Racism at Lehigh?

Momwaitingfornew
Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:40:16 +0000

Muhlenberg and Lehigh are hardly interchangeable despite their being 20 minutes or so apart. The same goes for the other colleges/universities in the area: DeSales, Lafayette, Moravian, and Cedar Crest. Each appeals to a different sort of student, although there are more cross-applications between Lehigh and Lafayette than between the others.

Lehigh is not any more or less white or welcoming than the other schools. But each prospective applicant who steps on campus will arrive with a different set of expectations and desires. What one may find exciting, another may find off-putting. It would be unfair to attribute the wrong fit to racism. That doesn’t mean, of course, that racism doesn’t exist at Lehigh – or at Muhlenberg, for that matter.

Junior mom, the only part of your post that I find objectionable is the line about other parents teaching their (Lehigh) children to be mean. Of course that’s going to get a rise from Lehigh parents and students. Lehigh doesn’t have a higher percentage of “mean” or racist students than Muhlenberg. I’ve known students at both colleges; some have been happy, and some have not been. In fact, an acquaintance of mine had a daughter who attended Muhlenberg, and she transferred after a year because she found it unwelcoming. Does that mean that Muhlenberg students are mean? Of course not. I know another student there who absolutely loves it. The same is true of Lehigh and every other college – some students feel comfortable, and others don’t.

I think it’s great that your daughter is beginning, as a junior, to determine what she wants in a college. It sounds to me as though she would be happiest at a liberal arts school like Muhlenberg, Lafayette, or many other small colleges. Good luck to her! My own daughter chose a liberal arts college over Lehigh, and it was the best thing to happen to her, not because Lehigh is bad or undesirable but because her choice best fit her personality.