STI N OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT STI A COLLEG May 8, 2023 Eric J. Gertler CEO and Executive Chairman U.S, News and World Report 1050 Thomas Jefferson Street NW Washington, DC 20007 Dear Mr. Gertler: After much consideration and thought, Stillman College will be withdrawing from the U.S. News and World Report Best in College Rankings, effective immediately. Through research and deliberation, we conclude that the methodology and weighting system of the U.S. News rankings do not reflect the full value and commitments of our institution. We understand the rankings emphasize characteristics that mislead those who rely on them and harm the interests of potential students attempting to discern the best institution for their studies. Specifically, the rankings skew the value of Stillman College and do not fully consider the social and cultural contexts that inform the immense scope of our mission, nor our labor in .s and functions to our students and community. A significant number of elite universities’ graduate and professional schools have withdrawn from US News’ rankings, contending its methodology is flawed and disproportionately benefits higher-income students. The indicators used to capture academic quality: assessment by administrators at peer institutions, student retention, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving, are focused more on resources and exclusivity than accessibility and outcomes. Fifty percent of the rankings are comprised of uncontextualized graduation data and peers’ opinions. How many predominantly white institution presidents are knowledgeable about their peer HBCUs or have even visited a campus? Below are a few examples of how the data set used by US News disadvantages HBCUs in general, and misinforms prospective students regarding the broader benefits of the mission and work that this important category of higher education provides. Further, they demonstrate how the data that is not used ignores the impact that HBCUs have in higher education in economic impact, social mobility, and post- baccalaureate degree completion by African Americans. Taken as a whole, this list is merely a few of the reasons the U.S. News and World Report rankings do not accurately capture HBCU value, especially private, liberal arts HBCUs, using Stillman as a lens for deeper understanding and application: 3601 Stillman Boulevard * Tuscaloosa, AL 35401 ‘wwwistillman.edu1. The US Department of Education measures a school’s graduation rate by a school’s full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking students who complete their degree or certificate within 150 percent of the published length (six years for a baccalaureate degree) of the program in which they are enrolled. The department has measured graduation rate using this calculation since 1996, by race and gender and type of institution. No matter the institution type, African Americans’ graduation rates are significantly lower than whites. Thus, institutions with larger percentages of African American students (HBCUs) have lower graduation rates simply by racial makeup. Using this calculation as a quality measure for institutions is not a matter of comparing apples to apples. Additionally, the socioeconomic status of the institution’s student population is another factor that explains lower graduation rates. Because Stillman’s student population is greater than 70 percent Pell eligible, students with lower socioeconomic status predict lower graduation rates; not the quality of instruction or environment. The National Science Foundation has reported annually that HBCUs graduate more African American STEM students and are responsible for producing the Black middle class in America; these outcomes are not represented in the US News ranking. Stillman has found that the challenge of poverty calls these students to make decisions that call them in and out of enrollment. Yet, Stillman remains committed to them. How does US News measure our commitment? I opine that it does not. 2. The National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS data report that the graduation rate for female students is consistently higher than male students; and women make up nearly 60 percent of all college students today. Stillman's male enrollment is currently 44 percent; the national male graduation rate is significantly lower than that of female students. Also, Stillman has over 100 students who are parents. We are committed to all our students’ success and support them through life's happenings. Shouldn't the graduation rate better reflect the characteristics of the student outcomes? Stillman should be rewarded points for attracting and retaining more male students to graduation, but this metric is not included in the ranking formulas. 3. Graduation rates are also a measure of retention, but there are other factors that should be considered, like the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on small, private colleges. The current cohort which the Department of Education uses to measure an institution's graduation rate is the first-time full-time freshmen in 2015. During that year, Stillman College was faced with severe financial challenges and the administration eliminated several athletic programs (football, baseball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, track), causing an exodus of more than 200 students, with a 28 percent drop in enrollment. The graduation rate and rankings based predominantly on graduation rate does not explain the Stillman drop in retention as a factor of student athletes’ transferring; instead, itis used as a measure of quality for our institution's academic programs. Parents and students need to understand how the graduation rate is calculated; otherwise, they are misled into thinking that the rate represents the most recent class of graduates, rather than the first-year students of seven years earlier.4, The Carnegie Classification is the leading framework for recognizing and describing institutions of higher education in the United States. Carnegie categorizes Stillman asa high transfer-in institution, with at least 20 percent of entering undergraduates as transfer students. Transfer students are not included in the US News graduation rate calculation; thus, no credit is given in the rankings for transfer students. Including a metric that demonstrated the success of students who transfer into Stillman would be a more accurate assessment of the effectiveness of our programs and the success of our students overall. 5. We made Stillman's admissions test-optional in 2018 because African Americans average the lowest scores on the ACT and SAT. Most African American students do not have the benefit of test prep programs in middle and high schools, and most parents of first-generation college students are not aware of these programs. ‘Additionally, families with low socioeconomic status do not have the resources to put towards this luxury. We also noticed that African American high school students at college fairs expressed anxiety over whether they could attend College because of what was considered an unacceptable test score. Basing admissions on GPA and not requiring standardized tests for admissions decisions aligns with our mission to provide opportunities for diverse populations 6. According to the National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics report on Baccalaureate Origins of US Research Doctorate Recipients, Stillman College graduates earned 36 Doctorates between 2010 and 2020. Among undergraduate HBCUs, Stillman ranks in the top twenty for this prestigious outcome. Yet, U.S. News does not take this outcome into its ranking calculations. Social mobility is only 5% of the rankings. Given our student makeup and size, Stillman deserves recognition for exceptional social mobility. 7. In 1989, the American Honda Motor Company, Inc. joined the College Bowl Company to establish the Honda Campus All-Star Challenge (HCASC), based on College Bowl—the Varsity Sport of the Mind. This was created to support the unique mission of America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). For 34 years, the top HBCUs have competed in regional competitions to qualify for the National Championships in Los Angeles at Honda headquarters. This year’s National Championship brought the top academic talent from 32 HBCUs, including highly ranked Howard University, Spelman College, Florida A&M University, Morgan State University, Claflin University, Tuskegee University, and Morehouse College. In its 34-year history, there have only been 17 HBCUs to win the HCASC. This year, Stillman College, for the first time in its history, advanced past the Elite 8 to win the HCASC National Championship. Yet, US News & World Report does not include this annual academic tournament in its "Best HBCUs in the US" ranking criteria to distinguish the various HBCUs from one another or other higher education institutions. It uses the same overall ranking criteria for HBCUs, as it does for the National, Regional, and Liberal Arts ranking.‘These seven examples are the primary factors why Stillman is withdrawing from the U.S. News and World Report rankings. Ifthe ranking criteria reflected the mission and impacts of HBCUs, there would be more HBCUs represented in the National Universities (Howard University is ranked #89) and in the National Liberal Arts Colleges (Spelman College is ranked #51). Although HBCUS represent 3 percent of all higher-education institutions in the US, 10 percent of all African Americans are enrolled in HBCUs, 17 percent of all. bachelor's degrees and 24 percent of all STEM-related bachelor's degrees are earned by African American students at HBCUs. Additionally, the mean mobility rate across all US colleges is 1.6 percent, but the mean mobility rate of HBCUs is 3.0 percent. The US News Ranking system does not reflect these outcomes, the mission, and ideals of an HBCU education. The structure of the rankings system contradicts the deeply held commitments of Stillman College and minimizes the impact we have on our students, our community, the state, and the nation If U.S. News and World Report is truly dedicated to helping consumers make important decisions in their lives, I challenge you to create an independent task force including outside stakeholders to reevaluate the indicators used in developing the rankings. I truly believe this will give consumers a full picture of the various types of institutions of higher education to make an informed decision when choosing what college to attend. Sipeerely, (ia Warrick, PhD RPh lent