(KAIR)--Benedictine College is the highest ranked college in Kansas and the highest ranked Catholic college in the midwest.
Those rankings are shown in the annual "America's Best Colleges" edition of U.S. News and World Report, with the college moving into the top ten overall.

According to a release from the Atchison-based Catholic college, the rankings list 74 colleges in the Midwest Division of Best Regional Colleges. Benedictine College has been a U.S. News “Best College” since 2007, and is also listed as a Best Value school and a top performer in social media.

The annual rankings - in which U.S. News groups schools based on categories created by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching - provide a resource for parents and students considering higher education opportunities. Using a proprietary methodology, the annual U.S. News rankings represent the most comprehensive look at how schools stack up based on a set of 19 indicators of excellence, and help consumers evaluate and compare data compiled from more than 1,500 accredited four-year schools.

At the same time, Benedictine has earned full ABET accreditation for its mechanical, chemical and civil engineering programs and its Nursing School was named the best in Kansas. Benedictine College has nearly doubled in enrollment in the past 10 years and is now the largest private college in Kansas, according to the Kansas Independent Colleges Association, and the best private college in Kansas, according to The Wall Street Journal.
College President Stephen Minnis, in the release, calls the recognition "a clear indication that [Benedictine is] becoming a great Catholic college, and [its] graduates will help transform culture in America."

Along with an all-time high record enrollment, the college has announced an agreement to build an independent medical school on the Atchison campus, and construction is already underway on a new college library that will triple the space of the old facility. Recently, the college also completed construction of Westerman Hall, a top-rated science and engineering facility, as well as two new row houses and a new men- residence hall.