I agree. There might be differences in the way wealthy students behave at these colleges, which can make the environment more comfortable for others, but on the whole, there are some very wealthy students at all selective private colleges. It can be interesting to look up colleges using this NYT tool (gift link) although not all colleges have data here.
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This discussion is helpful, including the cases made by both sides.
The colorful description of Connecticut College by Bill is exactly what we requested in this thread. And we equally appreciate the folks replying about Conn College that one aspect on our wish list (not too preppy) might be an area to evaluate particularly closely.
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I didn’t say the states don’t pass laws.
But that doesn’t make the school / administration unfriendly.
Plenty of gay / trans kids go to college in red states and have wonderful experiences.
Obviously, with laws coming on more recently, we’ll hear more stories in the future.
This was from Peruna two years ago about a school and state people here on CC like to dismiss. I work within the state - work with folks, am served by folks in restaurants - and best I can tell, their lives are the same.
“1. My son is gay and involved in many of the on campus LGBT organizations. Many of his friends are LGBT. Alabama was, nationally, one of the first universities to allocate university funds to LGBT organizations on campus. It cost the university in state enrollment in the '80s so much that at the time they offered in state students free housing. So, Alabama is a very LGBT friendly school (see its Pride Index score). As for Greek life, while it does run the SGA, if you want to be involved, fine. If you do not want to be involved, fine. The best I can say about it is that it is there if you want it. From my family’s perspective, S22 has mentioned wanting to join a professional, engineering fraternity next year (they are coed).”
Again, I’m not saying the legislatures aren’t taking actions - and there are things schools will have to do - but let’s not pretend that with all people in the administration and other students just hate everyone and are making people’s lives miserable…the administration is taking action against lots of people…but that doesn’t mean the day to day experience of the students isn’t one of inclusion and otherwise amongst the students and staff. I saw it myself at my daughter’s school just two months ago in a similar state.
Should you decide to visit Conn College, ask about Mamacoke Island in the Thames River. It is owned by the college and is an extension of the arboretum. It is an excellent location for birding. The trail to it leads through a tidal marsh and so it can be easily accessed by foot during low tide. I’m a boater and can say that the estuary is populated with various ducks, herons, egrets, osprey, and cormorants (sea loons). The bald Eagle also lives year round in Connecticut now.
You also might want to visit the lively Lyman-Allyn Art Museum, immediately adjacent to the campus. It has 18,000 items in its collection, which they rotate for displays.
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The connection with the USCGA is a really interesting tidbit.
Yes, it is. Surprisingly they offer business degrees and that’s where they’re most helpful to Conn College students, i.e. those who want to take some business courses. All branches of the service need people with business skills to run the operation. One of our friends who who went there stepped out into the corporate world as a CFO after his Coast Guard career. Their campus is immediately adjacent to part of Conn College and across the street from their main campus.
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Reminder that CC is supposed to be a friendly and welcoming place. Everyone is entitled to provide their opinions and share their personal experiences.
TIA!
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If we make our way to Conn College, we will definitely ask about these recommendations!
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Drew University might be a fit. They are pretty generous with merit and are in a great location, with easy access to NYC.
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Since we’re exploring, Sarah Lawrence kids describe themselves as eccentric, progressive, and #3 - a scam.
The school says it awards limited merit but per CDS 148 of 417 first years received an average of over $31k. 1500 kids.
So it’s possible.
In CA if you visit - U of Redlands - student described as mostly well going with uniqueness to each. 1900 kids.
I’m waiting in pre-surgery, so I thought I’d write about Conn College’s location. Posters often talk about New London in this regard and point out that it’s old & run down - which is true. But that’s the wrong way to look at the area. New London is the center of Eastern Connecticut’s shoreline, which is loaded with history & summer resorts on Long Island Sound. Across the river is Groton where they build submarines. At the other end of Groton is the village of Mystic. Bogie & Bacall honeymooned here. Julia Robert’s had her breakout role in the movie Mystic Pizza and you can still buy delicious pizza there. The modern replica of The Amistad was built at Mystic Seaport, an historic museum village and working boatyard. Two centuries ago, whaling voyages sailed out of New London. A century ago, the Connecticut River School of impressionist painters flourished a couple of towns to the west in Old Lyme. Their work can still be viewed along with a large collection of other works at the Florence Griswold Art Museum. Up the Connecticut River a few towns is the post-Civil War Goodspeed Opera House in the quaint 19th century village of East Haddam. The Opera Hiuse is now restored to its original glory and celebrates the American musical with a full schedule of productions both revivals and occasional new works. Man of LaMancha and Annie both got their start here before going on to Broadway. Back at Conn College, Mohegan Sun Casino is just a 10 minute bus ride away. Forget gambling. It has a full schedule of concert performances & Sporting events and dozens of restaurants. I saw Jon Stewart doing stand up there a few months ago. The shore is full of LI Sound beaches and as you continue east, they morph into ocean beaches at Watch Hill where Taylor Swift has a house.
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I love the Connecticut coast. The town of Madison is home to beautiful Hammonasset Beach State Park and the outstanding independent bookstore, R.J. Julia. Nearby Clinton is home to Lobster Landing, a seafood shack on the harbor with the best Connecticut-style lobster rolls (lobster mixed with warm butter on a toasted roll) in the world. Diners sit at picnic tables overlooking the small harbor, many of whom bring salads, wine, and sides from home. It’s my idea of heaven.
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Yes, and Noank, a charming fishing and seaside village enclave on a peninsula in the town of Groton offers Abbott’s legendary lobster-in-the-rough, a Connecticut classic, now joined by 2 other newcomers on the water, Ford’s Lobster Shack and Haring’s
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I’m not sure how much I can add here given all the great advice you’ve received, but I’ve toured a number of these schools with my D23 and S26, whose interests overlap with your D’s (both are interested in history – D is minoring in history and majoring in Classics, which is history-adjacent, and S26 is thinking of majoring in Poli Sci and/or history or American Studies), so maybe I can offer something useful?
Scripps and Oxy: both great schools, lots of advantages to being in the LA area, especially with poli-sci-friendly internships and field experiences, but they give very little merit aid. Oxy gives merit to more students than Scripps does, but it’s not going to get you to anything close to $60k.
Macalester and St. Olaf could be fantastic. Both are generous with merit; Macalester’s top merit award could get you to around 60k, and St. Olaf’s might top it. My son really liked both of these schools when he visited earlier this month. Re: Macalester, its urban location is very much a part of its identity, and it promotes a lot of community partnerships and applied learning opportunities for students, including in positions linked to state government. The Poli Sci major is robust, includes a required practicum (some kind of civic engagement project or internship), and dovetails well with a lot of poli-sci-adjacent programs, like Legal Studies, Human Rights and Humanitarianism, International Development, International Studies, Urban Studies. Just a lot going on. St. Olaf was great, too. In addition to the conventional majors (poli sci, history, etc.) they offer several opportunities for interdisciplinary concentrations, and lots of chances for applied/experiential learning. Smith Center of Global Engagement sponsors/connects students with internships, study abroad/away, including a Washington DC semester, community-engaged learning (courses) and other activities. They also have a January term that could allow opportunities for fun courses on campus or short study-away programs. They have a sizable nature preserve, too – great for birders (Carleton College, in the same town, also has a large nature preserve that’s open to anyone – I would recommend Carleton for your D, but there’s no merit). After our tour, my son looked longingly at the huge sledding hill behind the admin building (and our tour guide mentioned that they keep loaner sleds in that building for students). The one downside to St. Olaf is that they have a more extensive general studies curriculum than most LACs do, which makes it a little harder to double-major, if your D is inclined to do that.
As to the other schools on your list, my D considered Mount Holyoke and loved it. I don’t think I’ve seen a more stunning campus. The five-college consortium offers a lot of opportunities, but since Mount Holyoke is the geographic outlier in the consortium, it might make it a little trickier to pick up classes at the other schools. Still possible, though.
Other schools that might work for you: Dickinson and Conn College, both of which might offer enough merit to work for you. Both of my kids really liked Conn College – re: the above discussion, my kids are not preppy, and neither got an overly preppy vibe from Conn. S26 especially fell in love with the arboretum, and he really likes New London, quiet though it may be. My S26 is considering Dickinson but we haven’t visited yet – however, it does offer exciting opportunities in the politics/government areas. It might be a little harder to get to Carlisle, though (you can fly into Harrisburg, which is close and serves a few major airlines).
Another one to consider: University of Denver offers good applied learning opportunities for Poli Sci majors, too, but might be too Greek-intensive (the frats, not the language) for your D. My husband teaches at DU, so I’m quite familiar with its strengths and drawbacks.
Check out student clubs for the schools you’re considering – many have birding, board game, D&D clubs and others that align with your D’s interests.
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St. Olaf’s religious requirement (two courses) encourages the critical study of religion – lots of possible classes to meet this requirement. They’re not pushing dogma.
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To follow up on @Shelby_Balik’s post, I think that St. Olaf’s can potentially be one of the best bargain around. To start with, the basic cost of attendance (tuition, fees, room & board) is only $70,000. Second, their website indicates that they offer merit scholarships up to $36,000 per year. So, if you can obtain one of their top scholarships, you’re looking at a cost of $34,000.
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If the religious requirements at St. Olaf or the urbanish setting of Macalester are too much, she might consider Beloit College:
- Strong academics and academic rep
- Probably within budget or very close, even without aid of any kind
- Right on I90/94 between Madison and Chicago, if she needs culture/arts/food departures. (Beloit/Rockford will have some pretty awesome pizza spots)
- Day trips available to lovely places like the Wisconsin Dells and Lake Geneva
- Weekend trips to the lake-filled Minocqua/Eagle River area of northern Wisconsin or Door County, the Lake Michigan peninsula near Green Bay
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But a friendly administration may be forced by state law to adopt unfriendly policies. For example:
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Yes I know. My point is what’s in a school admins heart - meaning they may change things up but they themselves aren’t purposely excluding.
Someone may be bothered by a bathroom restriction - but I’d assume they be more bothered by interpersonal discrimination. Btw for everyone mad you may have students feeling more comfortable. While they may offend an lgbtq, it may make happy even a liberal cis person.
Funny how people continue to mention Oberlin as a strong school for LGBTQ. What state ? Oh yeah - Ohio.
Many schools have come out and said while certain rooms/centers are gone, their commitment to be welcoming to all stands firm.
Laws may change but people don’t.
None of us know but I’d be shocked and amazed in five years if you don’t see people with wonderful memories at these schools.
You’ll certainly have many attending.
YMMV but I don’t see the LGBTQ populations at schools like Oberlin and Wooster thinning.
In the end it’s up to each person to make their own call.
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