Morehead State University (MSU) is a public, co-educational university located in Morehead, Kentucky, United States, in the foothills of the Daniel Boone National Forest in Rowan County, midway between Lexington, Kentucky, and Huntington, West Virginia. The school was founded in 1887 as Morehead Normal School, a church-supported teacher-training school. It was taken over by the state in 1922. The school's name changed as its mission broadened—to Morehead State Normal School and Teachers College in 1926, Morehead State Teachers College in 1930, Morehead State College in 1948, and Morehead State University in 1966. The 2016 edition of "America's Best Colleges" by U.S. News & World Report named MSU one of the top 25 public universities in the South, the 12th consecutive year it has been so recognized. MSU was recognized in 2013 by The Daily Beast as a top underrated school. In 2013, G.I. Jobs magazine ranked Morehead State in the top 20 percent of veteran-friendly colleges, universities and trade schools in the nation, for the fifth straight year. The campus is ranked among the safest in the nation.