Forbes magazine has included Denison University in this year’s “Grateful Grads Index.” The list includes the nation’s top 100 colleges based on the median amount of private donations per student over a 10-year period and the percentage of alumni who donate to the school. Denison is recognized along with other leading institutions, including Princeton, Harvard, Bucknell and Cornell universities.
According to veteran Forbes writer Matt Schifrin, Forbes, when calculating a return on investment for education, “the best colleges are the ones that produce successful people who make enough money during their careers to be charitable and feel compelled to give back to the schools that contributed to their success.”
Schifrin acknowledges that a simple index of dollars donated per student index doesn’t paint a complete picture. The ranking “penalizes a lot of great colleges that have high percentage of grateful alums who regularly give back to their schools but don’t earn the high incomes you might expect graduating from Stanford or MIT.” The current rankings have been weighted to recognize that alumni participation is a good indicator of return on investment.
In addition to inclusion on the “Grateful Grads” list, Denison was recognized by Forbes for its financial health with an “A” rating on its College Financial Grade list last fall and as one of the leading colleges in the nation on its “America’s Top Colleges” list, which measures output over input. According to Forbes, “We’re not all that interested in what gets a student into college, like our peers who focus heavily on selectivity metrics such as high school class rank and SAT scores. Our sights are set directly on ROI: What are students getting out of college.”
“The most important measure of an undergraduate education is its outcomes, and it is our alumni who bring the greatest honor to our college. Whether they distinguish themselves in the professions, the arts, education, or public service, these proud and loyal Denisonians have brought about the remarkable reputation and visibility the college enjoys today,” says Denison’s Director of Alumni Relations, Steve Crawford. “Success in capturing the attention of employers and graduate schools around the world is due, in no small part, to the extraordinary performance and leadership demonstrated by alumni of our college.”