UVa-Wise newest member of COPLAC

UVa-Wise was unanimously approved as the newest member of the Council on Public Liberal Arts Colleges (COPLAC), an elite group of colleges with a shared commitment to the liberal arts.

“We’re proud to have been elected to full membership in the national Council on Public Liberal Arts Colleges because it validates that UVa-Wise is one of the best public liberal arts colleges in the nation,” said Chancellor David J. Prior.

Founded in 1987, COPLAC’s mission is to identify and support high quality public liberal arts and sciences institutions. COPLAC member institutions are distinguished by their commitment to provide a superior education to undergraduate students. These selective institutions have been recognized nationally as outstanding in many diverse ways, including small classes, innovations in teaching, personal interactions with faculty, opportunities for faculty-supervised research and supportive atmospheres. Most of these colleges are located in rural or small-town settings.

“Being a member of this group of distinguished colleges enables us to be a part of the national conversation about education and the role of the liberal arts,” Prior said.

UVa-Wise joins the University of Mary Washington as only the second Virginia college admitted to COPLAC.

Other COPLAC members include: College of Charleston,    
Eastern Connecticut State University, The Evergreen State College;   
Fort Lewis College; Georgia College & State University; Henderson State University; Keene State College; Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts; Midwestern State University; New College of Florida; Ramapo College of New Jersey; Sonoma State University; Southern Oregon University; St. Mary's College of Maryland; SUNY College at Geneseo; Truman State University; University of Maine at Farmington; University of Minnesota, Morris; University of Montevallo; University of North Carolina at Asheville; University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma; and University of Wisconsin-Superior.      

Posted August 11, 2006