The first local college to make the list is the University of Washington, which ranks 42nd. Washington State comes in at 106th.
Another ranking of liberal arts colleges puts Walla Walla's Whitman College at No. 36 and the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma at No. 55.
Keep in mind as you read the rankings, they are not meant to suggest that one school is better than another, though many people think that may be so. The rankings are based on things like the SAT scores of students accepted by the school, the opinion peer institutions have of the university, the selectivity of its admissions process and alumni giving.
Does it mean you will get a better education at the top rank schools? Not necessarily. Even U.S. News & World Report recognizes that a lot of factors go into deciding which school is best for you or your child - campus life, activities, academic offerings, location, etc. Their rankings do not take those things into account.
A couple of housekeeping notes as I prepare to take a couple of weeks off after finishing a pretty grueling education statistics class at UW:
- Talks continue in a number of local school districts over teacher contracts. The Mt. Vernon Education Association has declared an impasse in their talks and a state mediator has been called in. Their next mediation is scheduled for August 27th.
- Seattle Schools today reached a tentative agreement on a new contract with their teachers. Watch KING5.COM for updates on talks in districts throughout the region.
- I read a newspaper report yesterday on the state's highest paid employees, and the Presidents of UW and WSU continue to top the list. The rankings, from the state's Office of Financial Management, are based solely on base pay and do not include perks, incentives, etc. Taking that into account, UW football coach Steve Sarkisian is the highest paid at more than $1 million per year. In terms of base pay only, WSU President Elson Floyd ranks No. 1 in the state at $625,000.00. UW's Mark Emert is second at just more than $620,000.
No. 3 piqued my interest. It goes to UW Vice President Johnese Spisso (pictured), who makes $515,196 per year. In looking up her bio I found she is clinical operations officer for the UW Medicine system overseeing Harborview, UW Medical Center and the UW School of Medicine. She's also the highest paid female in the state.
Finally, in the next couple of weeks, school bells will be ringing throughout the area; please remember to be on the lookout for kids on their way to class who may not be looking out for you.