<p>Anyone have experience or information on Tusculum College?
Thanks.</p>
<p>I don’t have any personal experience with Tusculum College, however, I doubt that a small college in that area would have any Jewish students there.</p>
<p>Tusculum is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. Its religious affiliation and location in East Tennessee probably would not be comfortable for a Jewish student. There is a Jewish community in Knoxville and a Hillel at the University of Tennessee but that’s 70 miles (more than an hour) away. If there are attributes of Tusculum that are interesting, maybe the posters here can suggest similar schools that would work better.</p>
<p>I am not certain why it is that D2, and I did check her profile and it is marked Jewish, keeps getting emails and snail mail from Catholic and other clearly religious based school. As long as religion is not forced upon her, we would at least take a look at it and not automatically say “no.” But most of the schools are not that way that she has been hearing from. Any ideas as to why?</p>
<p>I don’t think the colleges exclude on the basis of religion, so they would send these out to all students. That’s just a guess.</p>
<p>Trinity University in San Antonio is a very good option for the B student. It is a small (2,700 student) LAC with a very attractive campus in an urban setting. Although founded by the Presbyterian Church it is now a secular institution. The student body is composed primarily of students from the southwest, especially Texas, but the college seems to be a very friendly, welcoming place. San Antonio has a strong Hispanic heritage but is multicultural with a prominent Jewish community. Trinity and UTSA share a Hillel: </p>
<pre><code> San Antonio Hillel
</code></pre>
<p>There is also a Jewish Students Association, and the college offers several classes in Jewish studies.</p>
<p>I have no affiliation with Trinity but I have been to many events on campus, and I expect that the college is on the verge of being ‘discovered’ nationally.</p>
<p>We actually took a road trip to Tusculum yesterday. For anyone with a child that has:
Check any that apply…
not so stellar grades or test scores
wants to plays sports
wants a REALLY small school
does NOT want a party school
has trouble focusing on more than one subject at a time
or not so deep pockets…
… this school “could” be an option. </p>
<p>I will do the fluff parts firsts:
- We drove up to the admissions parking lot and there was a visitor parking space with D2’s name on it! There were other spots with other potential student’s names reserved as well. A nice personal touch.
- Her goodie bag had a Tusculum t-shirt. We never had that at a college before. Usually just a 10% discount or something like that for the college book store.
- It is about a 3 hour drive from the Washington DC area and it is really very pretty.</p>
<p>Now to the really important things…
- Tusculum runs on the Block plan, like Colorado College, meaning they offer one class at a time for 3 and a 1/2 weeks. 8 classes per year. They have been doing it this way since 1991 and went to Colorado College to study their system.</p>
<ol>
<li>Applying to Tusculum is relatively easy and they place applicants in English and math courses based upon their ACT or SAT Scores as follows:
<em>Students will receive institutional (developmental credit) if they are required to take ENGL 099 or 100. Institutional credit will not apply toward hours needed for graduation.
400 or below 15 or below ENGL 099</em>, 100<em>, 110, 111
410 - 450 16 - 19 ENGL 100</em>, 110, 111
460 - 590 20 - 25 ENGL 110, 111
600 - 640 26 - 27 ENGL 111
650 or above 28 or above ENGL 111</li>
</ol>
<p>Math Placement for Freshmen SAT Math subscore ACT Math subscore Course Placement
450 or below 18 or below MATH 099*
460 - 510 19-21 MATH 100*
520-550 22-23 MATH/CMNS 120s or MATH 135
560 24 MATH 120s or 135 or 140 or 150 or 160
570-60 25-26 MATH 120s or 135 or 140 or 150 or 160 or 170 or 180
610 or above 27 or above MATH 120s or 135 or 140 or 150 or 160 or 170 or 180 or 190</p>
<p>There is also and Honors Program for more advanced students:
Entering students with an ACT score of 25 or higher (1130 or higher on the SAT) and a high school grade point average of at least 3.3 will be invited to apply to the program. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>The school is need blind and tuition is in the low $20’s with room and board about $8K, however, they do offer scholarships and grants for Tuition ONLY.</p></li>
<li><p>The school is also a DRY school and they actually mean it.</p></li>
<li><p>Laundry machines are free.</p></li>
<li><p>They are a Division II sports school and as such, offer scholarships. They even offer cheer and girls bball scholarships.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Now the not so good stuff.
- We were there on a Saturday around 11-Noon and we saw 4 students on campus. no one was there. We saw two of them waiting in the Commons area for the cafeteria to open for lunch. There was no place open to get food.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The campus does not have WiFi yet, they said they hope to have it done by January.</p></li>
<li><p>The library was open and the only people in it were adults from the area. The hours for the library:
Sunday 6pm - 10pm
Saturday 9am -1 pm
Mon-Thur 8am-10pm
Friday 8am-5pm</p></li>
<li><p>The town around the campus… there isn’t one. Across the street there is a coffee type shop and apparently some sort a place the girls can get “girlie things.” </p></li>
<li><p>No public transportation at all. It looked like if you had a bike, you might be able to bike to civilization. Otherwise you need a car or to make friends with someone who does have a car. Now, of course this could be a good thing!! However, it means no way for your child to get to/from school by themselves for/from breaks either.</p></li>
<li><p>The bookstore is NOT open on the weekends.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Final thoughts:
As for the school and religion, they do require all students to take a block of religion.
The Hebrew and Christian Traditions - 4 hrs. CMNS 330.
This interdisciplinary course presents the Hebrew and Christian scriptures as testaments of humanitys spiritual yearning and hope for justice in this world. We will examine the dominant themes of the books of the Old and New Testament, the process through which they became canonical and the historical struggles over their meaning and relevance for issues of social ethics. </p>
<p>However, students also may meet this requirement by taking RELG 101 & RELG 102
RELG 101. OLD TESTAMENT LITERATURE: LIFE, DEATH AND THE AFTERLIFE. An exploration of the rich literature and theology in the Hebraic scripture, beginning with creation and then focusing on the biblical view of life, death and life after death. Learning Outcome: Self-Knowledge. Required of religion minors. This course and RELG 102 may be taken in place of RELG/CMNS 330 Hebrew and Christian Traditions. Offered every other year.</p>
<p>RELG 102. NEW TESTAMENT: LIFE, DEATH AND THE AFTERLIFE. The exploration of such themes as death and dying, resurrec-tion, and the meaning of life itself in the gospels and Pauls epistles. Learning Outcome: Self-Knowledge. Required of religion minors. This course and RELG 101 may be taken in place of RELG/CMNS 330 Hebrew and Christian Traditions. Offered every other year.</p>
<p>This could be a nice place for a student who doesn’t want to go to a local community college yet isn’t ready for a full four year college or just doesn’t test well and needs a place to improve. They could attend here for a year, improve their skills and then transfer to another school. The one class at time system really does seem like a great idea for some students as they can focus only on that subject and not have to worry about any other classes. As Colorado is much more difficult to get into, this might be an option.</p>
<p>It sounds like a nice and supportive school. I don’t personally have any problems with learning about religion. IMHO it’s a good way of learning about different beliefs and cultures. My concern would be how a Jewish student would feel socially. Certainly there would be the chance to make many friends, but where would one go to observe holidays, and who would they have to celebrate them with? I wonder if it would be lonely in that sense?</p>
<p>While the block plan may be an attractive option and the East Tennessee mountain area and campus are very pretty, I have to believe that Tusculum would be an uncomfortable place for a Jewish B student (though it may be a good option for someone not Jewish). In all likelihood, your D would be the only Jewish student (or close to it) and the nearest Jewish community is an hour away. Required religion classes are not bad but they will be taught from a Christian perspective. Given that there were only 4 students on campus, there as not an opportunity to interact with students there. There is a risk that coming from the DC area, this school would be a culture shock for your D.</p>
<p>Posters may be able to make better suggestions but here are some small colleges that might work:</p>
<p>Juniata
Allegheny
Susquehanna
York College
Arcadia
Washington & Jefferson</p>
<p>If a large school might be acceptable, look at the University of Kansas. [A</a> Great Place to be Jewish - University of Kansas Hillel](<a href=“http://kansas.hillel.org/home/about/greatplace.aspx]A”>http://kansas.hillel.org/home/about/greatplace.aspx)</p>
<p>It’s a much better school than its difficulty of getting in (arts and sciences is an easy admit). I believe this is the last year before more stringent admissions requirements begin to go into effect.</p>
<p>I agree that there would be a different perspective on the “Old Testament” taught. I believe that any student would be welcome, but socially, religion would have an influence in a small school in this region as some activities would be connected with religious services and groups. A Jewish student would likely feel like the “only one” and without a peer group could feel isolated, even if included.</p>
<p>I have mentioned UNCG before, and there were some concerns about it possibly being a commuter school, but there are many residential students. UNC Greensboro has 25 residence halls, Greek life, and a Hillel. Admissions criteria are about equal to Tusculum, and the total cost for OOS is slightly less than Tusculum with total tuition about 20K and room and board < 8K. There is public transportation, a nearby airport, access to a city, and an honors college with honors housing. </p>
<p>[About</a> Us - UNC Greensboro - North Carolina Hillel](<a href=“http://www.nchillel.org/home/campuslife/uncgreensboro/aboutus.aspx]About”>http://www.nchillel.org/home/campuslife/uncgreensboro/aboutus.aspx)</p>
<p>Greensboro has a Jewish community as well.</p>
<p>According to the website, after Nov 1, admissions is rolling, so for best consideration, applying sooner is better.</p>
<p>Just came across this interesting article in The Jewish Week:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.thejewishweek.com/features/travel/amid-jewish-mountaineers[/url]”>http://www.thejewishweek.com/features/travel/amid-jewish-mountaineers</a></p>
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<p>Great option for a Jewish “B” student seeking a large university.</p>
<p>WVU gets a lot of students from NJ and Pennsylvania. The actual state of West Virginia has few Jews.</p>
<p>which schools do not require 2 years of foreign language at admission</p>
<p>David…I would suggest that you not let a 2 year language requirement prevent you/your student from applying to a school, especially if a school does a holistic review. My S2 will be going to Bowling Green next year, and although 2 years of high school foreign language is required, he only had one (due to diagnosis of dyslexia in 9th grade…his second year was waived by his school). His acceptance came with the requirement that he complete a unit of foreign language in college since he had not met the high school requirement. This is just an example.</p>
<p>Also, depending on the college, lots of engineering programs don’t have the foreign language requirement that is found with liberal arts colleges.</p>
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<p>That’s what I thought… but, somehow, one of my DS’ closest friends at Miami is a nice Jewish boy from Huntington, WV! I was shocked. I’ve gotten to know his mom a bit and learned they have a small but active Jewish community where they live.</p>
<p>Here’s a slightly outdated map of the geographical origins of WVU freshmen in 2010
[Where</a> Does Your Freshman Class Come From? - Students - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“http://chronicle.com/article/Where-Does-Your-Freshman-Class/129547/#id=238032]Where”>http://chronicle.com/article/Where-Does-Your-Freshman-Class/129547/#id=238032)</p>
<p>Lots of kids come from states with large Jewish populations. And linymom, remember that song, “wherever you go…”</p>
<p>Here’s a list of state flagships or quasi flagships with surprisingly active Jewish life that a high SAT/ACT B student stands a reasonable chance of getting into. Schools with notoriously poor academics were excluded.<br>
-University of Iowa
-University of Oregon
-University of Oklahoma (not a good fit for a more conservative Jewish student)
-University of Kansas
-University of Minnesota
-University of Vermont
-Louisiana State University
-Ohio University
-Virginia Tech
-University of Alabama
-West Virginia University</p>
<p>David: I just went to a program for incoming freshman at our high school and they mentioned that some colleges will accept fine arts credits in lieu of foreign language. That was a surprise to me but something I will look into for my daughter. </p>
<p>My middle son is a junior & he took 2 years of foreign language but I could not convince him to continue. My oldest took 3 & does not need language in college.</p>
<p>Lindymom - I’m FROM Huntington WV and know that the Jewish community there is small but thriving. Back in the day I know that Bluefield WV does too. Which I know is surprising to many.</p>
<p>Distressing incident of anti-Semitic vandalism at Penn State:</p>
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</p>
<p>Read more here: [STATE</a> COLLEGE: Police: Largely Jewish fraternity at Penn State targeted with anti-Semitic vandalism | Crime | CentreDaily.com](<a href=“http://www.centredaily.com/2013/11/08/3877857/police-largely-jewish-fraternity.html#storylink=cpy]STATE”>http://www.centredaily.com/2013/11/08/3877857/police-largely-jewish-fraternity.html#storylink=cpy)</p>
<p>And nothing against Penn State intended here - just think it is important to be aware that sadly, these incidents do still take place.</p>
<p>Dang…interestingly made a visit to Penn State earlier in the week and noted a sign in the Hub (student union) about freeing Palestine or something to that effect. Tried to shrug it off as typical, college “freedom of expression” kinda thing but in light of this news, it now makes my blood run cold…</p>