“My kids just don’t like schools that are safe for them.” Does she understand that if she doesn’t find at least one safe school that she can learn to like, she might end up with no options that she does like? ED isn’t a guarantee, so I would make it clear to her that having no safety that she likes isn’t an option.
Most kids don’t like safety schools. She needs realistic options. Personally, I would not wait until summer because all campuses are better when students are there. At least visit in the fall, if you leave it until later. My son chose the school he never thought he would end up at, AND it was his safety. He chose it because he felt he could be friends with the kids there. That’s what mattered to him at the end of the day. Given that your D seems to want a place where she knows people, that could be the case for her too.