Brevard does have a cute downtown - although it’s more of a retiree-and-touristy cute than a college-kid cute. The area has a lot going for it, nature-wise: gorgeous mountains, lots of hiking and biking, and good four-season weather (although it does rain a LOT). However, the college is tiny - 700 students. PM me if you have questions about the area!!
Does your daughter plan to frequently buy things like coffee and boutique items at these little shops? If so, I would suggest that she treat you to “coffee and” with her money while you visit these schools. The costs of buying these things can really add up.
Is Route 66 considered “a good college street / main drag” ?
This is a good point.
Adding that my D19 goes to a college in the NE with a cute downtown (gift shops/restaurants/coffee shops)…all within an easy walking distance and neither she, nor her friends go very often…only once last semester, which has surprised all of us.
Basically she says there’s no reason to go off campus, and when they do it’s to go to a concert or other event in the closest city, about 30 mins away.
@Sweetgum Mary Baldwin’s online offerings and programs geared for older students, high school students and male undergraduates happened because trustees had concerns about the ability of their traditional undergraduate women’s college model to survive long-term with what has historically been a small endowment. While MBU received a large gift from an alumna several years ago, many alumnae appear to be unhappy with the changes, which can impact their giving going forward if they don’t come around. LAC’s with insufficient endowments are at greater risk of not being able to sustain strong programs and tenured faculty.
This is not to say that Mary Baldwin isn’t the right place for your D, but just a caution that especially if she is looking for merit aid, she wants to be certain the school can offer that for all four years. As a parent, I’d be looking at the financial health of any small LAC.
http://theconversation.com/5-ways-to-check-a-colleges-financial-health-127908
https://www.acenet.edu/Documents/Understanding-Endowments-White-Paper.pdf
There is an excellent English and writing department at Mississippi State University. Starkville has its charms. The Cotton District neighborhood is popular with students because of the nightlife.
Have you looked at Bridgewater College in the town of Bridgewater, VA (LAC with 1,800 students)? We live near there and have always been impressed by the college and the town. It’s 20 miles north of MBU. Bridgewater College offers a unique major in Professional Writing – one of the few colleges in VA that does. The town is a safe, generous place with a small but vibrant main street (theater, ice rink, farmers market, coffee shops, a few quirky shops). My son considered going there but ended up at JMU. Bridgewater college offers generous merit aid. (Note: It’s a town of 6,000+, so it’s nowhere near the size of Staunton. Staunton is one of my favorite small cities – it truly has everything! Bridgewater is 20 miles north of Staunton and about 6 miles south of Harrisonburg.) If you are headed up to MBU anyway, it would be well worth your time to visit Bridgewater.
Another REALLY cute LAC with a quirky downtown in Denison University in Granville, OH. I’m sure it’s too far away for you, but we had a “friend-led” tour there and LOVED it. Good luck!
Thanks @scout59 for the info on Brevard. That sounds about like what I was thinking. I think we’ll probably get over there at some point, maybe this summer, just 'cause I wanna find a white squirrel(!), but it is probably not the right fit for my D.
@yauponredux good point about the financial health of small LACs. Definitely something to research. MBU does seem to be doing well now from what I can tell, but I should probably take a deeper dive before we go too far down that road.
@thumper1, as I mentioned in my OP, we live in Chapel Hill and my D-22 loves to go spend her money downtown on Franklin Street in the coffee and bubble tea shops and take her school work and study there, so she has a very good idea of how much stuff costs and what she is looking for. They know her by name in her favorite bubble tea place. The coffee shops here are full of UNC students doing the same.
@Holly2023 I had not heard about Bridgewater College. I will check it out and see if it might be a good fit.
@LakeWashington Thanks for the recommendation. Don’t think she’s gonna want to go to Mississippi, but I will let her know she might want to check out the writing program. My bro-in-law graduated from Mississippi State, btw.
As a Mary Wash person myself, I second the recommendation for Univ of Mary Washington. I love Fredericksburg!
I would look at Auburn. Great school and sounds like she would love the toomers area on College st.