellent,” Koski said. “I’ve really enjoyed getting to know my professors, and the school does a good job in terms of ratios for students and faculty.”
This is not the end for WSU, but it is far from the beginning. This year is a repeat of what Winona has achieved in the past. Janz highlights the support services offered and the superb faculty as the reasons WSU has been able to keep ahead of many other schools, but he also hints at plans for future improvements in Winona.
“On October 3, we’re having University improvement Day and we’ve invited a whole bunch of student leaders and our faculty staff to get together,” Janz said. “One of our exercises went on to 2035 to think about what the future of the university looks like.”
Needless to say, WSU is doing the right thing and working on improving an already great experience.
