On the Street

Oops!

A misread survey and the incorrect answer that resulted caused College of the Ozarks to fall from No. 13 last year to No. 31 on U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges 2005" rankings for the Midwestern Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelor's category. It turns out that C of O was incorrectly listed as having huge classes, which negatively affected the rankings. The total number of classes 393 was listed as the number of classes with 100 or more students. "(The survey) said 100+, but I guess I read it as 100 percent," said Camille Howell, public relations director for the college.

As for the incorrect number of large classes, she said, "(That) is a physical impossibility at a school with 1,500 students. Last year, we had zero classes of more than 100."

Some classes at the school have as few as three students, and less than 3 percent of C of O's classes have more than 50 students. None of them have anywhere near 100 students, according to a news release from the school. Without the mistake, College of the Ozarks would have been in about the same place as last year, but C of O President Jerry Davis takes the ratings tumble in stride.

"Even with this error, we still made the top 25 percent of colleges in our category, which speaks well for us." Other Missouri schools made the list, including Evangel University, which tied for No. 49.

Drury University and Southwest Missouri State University appeared on another list: Midwestern Universities-Master's. Drury was No. 12 and SMSU was No. 55.

Citizen survey

Springfield Police Department has mailed its 11th annual Police Citizens Survey to about 4,000 random Springfield residents. The five-page questionnaire asks about neighborhood crime, police response times, investigating crime, enforcing traffic laws and how citizens think police should spend their time. SMSU's College of Health & Human Services will tabulate survey results, which will be compared to those from previous years to provide information about meeting community needs. Recipients are encouraged to complete and return the surveys. Respondents are anonymous. Results will be made public at a later date.

Slice of Nice

Dogs have a chance for some end-of-summer fun at Fassnight Park Pool. The Dog Swim, designed to become an annual event, will be held 6-8 p.m. Sept. 7 at the pool located in Fassnight Park, 1300 S. Campbell. Prior to draining the public pool for the season, unleashed dogs have the opportunity to play and swim freely in the fenced pool area. The cost is $5 per dog, with owners admitted free, and $3 for spectators. Preregistration forms can be downloaded at www.parkboard.org. Proof of vaccinations is required. The event is a fund-raiser for The Dog Park, which will be developed at Loren Park, 2100 W. Catalpa, as an off-leash dog park maintained by the park board.