The College of Staten Island has earned distinction in Newsweek’s inaugural “America’s Best Colleges for Women 2026” rankings, tying for #32 among all colleges and universities in the State of New York and placing within the Top 400 institutions nationally, a ranking position that places CSI among the Top 10% of colleges across the United States.

This recognition underscores CSI’s commitment to fostering an empowering, equitable environment for women students and faculty, reinforcing the College’s mission to support academic achievement, safety, leadership, and opportunity for all.

“This recognition reflects CSI’s ongoing commitment to fostering an environment where women can thrive as scholars, leaders, and innovators,” said CSI President Dr. Timothy G. Lynch. “We are proud of the progress we’ve made and remain dedicated to expanding opportunity, strengthening equity, and ensuring that every member of our community feels supported and empowered.”

The “America’s Best Colleges for Women 2026” list is the first of its kind from Newsweek, produced in partnership with Gender Fair, an organization that evaluates institutions through the lens of gender equity. The goal of this ranking is to help prospective students and their families assess how well colleges support women across key areas that influence success both during and after college.

Colleges included in the ranking were evaluated based on a variety of metrics, including representation of women in visible academic leadership roles, assessment of pay equity between women and men on campus, data from the U.S. Department of Education’s Campus Safety and Security database  on reported crimes against women and safety environments on campus, and opportunities for women from diverse backgrounds, including racial diversity in faculty and the proportion of Pell Grant recipients.

The dataset for the ranking draws on federal sources such as the U.S. Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and safety data, as well as supplemental research on policies and campus conditions relevant to women.

Institutions evaluated span all 50 states and Washington, DC, and include co-educational colleges with at least 1,000 students and a minimum number of women academic staff.

Being placed in the Top 400 nationally in “America’s Best Colleges for Women” is a noteworthy achievement, especially given the size and scope of the U.S. higher education landscape. The ranking evaluates thousands of institutions on criteria that reflect real experiences of women, from leadership and classroom influence to personal safety and post-graduation opportunities. The ranking underscores CSI’s commitment to providing a supportive environment where women can thrive academically and professionally, maintain competitive standards in leadership representation and opportunity access, and to remain part of an elite group of institutions that perform strongly across equity-related measures in higher education.

See the full rankings on the Newsweek Website.