Based on information from Niche.com, the per capita murder rate for Lewiston is greater than that for the U.S. as a whole. For those who would like to avail themselves of the perspectives of Lewiston residents, this is a recent Sun Journal article on the topic, which states that data “from the Lewiston Police Department show gun violence over the last six years has take a dramatic upturn”:
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Fwiw my D dropped Skidmore from her application list after visiting as it gave her too “artsy” of a vibe. YMMV.
Perhaps Lewiston isn’t safe on a per capita basis.
Should we close Bates, along with Rhodes, NU in Oakland, WUSTL, JHU, Tulane and Case Western?
According to US News, all are in crime ridden cities?
Unless Bates itself is showing some sort of high crime rate regarding students, I don’t think this should be a factor.
Cost of Attendance (Kenyon gives merit aid, Skidmore not really but a little in certain cases and none at Bates) - that’s a reasonable factor.
Team feel - reasonable factor
Campus Feel - reasonable factor
Career outcomes - reasonable factor
Transportation to an airport - reasonable factor
Crime walking around the Bates campus, etc - to each their own but I think it’s being overplayed here.
For what it’s worth, it’s not on this list btw- but those other cities I mentioned colleges in - are on the list. So which list is the right one?
25 Most Dangerous Places in the U.S. in 2025-2026 | U.S. News
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I know a number of recent Bates grads and none felt unsafe.
Sadly in today’s world of random mass shootings, nowhere is 100% safe.
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Funny, my daughter dropped Skidmore from her list because the admissions info session really pushed the business major, which gave her too much of a pre-professional vibe.
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Yes, I’ve spoken. Every school is a great school, but the problem is what’s more important: name recognition or athlete experience? Skidmore and Kenyon are less known, but their teams are way better, especially Kenyon’s one. But Bates is more known, especially in econ
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But I’m taking a look at the prices for the tickets to all of these schools, and while the prices are approximately similar to Skidmore and Kenyon, the prices to Bates are waaaaay cheaper, by 1.5
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Athletes at Bates are having plenty of fun. Don’t worry about that 
I can understand why you don’t want to say what sport you are being recruited for. Bates has several top notch teams for their division. Particularly in rowing and squash. It has historic and friendly rivalries with both Colby and Bowdoin.
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Less known by whom ?
Stop 100 random people on a street nation wide about any of these and I’d be shocked if 10 can name the state or know they are top colleges.
I would put Skidmore highest for name rep but that’s subjective.
You are likely not staying but even at schools like Williams or Amherst, name recognition is not necessarily there. Yet they are considered the creme de la creme.
If you want name recognition, go to UMaine, Ohio State or Binghamton instead. Well, maybe not Bing (also an unknown by most). How about Penn State or Syracuse - they’re close enough.
I wouldn’t be choosing any of these three for name recognition. I would choose them for where I believe I’d find growth during my four years.
I am not a hiring manager, but I think at least in the Northeast, Bates has the strongest reputation and people who know LACs will know the name.
Most people on the street have only heard of a few colleges, full stop. And that is probably very regional too. Different conversation though.
I think I’ve said enough on this thread, but one more thought: OP, if you ended up being injured and unable to play your sport (which does happen), where do you think you would be happiest and have the best shot at achieving your goals? That is worth considering.
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Name recognition across these three schools is pretty much equal in practical terms. No one who would have hired you coming from Skidmore would pass if you went to Bates or Kenyon, and Vice versas. Anyone recognizing the name of one recognizes the two others.
You seem to be an athlete, so your athletic experience is an important part of your overall college experience. It’s the last time you’ll play seriously at a potentially high level at a thing you presumably love.
It would be easier to give more color on the team dynamics if we knew what the sports were, but you said you’ve interacted with the teams so you have a sense. Your instincts for the teams are as good a determining factor as any. I don’t think your outcomes will differ greatly graduating from any of theses three. Opportunities to either be a star or play for a championship (or both) sound like they do, however.
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OP, 3 thoughts.
- Re the team… If yours is an individual sport like swimming, yes, it’d be nice to have faster teammates to practice with, but you will likely have good competition within your conference so are giving up little. If, otoh, yours is a team sport like basketball, having less good teammates may matter more. But is it a game changer for you? Think about the difference of being an impact player vs middle of the pack.
- Also, if you are injured or no longer wish to play your sport, where do you want to be? This is real – for many athletes. Look at the last several years of rosters to see how many play for 4 years. Not all!
- The cost is a real thing, so on this, you need to consider how easy it is for your family to swing the effectively extra 2 years of cost. What else could you do with this money? Are you considering grad school in a field where you would need to pay? (MBA, MD, JD, etc.)
Tough decision. My sense is that while many are saying Bates is the best choice for you, you think not. If you can name what is holding you back, maybe you will have given yourself your answer.
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If you are an international, will you be returning home after college ? (Answer: most likely, especially in today’s climate). Does anyone in your home country have any familiarity with any of these schools? Why is name recognition so important? Pick the school that is the best fit for you and if that’s based on the best team, that’s a perfectly legitimate reason.
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The OP will be making a major decision. I encourage them to consider and weight accurate information as they see fit, especially since the unsupported guess in your post may be misleading.
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Not sure what you mean as I can assure you that Bates student move very freely around the city.
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I said I wasn’t going to post again, but…
It is ridiculous to imply that Bates is unsafe because it’s in a city. First of all, 99% of students encountering criminal activity will do so on campus or in campus housing. Why? Because at these schools, the vast majority of kids live at the school. What’s at school? Booze, drugs, sex, stupid behavior, partying, and stuff that goes on after midnight that probably shouldn’t.
Anyone is free to Google each college’s Clery report, like I just did. The reports should be considered as factual, but not completely authoritative, mainly because it’s hard to know how many students actually make the effort to report crimes on campus, and if the administration culture encourages or discourages student reporting.
If those reports are to be believed, and they certainly do have a lot of interesting data which everyone should look at, they really aren’t that dissimilar from one another. Kenyon seems to be a hotbed of crime, with many reports of alcohol and drug use, and more sex related crimes than the other two. I am a little skeptical that over a three year period at Skidmore, no sexual crimes appear to have been reported. That seems really hard to believe on a campus of 2700 students, but we can’t go by anything other than the Clery report.
I’ll further add that we went to all three of those colleges and they are safe. My kid nearly attended Kenyon and I would have been happy for her to do so. Yes, crimes happen because students are people and people do stupid and reckless things. These colleges are all safe, clean, with great academics and motivated and talented kids. It is also a fact that Bates has both the highest yield rate and the highest freshman retention rate. That’s very important. Kids go out in Lewiston and they aren’t afraid to do so. There are not being robbed at gunpoint every time they leave campus.
OP has great choices here, but only one of these colleges is in a city. Like any city, common sense is required.
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Ugh, I hate to say it but there’s also pervasive racial component to the allegations about crime in Lewiston. It is a wonderful vibrant small city with people from all over the world. My student lives in Bates housing but off campus and I have zero fears about her safety. Bates Campus Safety staff are very invested in making sure that the campus is an excellent community partner and that students make good choices.
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Your post implies Bates is unsafe. I don’t think that’s remotely true. My basis is spending 24 hours at Bates and in Lewiston, including walking around the neighborhoods surrounding the campus. I see you have a daughter at Kenyon. I expect your opinion isn’t based on anything more substantial than mine. I think it is a disservice to a prospective student to imply crime is more of an issue at Bates than any other LAC.
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This thread is making it sounds like Lewiston has big city problems. Being a native New Yorker, I have a hard time thinking of it as anything more than a big town. Its population is less than 40,000. My neighborhood in Brooklyn had more people than that. I guess it all depends on where you’re coming from.
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Ha ha, I am in a rural area and I don’t think Lewiston is urban!
Edit – Lewiston is the same size as Poughkeepsie NY, and no one ever says Vassar or Marist is in an urban setting.
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