Lee University is a private, comprehensive university located in Cleveland, Tennessee, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Lee is emerging as a leader in higher education in the southeastern region and was ranked in 2009 in the “Top Tier” in the South by U.S. News & World Report (Comprehensive Medium- Size Universities). Lee is also ranked by Princeton Review’s “Best Colleges” and is now one of the 136 colleges named Best in the Southeast. The university’s growing reputation as a quality institution can be seen in the high caliber of faculty, students, and friends who are drawn to the campus. This marks the 22nd straight year of increased enrollment under the leadership of president, Dr. Paul Conn.

Over the past two decades, Lee has become one of the largest Christ-centered private institutions in Tennessee and the largest in the Appalachian College Association. During that period, the university has undergone a remarkable transformation that has included significant growth in academic programs, student enrollment, faculty expertise and diversity, as well as an expanded sense of mission and vision.

Lee’s enrollment has more than tripled from 1,214 students in 1986 to 4,147 students in fall 2008. This makes Lee the 5th largest undergraduate enrollment among the 103 Christian colleges who are member institutions of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (www.cccu.org). During that same period, average ACT scores of entering freshmen have increased to 23, and faculty has grown and diversified in order to offer a rapidly expanding slate of academic programs. Since 1986, Lee has added twenty-one major buildings necessary to serve the students.