LEWISTON, Idaho – Lewis-Clark State College again moved up in U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings, released Tuesday.
LC State is now ranked No. 6 in the report’s Top Public Schools – Regional Colleges (West) ranking, moving up two spots over last year’s ranking. The school ranked No. 8 in 2024 and 2025, No. 9 in 2023, and No. 10 in 2022.
"LC State continues to enhance the incredible value it provides to students, families, communities, and Idaho, and we’re grateful that this ranking captures that progression,” LC State President Cynthia Pemberton said. “We’re proud to be a model of efficiency and quality in higher education, helping lead in key areas such as healthcare, teacher, and career-technical education; and in serving low-income, first-generation, and nontraditional students.”
Among this year’s top public schools in the West category, LC State is the only school in Idaho or Washington to make the Top 10.
LC State climbed to No. 23 in the social mobility ranking in the West region – it ranked No. 35 in 2025 and No. 43 in 2024. The report defines social mobility as successfully enrolling and graduating large proportions of disadvantaged students awarded with Pell Grants. The organization states that economically disadvantaged students are less likely than others to finish college. Nearly 50% of LC State students are Pell eligible.
U.S. News & World Report’s annual best college rankings were established to provide data-driven information and guidance for prospective students and their families.
According to the organization, the rankings are determined by 17 criteria factors including: graduation rates, first-year retention rates, graduation rate performance, Pell graduation rates, Pell graduation performance, college grad earnings, borrower debt, peer assessment, financial resources per student, standardized tests, and student-faculty ratio.
LC State offers the lowest tuition among Idaho’s public four-year institutions. It was one of over 1,700 colleges and universities included in the rankings, which started in 1983.