<p>My son has applied to Pomona. I've heard smog can be a problem. Any input?</p>
<p>bethievt--I grew up about three miles from the Claremont Colleges. The smog back then was lung-crushing-horrific during the summer and early fall, and even worse when the air was thick with smoke from various mountain fires. (An annual rite of autumn in Southern California!) I haven't lived out there for a number of years, but I've been told that better pollution standards have made a significant improvement to air quality. Current Pomona students will, hopefully, weigh in on this.</p>
<p>Each time I've visited campus, smog has not been a problem. D reports that on the occasion that there's a wildfire nearby, some of the smoke may drift toward campus; however, the air is a lot clearer and cleaner in Claremont than in LA.</p>
<p>I'd heard things had changed. Back in the day when I lived there, the ocean winds blew the pollution out of L. A. and coastal areas and into the inland communities. This massive toxic cloud would nestle in areas like the San Gabriel Valley (Pomona, Upland, Ontario, etc.), which backs up against the mountain foothills, and had nowhere to go. Winters were fine, but summers were a nightmare. I'm glad that improvements have been made.</p>
<p>It was fine when we were there in the summer, but the college guides we read still listed it as a concern. My son takes meds for (repiratory-type) allergies, so it's a bit more of a concern.</p>
<p>I graduated in '03, so I guess my info might be a little outdated, but I don't think it's changed that much in 4 years.</p>
<p>There are days when it can be bad, but most of the time it isn't. Occasionally, there is a visible haze between you and your surroundings-- gross. I can't compare it to decades past, but everyone says it's much better than it was in the 70s. If your S grew up in Vermont (?), then it might be a bit of a shock for him. And if he has respiratory problems, I suppose there's a chance they might worsen. The only thing I ever heard people complain about, though, was having a sore throat on really smoggy days. </p>
<p>There are a lot of good-smelling flowers and plants on campus-- Bonita Ave, in particular, smells great, especially in the early evening when the heat of the day is past. Sometimes if the air was particularly awful, I'd go and breathe in some of that.</p>
<p>Smog sunsets are beautiful....</p>
<p>Irene's right--Oddly enough, smog sunsets can be beautiful. Toxic-red, very dramatic. ... Back in the '70s, breathing the smoggy air gave one the feeling of having an elephant sitting on one's chest. Ah, good times.</p>
<p>hmmmm...any way to contact a dr in the Claremont area and ask specifiaclly about your son's allergies relative to air quality? </p>
<p>I would be a little cautious about this. My d also has some sort of undiagnosed respiratory issues; I attended Scripps and absolutely love Claremont and Pomona College, but she likes the coast and I didn't really push Claremont for her, mainly because of air quality. That's just me..I was there in the 70's too, and while it sounds like it's much better, I would want a medical opinion from someone in that area in your situation.</p>
<p>As far as LA being worse, I think that depends on what part of LA you mean; if coastal LA, much of that pollution blows inland..to areas like Claremont..</p>
<p>I grew up in/around Minnesota, Wisconsin north woods, and northern California foothills, and I've never been bothered by Claremont smog. Occasionally you can see it and go "ew," but I've never knowingly felt its effects.</p>
<p>There were bad fires one out of my four years here (Oct. '03) and all of the schools took drastic measures to assist students. At Scripps, the common spaces of AC'd dorms were opened up to students from non-AC'd dorms, lots of emails were sent out with health advice, outdoor activities were temporarily moved indoors, hospital masks were available for those who were more severely bothered, and so forth. My understanding is that all of the schools took similar measures, and it was the only time in my four years that something so serious occurred (and again, it was smoke/ash, not smog).</p>
<p>This past week was possibly the second most gross in four years. Couldn't feel it, but the air was not pretty. Very unfortunate for spring break prospective students!</p>
<p>I can speak authoritatively only for a few of the schools, but I'm sure this also applies to Pomona: medical hall draw. If respiratory problems are diagnosed (or can be verified by a doctor), then a student can make a special housing request that will ensure all needs are met. I know of students with severe asthma who are guaranteed housing in non-smoking, air-conditioned dorms.</p>
<p>So the point is: I've personally never found the situation uncomfortable, I can't say that I know anyone who's ever found it physically disabling or regularly uncomfortable (I know of a person who knows of a person, but that's as close as I come), smog sunsets ARE beautiful, and the schools do everything in their power to make the best of their location. Anything more is just a case of individual preference/tolerance...visit, and bear in mind that you only <em>have</em> to be here Sept.-May :-)</p>
<p>All dorms (and all of campus) are non-smoking, and almost all of the dorms have Aircond. My son is in the one (of two, I think) that doesn't but it hasn't been a problem so far. </p>
<p>Our family lives on the CA coast where we generally accustomed to excellent air quality, and my S has said that his months so far at Pomona have been fine as far as the air goes, even when it was pretty hot this fall. He spends time playing volleyball outside, and frisbee, and hasn't noticed bad air or smog. I think it's worse in July and August, when they aren't on campus.</p>
<p>Just a fact correction: Pomona only has 2 AC'd dorms (one of which is the language dorm, one of which is a freshman/sophomore dorm) and some residence halls do allow smoking (although not in any common spaces). </p>
<p>That said, students with medical need can request to have AC units approved. If the request is granted, students can purchase units and have them installed. I don't know anyone who's done this, so I'm not sure of any details or anecdotes, but it seems to be the official policy (although glancing through the document, there are a couple of things in there that I'm fairly certain few Pomona students have ever heard of). </p>
<p>Anyway, I've been in old, old, old un-AC'd dorms for three years and never been bothered (although the one year that I was in the new, cool dorm, I can't say I was complaining, either). Point is: simply clarifying, not criticizing :-)</p>
<p>I grew up in Vermont, and I'm currently at Pomona, and the smog hasn't been a problem at all lungs-wise, it just sort of obstructs the view of the mountains and such.</p>
<p>I haven't noticed it as much with respiratory problems, but for me the smog gets to my eyes. I use a lot more eye drops here than I do at home, which is a smog-free, clean air big city.</p>
<p>On the positive side, I spent my first 30 years in the Pomona valley, back when smog was at its absolute worst, and I've had no apparent lasting damage/effects from the experience. (However, I never had a particularly fragile respiratory system.) For most healthy people, the air pollution, such as it is these days, will be more of a nuisance than a long-term liability. And Southern California is a pretty neat place, with a lot more to offer than just smog!</p>
<p>Thanks everyone,</p>
<p>This is helpful. We wouldn't mind paying more for a non-smoking AC dorm. Of course, my son needs to be accepted first. What a long, cruel month this is!!</p>
<p>Call me naive, but I think ALL dorms, everywhere, should be non-smoking. At least in theory. Smoking in a dorm room seems like a disaster waiting to happen.</p>
<p>Here's Pomona's rundown on dorms:</p>
<p>It says whether each dorm is smoke-free or air-conditioned. Underclassmen live on south campus, upper classmen live on north campus (with a few occasional exceptions). It costs the same to live in any dorm, so you can't specifically pay more to guarantee certain amenities. With a documented medical reason, you can be picky about AC. Otherwise, it's more or less just luck of the draw, but as above posters have indicated, it's really not as bad as LA stereotypes (and perhaps the appearances of some days) would suggest.</p>
<p>(That said, a random fact that I just learned from a Claremont grad working for an environmental non-profit: 1/12 of all CA children suffer from asthma, but in SoCal, it's 1/6. I don't know the reliability of the claim. Four years of college should be nothing to cause any concern, but it's still a disturbing fact. Anyway...I know this is kind of counter-productive to my point, and let me reemphasize that I've never FELT uncomfortable. I just thought it was an interesting piece of info!)</p>
<p>I didn't realize that some dorms (on North campus) allow smoking in rooms. . It does seem kind of dumb to allow smoking in dorm rooms. I noticed that all of the dorms on South campus say "This is a non-smoking building." I looked at this website when my son was enrolling, and assumed the non-smoking comment applied to all dorms, not just those for frosh & sophomores. </p>
<p>I've been to the Claremont Colleges several times, and I've never seen a student smoking.</p>
<p>When I visited out there last summer, I immediately started a low grade wheeze. I live in the East, and I thought the air quality in Claremont was noticeably poor.</p>
<p>there are some "bad" days, but they only occur in the summer, when most students (unless they are doing summer research) aren't around. And even the bad days aren't enough to convince me that Pomona (and other 4-c's, socal schools) doesn't have the best weather of any college out there</p>