(KAIR)--For the 18th straight year, Atchison's Benedictine College has been named a "Best College" by U.S. News & World Report.

Announcement of the award is delivered in a release from the Catholic college, which says BC earned #7 in the Midwest division of the rankings for "America's Best Colleges."

The release explains that the rankings, published by U.S. News Media Group, list 94 colleges in the Midwest Division of Best Regional Colleges, noting that BC "is currently the highest ranked Catholic college in the division and the highest ranked college or university in Kansas."

Additionally, the college is listed in 2nd place "in the Midwest for Best Undergraduate Education as well as in the Top 20 as a Best Value school."

Benedictine College, the release says, was also recently listed by The Wall Street Journal as the sixth most highly recommended school in the nation by its current students and young alumni, and also named as the Best Private College in Kansas, among other recent awards from other sources.

Stephen D. Minnis, president of Benedictine College, in the release, says the college is pleased to be named a Top 10 college in the rankings, adding that "additional recognition from The Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger-, Forbes, The Newman Guide to Choosing a Catholic College, and others is a clear indication that we are recognized nationally as a great Catholic college and a first choice for high-achieving students.”

The release also notes that "Benedictine College- image and awareness are at an all-time high with record-setting enrollment and a plan to build a medical school on the Atchison campus," while "construction is nearing completion on an Independence Hall-inspired college library that will triple the space of the old facility and offer a replica of the Liberty Bell and the Assembly Room where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were signed in Philadelphia."