FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” 2006 has rated the supply chain management/logistics specialty in the Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas, 17^th among the approximately 100 public and private schools offering such specialties.

 “We are very excited about being included again in this U.S. News ranking,” said Jim Crowell, managing director of the Supply Chain Management Research Center. “The center connects us with transportation and logistics organizations in some of the nation’s largest corporations. Its board of directors is comprised of 41 key logistics executives from 22 national and international companies. This support enables us to greatly enhance the quality of our bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in transportation and logistics.”

The Walton College was actually ranked in 14^th place among the public undergraduate business schools who offer the supply chain specialty. The Walton College supply chain management/logistics specialty was ranked at 15^th place among public and private business schools in the 2004 rankings, but was not included on the list in 2005.

Tom Jensen, chair of the department of marketing and logistics, added, “The center’s board of directors has helped us build programs to educate our students and better prepare them for tomorrow’s job market. As well, these relationships have created more opportunities for real world research for our marketing and logistics faculty that in turn benefits the member companies.”

The Supply Chain Management Research Center in the Walton College, established in 1996, supports transportation and logistics faculty, student career fairs and internships, and research with business and industry. 

Other top-rated universities with supply chain management/logistics specialties include: Massachusetts Institute of  Technology (Sloan); Michigan State University (Broad), Arizona State University (Carey), Pennsylvania State University (Smeal), Carnegie Mellow University, and Ohio State University (Fisher).

In the same 2006 rankings, the Walton College moved up from a tie for 25^th place to a tie for 24^th place among the U.S. public undergraduate business schools and from a tie from 41^st place to 40^th place among U.S. public and private undergraduate business schools.

The rankings were determined through a U.S. News survey, which each year asks business school deans and senior faculty to rate the more than 500 public and private undergraduate business programs accredited by the AACSB International — the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

“This rise in academic rankings can be attributed to the collective efforts of our faculty, staff and students, alumni and friends,” said Doyle Z. Williams, dean of the Walton College. “In addition, this national recognition of our efforts in supply chain management and logistics indicates the increasing quality of our faculty, students and relationships with business and industry in this critical area.”