<p>WELCOME to ALL newcomers to this thread! :)</p>
<p>Gailbeth: Over & over again I’ve heard U of Alabama mentioned. Not sure how big the Jewish population is, but you may want to research that! Of course, football team. Does she want to go that far from home? Does Lehigh have a football team? That has a big Jewish population. Also, Syracuse? I believe that’s Div. I? U of Maryland?</p>
<p>Momjr: I never saw that email! Love it if you could pm me with the whole email, sounds interesting. Thank you!</p>
<p>My son was raised Jewish in a city with a very small Jewish population – no more than 10 Jewish kids in a high school with over 2000 students. However, he went to a Jewish summer camp for 9 years and felt that it was one place where he was able to feel truly comfortable. So when he started looking at colleges, he did tend to focus on schools with a sizable Jewish population. He is now a sophomore at Tulane (aka Jewlane) which is between 30-40% Jewish and feels completely comfortable there (no defending his religion, no dealing with anti-Israel rallies, etc.). He pledged a fraternity – but not a traditionally Jewish fraternity though there are 3 at Tulane (AEPi, Sammy and ZBT). However, and possibly by default, about 40% of the brothers are Jewish. The fraternity house is right across the street from the brand new Hillel (aka the Jew Castle). His best friend is Jewish – but two of his other close friends are Chinese- and Vietnamese-Americans. And while he has many Jewish girl friends, his girlfriend is not Jewish and he didn’t even meet her at Tulane. She goes to Emory and was a year behind him in high school; he started dating her over his spring break last year and so far they have maintained a pretty steady long distance relationship. I grew up in Montgomery Co., MD and my high school was about 1/3 Jewish. I went to Northwestern for the communications school, but also because there was a large Jewish population and an active Hillel. I attended events at Hillel but did not like the experience at all. Wound up meeting my husband at Northwestern, but he is an atheist who was attending grad school at the University of Chicago and happened to be visiting NU one weekend. So – as many of you have pointed out, just attending a school with a big Jewish population is not going to guarantee that the Jewish kids will seek each other out. As the saying goes, you can bring the Jewish horse to college, but you can’t make him seek out only other Jewish horses.</p>
<p>Gailbeth: I don’t think that South Carolina or Georgia will have the diversity and large Jewish population you mention. They are very traditional Southern school. Of the two, it looks like Georgia had the larger Jewish population and more active Hillel, but it’s only about 5% Jewish. If your daughter wants the Southeast, the Florida schools are probably your best best. If her ACT score comes up and she doesn’t mind the cold, Pitt and UMD have strong Jewish populations and serious football. U Del would be a another good possiblity.</p>
<p>Has your son considered Lafayette College? It has a small population, good faculty, a beautiful campus and a large Jewish study body. I believe about 1/3 of the students are Jewish. Good luck!</p>
<p>@ gb7199 #5099. In-state, look at Pitt for large & active Jewish community. The Hillel is mid-way between Pitt & CMU, gets strong financial and people support from the Pittsburgh Jewish community. D’s #1 comment when we visited. (And she has USY friends attending). UMD also has a large Hillel (and D has more friends there/hoping to go). I have no info on Jewish sororities at either school.</p>
<p>RVM. Thank you. I know there is a lot of interaction and friendly rivalries amongst the Hillels and AEPi chapters up & down I-81. The disadvantage of the schools is the local Jewish communities are usually small. So not as many opportunities for community interaction as there are at Pitt, for example. The campus communities compensate for fewer numbers with enthusiasm. (We also saw this at Washington & Lee.) </p>
<p>Fraternities (& sororities) don’t have to be “Jewish” to be the right fit for someone looking for a Jewish campus experience. Much depends on the chemistry and membership of the chapter. @ my day/school, I wasn’t that interested in finding a “Jewish” fraternity. I pledged & joined what had been at the national level a traditional southern WASP fraternity (the Northeast and New England chapters were always more liberal); always felt welcome and there were never any issues.</p>
<p>S is a freshman at Ithaca College, School of Music. One of his criteria was a strong Jewish community on campus and access to kosher food. There is an active Hillel on campus with weekly activities, including Shabbat services and a communal kosher Shabbat dinner in the dining Hall. Ithaca has a kosher kitchen in the Terraces Dining Hall, and it’s considered some of the best food on campus. </p>
<p>Hillel had a Shabbaton for new students the weekend of freshman move in. It enabled S to meet a wonderful group of students and move into the dorms before the rush. Lots of Jewish kids don’t do much with Hillel, but there seems to be a nice sense of Jewish community on the campus.</p>
<p>How about where my DD attends - University of Delaware? The football team made it to the championship game of the FCS (lost by one point - such a heartbreaker). Football is big there. School has diversity. My DD is rushing when she gets back to school (spring semester doesn’t start till 2/7) - her eye is on the Jewish sorority - AEPhi. She tells me “all the fraternities” are Jewish… her perception!! UD Hillel has Freshmen Fest before move-in; was great for DD!</p>
<p>Someone mentioned Lehigh - not for the B student, but I visited with my DS last fall and the Greek system is huge and football is a big deal too. Especially the rivalry with nearby Lafayette. </p>
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<p>KYKidsmom: Tulane is on my list for DS (only a HS soph now) so would love to hear more about your son’s experience. By the way, I studied communications at Northwestern also (class of 1984) - wonder if I know you? I went to a couple of Hillel events freshman year, but that’s it. Joined a sorority (not a specifically Jewish one, but there were many Jewish girlsin it) plus little sister at ZBT (LOL!). But my two BFFs from college are Jewish (still my BFFs) - that’s what happens when you go to school with a lot of Jews!</p>
<p>Welcome to all the new people here! I love this thread - hope you do too!</p>
<p>Lots of catching up to do from 10+ days away from cc. Life can get so busy. You all have been discussing a fascinating variety of topics with such incredible insight.</p>
<p>MANY pages ago someone followed up to a question I had asked: whether there are other colleges we haven’t considered. Thank you for responding. I hope you’ll excuse my rudeness in not having followed up sooner. </p>
<p>This is the second time around for our family, and like RVM I’m hoping that process will be relatively calm for D2, who is a strong student at a very rigorous school, but does not fall neatly into the “A” student category. My sister and I were recently discussing our own experiences years ago at a prestigious LAC. After going on to attend grad school and now out in the working world, both of us have come believe that the highest levels of undergraduate academic rigor and prestige do not necessarily mean a better education or preparation for graduate school and professional life. The challenge for my D2 will be to find a college ‘fit’ where she can be challenged while also maintaining a decent balance between academics and ec’s, and not experience burnout before she even enters the working world. Many of the colleges discussed here sound promising, including perhaps UVM (which probably requires an applicant with at least B+/A- grades).</p>
<p>Are you sure about UVM? We’re talking Univ. of Vermont, right? I am under the impression that is a solid “B” school. I’ll check it out, but B+/A- sounds a bit high…</p>
<p>ccc, maybe you’re right. The ACT middle range for admitted students for fall 2010 was 25-30 (according to UVM’s website). A “B” student earning that gpa in honors and AP classes, and falling with the ACT range, might be a solid applicant. But the standards for OOS applicants are likely somewhat higher than in-state.</p>
<p>Peonies - My S is a soph at UVM. Absolutely loves it! I’d say a B+ student has an excellent chance of acceptance. S had B+ with strong SATs. Since ~ 70% of UVM students are from OOS, I’m not sure I would worry about higher standards for OOS applicants. Let me know if you have any specific questions.</p>
<p>Thanks, Mom2009. Has your S chosen a major? My D hasn’t visiting yet, but we’ll definitely plan to visit this spring or early summer. We’ve skied some in VT, and the proximity to skiing and Lake Champlain location are very enticing. As well as the strong academics, of course.</p>
<p>My goodness - this thread is really rockin’ and rollin’ today. I’m really honored that CC chose to feature us and our discussion in their recent e-mail - which I rcvd today - very cool. Thanks to all of you who make this thread a fun and supportive place.</p>
<p>On the last page - someone suggested Lafayette College - not sure if that was directed at my son - but that’s actually where I went to college way back when. I didn’t really like it - for reasons that have probably all changed by now - but back then - very few Jewish students and very fraternity dominated campus. So - he has kind of a negative impression of it based on the comments I have made over the years. I also think it is more of at least an “A-” student school than a “B” student. But I do think it is a great school now - particularly if you are interested in both liberal arts and engineering. And I am glad to hear that the Jewish population has increased. So - it might be an option for a stronger student.</p>
<p>I’m posting a VERY important message here :):)</p>
<p>Because my inititals are so close to cc, maybe you guys can refer to me as chocchip, or even just choc! :D</p>
<p>So then I can differentiate myself from college confidential! :)</p>
<p>I’d love to know more about UVM too, since my younger S is still a freshman and right now he is a solid B+ student. He’ll probably major in Engineering. However, he’s not my outdoorsy, athletic one. He’s more of the home body, huge reader and loves computer games, etc.</p>
<p>Mom2009: Do you know anything about the Jewish population there? (If you answered this question already, I’m sorry).</p>
<p>The site says Lafayette is now 10% - 12% Jewish. Quite a change from my day!</p>
<p>I also looked at our large public hs Naviance. Not many students from our area apply to Lafayette - but those who are accepted have weighted GPAs of at least 4.0 - most were 4.2 and up. This would be mostly A’s and include many honors/AP classes to get the GPA over 4.0. The lowest accepted SAT was a 1200 - most were 1300 and above. So - not a “B” student school from my perspective.</p>
<p>There are approximately 1800-2000 Jewish Undergraduates and 400 Jewish Graduate/Medical students at UVM. That means that around 17%-20% of the undergraduates at UVM are Jewish!"</p>
<p>I think this is a great choice for a “B” student - but you have to like cold weather! It would be on my son’s list if I could relocate it further south. From what I hear - Burlington is a great college town as well.</p>
<p>Admitted Student Profile for Fall 2007:
18,814 applications received
Average SAT scores: 610 critical reading, 616 math, 610 writing
Average ACT score: 27
Ranking: 97% in top 50% of class, 72% in top 25%, 35% in top 10%</p>
<p>I know the above is a few years old but I don’t think it has changed much - that’s the info on Naviance.</p>
<p>More recent:</p>
<p>Admitted Student Profile</p>
<p>Class ranking of students admitted for Fall 2010</p>
<pre><code>* Top 10%: 39%
Top 25%: 77%
Top 50%: 98%
</code></pre>
<p>*44% attended high schools reporting exact class rank.</p>
<p>Standardized Test Ranges*</p>
<pre><code>* SAT Critical Reading: 560-660
SAT Math: 570-670
SAT Writing: 560-670
ACT: 25-30
</code></pre>
<p>I like that it offers early action (Nov. 1 deadline) as well.</p>