Dean David Cronrath of the College of Art and Design has been named one of the Most Admired Educators of 2010 by Design Intelligence, the leading journal of the design professions. In its annual issue, the magazine also ranked the LSU Robert Reich School of Landscape Architecture among the top five schools in the nation, the sixth consecutive year it has done so.

“We are proud to once again be recognized for excellence in this field, and I am honored to be included on the list of admired educators” said Cronrath, who has been dean of the College since 2005, and was previously director of the School of Architecture. “One of the criteria for the LSU Flagship Agenda is to have our academic units recognized by national organizations for exceptional quality. Since this survey began our programs have consistently been recognized so this is truly significant.”

Cronrath was one of 25 on the list of educators and education administrators who exemplify excellence in design education leadership, according to DesignIntelligence. The 2010 class of education role models was selected by the staff of DesignIntelligence with extensive input from hundreds of design professionals, academic department heads, and students. Educators in the disciplines of architecture, interior design, industrial design, and landscape architecture were eligible for inclusion.

The magazine also ranked the Reich School’s undergraduate program as No. 2 in the nation, and its graduation program as No. 3. Those rankings are unchanged from 2009. More significantly, the School’s programs have been ranked in the top five since the survey began.

While U.S. News and World Report has established a nationally recognized ranking system for universities and many university programs, the magazine does not rank design schools. To fill that void, Design Intelligence began its own ranking of accredited programs in architecture, landscape architecture and interior design several years ago. Since then, the Design Intelligence survey has become the established ranking system for design programs across the U.S.

Rankings in the Design Intelligence survey are based on statistical information, professional surveys and academic surveys. Practitioners at leading U.S. landscape architecture firms complete the survey, which asks them which schools have produced the best‐prepared graduates during the past five years.