@twoinanddone, it sounds like you DID consider LACs and based on your research (such as it was), decided they would be wrong for your child. Fine. Goes without saying, People should do their due diligence.
“Forget LACs vs. large universities. Can we discuss the more important distinction in this thread…the use of “an LAC” vs. “a LAC”?”
Or that the plural of LAC doesn’t need an apostrophe. 
Teasing aside, I think this is a great initial post by @Lindagaf that families CONSIDER LACs as it is true that many don’t have them on their radar or dismiss them based on erroneous assumptions. Our family is a big fan of LACs. We realize they might not be the best choice for many for various reasons but I have observed a real lack of awareness of LACs in general by most people so a post discussing them and educating folks as to some of the benefits is a good thing to see on a forum dedicated to higher education.
When I first started this college research process I pictured my D at Kenyon or Hamilton. I thought they would be perfect fits. It actually saddens me that she has become very attracted to big state schools. There are some LACs in the mix, and hopefully she will end up at one. Big schools might be more fun, but a personalized education can’t be beat in my opinion.
@citymama9 It’s generalities like your last sentence that annoys others. My D is getting a very “personalized education” at a large flagship. LACs don’t have a monopoly on that.
Aside from size and curricular offerings I think a couple of the reasons some families don’t consider LACs are related to geography. Many parts of the country don’t have strong LACs so in general they’re seen as weaker than RUs. Some kids live in places with few LACs and don’t want to have to go far for college.
For instance, if you do a search for top liberal arts colleges in Arizona, Utah or the Dakotas on the US News site you won’t find a single one. In places like Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, Idaho, Nebraska, and New Mexico there’s only one. Massachusetts alone has 14. NY has 19, PA 22. New England, with half the population of Texas, has 10X the number of LACs as Texas. In parts of the country with good LACs, particularly the Northeast, most people have LACs on their radar. Whether or not kids decide they want to look at LACs they understand what they’re about. Obviously that’s not the case country-wide.
I think I said this earlier… I agree with what was stated in the first post regarding the advantages of LACs…we looked at several and I thought my D would attend one. That being said, these qualities can also be found at larger universities…my own daughter has experienced almost everything stated in the first post. The only difference was that her intro science classes were in a lecture hall… but… they were still discussion based and my daughter still had opportunities to engage in discussion and collaboration within this larger class. She had fabulous professors who she remains friendly with… who knew exactly how to make these larger intro classes work.
I know I sound defensive- it’s human nature. I also know that @Lindagaf was not trying to pit one type of school against the other. Her son is applying to big schools! My older D attended a small school! She was simply stating her personal experience and encouraging others to look at LACs because many don’t know they exist. That’s all.
Our perception of the post really depends on the lens in which we are viewing from.
It really is quite amazing to me that posters feel the need question the OPs motives, when she’s simply trying to bring awareness to a set of possibilities of which others might have little to no exposure.
Not that it matters, but I attended both UMi and UMd, both excellent institutions, and about as different from an LAC as you can get. And my FIL was a professor and administrator at a number of small LACs - so I’ve heard their merits and challenges repeatedly over the last 20 years. Nothing that the OP stated is incorrect - that doesn’t mean that LACs have a monopoly on those characteristics. There’s really no reason for anyone to be defensive in that regard. If you want to tout the potential benefits of another type of institution, start another thread.
Read the OP’s list. Did not read the other posts, sorry folks. ALL of the list can happen at a top tier research flagship! Small classes- honors. Personal growth- definitely. Etc. I get tired of people praising LAC’s. They work for some but certainly not all. Especially those in STEM. Obviously the majority do go to the larger schools- numbers. And each student has a unique experience. College is what you make of it. A large school offers many options a small one can’t- no need to fit into one model. Noting post #15 above my commenting. Sure there are many others on the same page we are.
Addenda. Looked at my post and the one above it. Disagree. When someone starts a thread praising one form of college it deserves a same thread rebuttal. Not all students should consider a LAC. My child certainly needed so much more. He got top liberal arts as well as top notch STEM at his big U along with all of the things on OP’s list.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Except when the mod needs to repeatedly ask to knock off the debate because it violates ToS.
Consider ≠ attend - or even apply; it means don’t outright dismiss which is the OP’s point.
Anyhoo, it looks like we’ve exhausted the conversation, so I’m closing.