In the 51 years of Grand Valley State University’s history, the university has never seen a growth rate as great as it has experienced in recent years. In the past two decades, GVSU went from a relatively small school of about 11,000 students to a university of more than 24,000 students.

A major contributor to this growth comes in the university’s value — GVSU has now been named as one of America’s 100 Best College Buys for 16 years in a row.

The list of 100 schools, published annually by Intuitional Research and Evaluation, Inc., in Rome, Ga., uses cost-benefit analysis when creating the list, focusing mainly on schools that provide high academic performance coupled with low costs. GVSU has met those requirements year after year, said Lewis T. Lindsey, Jr., IRE president.

“The facts speak for themselves,” Lindsey said. “We can’t create the figures, the facts are the facts. Over time, it has been proven that the consistency of Grand Valley, amongst others, that the quality is there while the cost remains so reasonable.”

The list is compiled after roughly 1,449 colleges are analyzed and given the potential to be on the list, pending that the college or university responds to a survey given out by the IRE. This year, 1,069 schools responded to the survey, qualifying them for consideration in a spot amongst the top 100.

While GVSU’s student body ranks in the middle of the pack, Lindsay said the list offers a chance of recognition for smaller schools as well.

“Every college and university can be compared, not necessarily by size, by the academic profile of the most recent freshman entering class and can be compared by cost,” Lindsey said. “Those two things allow you to compare schools. That’s what this list does, it gives some respect to schools that maybe are not as well known as others but have high expectations for the students and produce a product for the price that nobody else can beat.”

Since the university has been on the list for so long, Lindsey began working relations with Arend D. Lubbers, president emeritus of GVSU. For current President Thomas J. Haas, remaining on the list for so long is a great honor.

“To be named one of America’s best 100 college buys, an institution must have both quality and value,” Haas said. “I’m very proud that Grand Valley has been named a best buy for 16 years in a row — the only Michigan campus so honored.”

Haas cited the dedication and commitment of GVSU’s trustees and administration to seek high quality academics and operating efficiency to keep tuition costs low while offering high academic performance.

“Our academic performance data place Grand Valley in the top four of Michigan’s 15 campuses while our tuition is below the state university average,” he said. “This is why I say that Grand Valley is a grand value.”

The official list will be released to the public Saturday. GVSU is joined by Hillsdale College as the two Michigan representatives. New York leads the list with nine schools. There is no formal ranking.

The high expectations that come with attending GVSU have led to the university’s placement on the list year after year, Lindsey said.

“We’ve seen that every year with Grand Valley, and it speaks well of the students, it speaks well of the faculty, and the administration,” he said.

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