We took our D28s (triplets) on a spring break road trip to visit D25 at Creighton and visited some schools in southern MN and IA along the way:
St. Olaf - UP - the campus was covered in snow and ice from a recent winter storm. The sidewalks were a little icy but the campus still looked beautiful. Everyone we encountered was friendly and welcoming, the students seemed engaged in classes, and there was a positive energy on campus. We drove through downtown Northfield and loved all the local shops.
Carleton (from a previous visit with D25) - DOWN - we toured last year with D25 and it was too much like her current high school - small and quirky. She was looking for something bigger. It’s a great school for the right student but it wasn’t for her.
Luther College - UP - it’s a smaller, liberal arts school in the beautiful driftless region of NE Iowa. They reached out ahead of time to set up individualized meetings for each of our D28s, which included meetings with faculty from studio art, biology, musical theater, a choir rehearsal, and a meeting with a coach from a sports team. There is definitely a focus on music and the arts at Luther. The only negative we heard from D28s is that it is a little small at 1,500 students.
Grinnell - DOWN - when we first pulled up to campus, we were really impressed. They have some great buildings and facilities. Things started to go downhill starting with the info session. The entire session was an admissions officer interviewing a current student and it was the most boring session I’ve sat through. The campus tours weren’t much better. They split up the parents from the prospective students, and our guide wouldn’t stop talking - we never had a chance to ask any questions. We all agreed that Grinnell was not a good fit.
Drake - UP - the school was on spring break, but we still scheduled a visit since we were in Des Moines. We had a fantastic meeting with an admissions representative to start out the visit, and then a tour of campus. Despite the campus being absent of students, all three of our kids enjoyed it and want to learn more about the school.
Creighton - UP - beautiful, urban campus in the heart of Omaha. There have been a lot of recent investments in campus, some of which are still in progress. The campus is attractive, clean, and well-maintained, and they are adding a large quad/green space in the middle of campus, which is something that was missing. Great business school, nursing program, an underrated studio art program, and pre-health studies (over 50% of students are on a pre-professional track). Lots of school spirit. Omaha is a fun city with lots of restaurants and coffee shops near campus.