A top 10 college town with a great vibe

Confirming what many in the Jayhawk nation already know, a guide for parents of college-bound students has named Lawrence one of America’s 10 best college towns.

Praising the city’s vibrant downtown, youthful attitude and crimson-capped campus, Parents & Colleges recommends families put Lawrence and the University of Kansas on their shortlists as they make college plans.

“In Lawrence, you can feel that artsy vibe practically everywhere: in public art exhibits that bring sculpture and mosaic projects to street corners throughout the city, in the Lawrence Arts Center where performing and visual arts come together under one roof, in a live music scene that’s light years ahead of what's playing on the radio,” the guide reported.

The site also touts outdoor activities at Clinton Lake, the Kansas River and the city’s 50 parks, calling the choices tremendous: “No wonder this is one great college town!”

This was not the first time Lawrence has made the top 10 lists of college towns. The American Institute for Economic Research, MSN and MSNBC also have lauded this historic community of nearly 100,000 nestled between Kansas City and Topeka. The Fiske Guide to Colleges remarked that Lawrence is “the American college town” and MSN.com reported Lawrence has an “authentic college vibe.”

And Lawrence has made other lists as well, like Forbes’ smartest cities (No. 7), eRepublic’s most digital (No. 6), BusinessWeek’s top cities for employment (No. 6), Sporting News’ best sports city (No. 15 overall, No. 1 among college towns) and Yahoo!’s list of greenest cities (No. 8).