Williams Baptist University is grateful for its place in the latest U.S. News college rankings, and that is especially true of the “Social Mobility” category. WBU ranks highly among colleges across the South for social mobility, indicating that students from financially challenging backgrounds are graduating at a high rate from WBU.

“We love what this social mobility ranking says about a Williams Baptist University education,” said WBU President Dr. Stan Norman. “WBU is making life better and broadening horizons for students from across our region. That is a wonderful aspect of the ministry and the mission of this university.”

Social mobility, which is part of U.S. News’ outcomes measures, assesses how well schools graduated economically disadvantaged students. The magazine says its ranking factors – which feed standalone Top Performers On Social Mobility rankings – were computed by aggregating graduation rates of Pell Grant-awarded students.

“Education is the key to lifting children from economically difficult conditions into whole new levels of opportunity,” Norman said. “WBU has always embraced its calling to provide a life-changing education to the students in our region. We are appreciative that the U.S. News rankings indicate the university’s success in reaching this segment of students.”

WBU is listed as #24 among Southern colleges for social mobility and #40 overall in the region, placing Williams in the top tier of both categories.

Williams is a private, Christian university in Walnut Ridge.