<p>just a parents’ view . . </p>
<p>it IS unconventional in large part because it is not (was it ever?) a strictly liberal place</p>
<p>and I don’t mean that’s it’s now more conservative</p>
<p>it has too much of a libertarian streak for that</p>
<p>there are schools that are centered around like minded people, where the vibe on campus is that there is a dominant culture that most students fit into . . think BYU (mormon) or Hampshire (hippie?) or Duke (frats) or Villanova (more conservative business-oriented ) . . . in other words, at some schools it’s best if you fit in with the dominant culture </p>
<p>Oberlin is I think too libertarian for that . . . it’s less important than at most schools that you fit into a “type” to feel comfortable there . . . students seem to be respected there not because of particular politics but because they are “liberal” in the classical 19th century sense: open to new ideas; seeking to improve the world , more respectful of individual rights and outlook</p>
<p>Yes, you’ll find unreconstructed hippies and anecdotes of intolerance against more traditional/conservative students . . . but my kid - who is “out there” on the radical edge on campus - reports that most everybody gets along and is respectful of a wide range of diverse views</p>
<p>the fact that’s it’s not a hippie commune is, I think a good thing :-)</p>
<p>P.S. as a veteran of the administration’s move to “normalize” UC Santa Cruz, I’d also suggest that it’s hard for administrators to change the essence of a school</p>