University of Oklahoma is a great option. If she completes the essay, it looks as though she meets the requirements for admission to the honors college. Honors classes are limited to 22 students and there are numerous research experiences designed for honors students, too. One of the really neat parts of OU’s honors college is that students can participate in a summer study program at one of Oxford’s colleges. Additionally, if she is interested in potentially doing law school in-state, up to 25 incoming honors students are selected for a 3+3 program (i.e. cutting one year off in the path to a law degree), with the potential to use some of the scholarships from the 4th year towards law school expenses. In addition, the honors college has special networking opportunities for its juniors and seniors to build connections and explore different career paths. There are also some honors college only clubs, like an outdoors club. There’s even a mentor program that sets up every incoming honors college freshman with an upperclassman to help make the transition to college easier.
Additionally, the Carl Albert Center for Congressional research and studies seems promising for a poli sci major as do the OU Center for Studies in Democracy and Culture, the Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis, and the Community Engagement and Experiments Lab. OU is a 26m drive (in current conditions, per Google) to the Oklahoma State Capitol, so there are lots of opportunities for political engagement there, too. Plus, OU offers through a major in Chinese, so she should have plenty of course options to complete her minor.
If you would like additional help looking for schools that could end up meeting a comparable price point as OU, just let us know.